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[Charles Brockden Brown]. Wieland; or the Transformation. An American Tale. New York: Printed by T. & J. Swords for H. C...
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Description
[Charles Brockden Brown]. Wieland; or the Transformation. An American Tale. New York: Printed by T. & J. Swords for H. Caritat, 1798.THE VERY FINE CLIFTON WALLER BARRETT COPY IN A CONTEMPORARY BINDING.
12mo (169 x 98 mm). With one page advertisement leaf following title at front. Contemporary mottled tree sheep, red morocco title label on spine; calf slipcase.
FIRST EDITION OF THE FIRST AMERICAN GOTHIC NOVEL. "A nightmare expression of the fulfillment of repressed desire, anticipating Edgar Allan Poe's similarly claustrophobic tales of the grotesque" (Joyce Carol Oates). Set in rural Pennsylvania, the Wieland family is tormented by spontaneous combustion, malevolent disembodied voices, and ultimately murder and madness. Although ridiculed in its own time for its far-fetched plot, Wieland was very influential in the later development of the Gothic genre by such writers as Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Mary Shelley, and H. P. Lovecraft. "In its terrifying thesis concerning a lower or Gothic self which can seize control without warning, Wieland anticipates the central themes of the American Gothic experience" (Barron).
VERY RARE: According to online auction records only three copies in original binding have appeared at auction over the last fifty years.
Condition: A few minor wormholes at spine ends; rear joint starting near head; minor wear and rubbing to joints and extremities; corners a little worn and bumped. Occasional spotting and small stains. Overall, a fine copy in original condition.
References: BAL 1496; Barron, Horror Literature *1-9; Bleiler, Checklist (1978), p. 32; ESTC W8124; Evans 33461; Sabin 103888; Summers, p. 557.
Provenance: Julius Denning (early signature on front pastedown); Clifton Waller Barrett (bookplate); purchased from Seven Gables Bookshop, 23 March 1970. From the William A. Strutz Library.
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Auction Info
2024 December 11 Important English and American Literature: The William A. Strutz Library, Part II, Rare Books Signature® Auction #6300 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
December, 2024
11th
Wednesday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 17
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
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