The Devil - A Fin-de-Siècle Comedy of Temptation Desire and Moral Self-Deception

Ferenc Molnár

Sinopse

Ferenc Molnár's The Devil (1907) is a sophisticated three-act comedy in which a worldly, insinuating Devil enters the lives of a painter and a woman whose emotional loyalties appear secure, exposing the instability beneath respectable bourgeois morality. Through witty dialogue, rapid reversals, theatrical coincidence, and psychological manipulation, Molnár turns seduction into an intellectual game: desire is not simply imposed but awakened, rationalized, and performed. The play belongs to the fin-de-siècle tradition of European drawing-room comedy while anticipating modern drama's interest in ambiguity, self-fashioning, and the theatricality of social behavior. Its elegant surface conceals a skeptical inquiry into marriage, artistic freedom, and the myths by which people preserve their self-image. Molnár, born Jenő Neumann in Budapest in 1878, was a journalist, novelist, and dramatist whose intimate knowledge of urban Hungarian society shaped his sharply observant theater. His work emerged from the cosmopolitan culture of Budapest, where literary naturalism, popular entertainment, and sophisticated commercial theater increasingly overlapped. The Devil reflects his fascination with the tensions between convention and impulse, as well as his gift for transforming social observation into polished stagecraft. Its success helped establish him internationally as a playwright capable of combining popular appeal with psychological and moral complexity. This book is particularly recommended to readers interested in European modernism, fin-de-siècle theater, and comedies that use laughter to unsettle conventional morality. It will appeal equally to admirers of Wilde, Schnitzler, and Shaw, yet Molnár's work retains a distinct Hungarian urban sensibility. The Devil offers an entertaining, intellectually agile examination of temptation and performance, rewarding both theatrical reading and stage production.

Disponível desde: 02/12/2023.

Comprimento de impressão: 629 páginas.

Outros livros que poderiam interessá-lo

Students Hustle

Tarun Agarwal

Amidst cut throat competition between educational institutions; students parry pole to post, in order to find a place for themselves, both before and after their induction. In this race, there's much that is valuable which goes unnoticed, prior being sacrificed. 
The Grateful For Being Rejected is a book I self published many years back for students to explore options like home-schooling. Not all are meant to, and are good at finding a place, when they can, and, are destined to make a place instead.

Ver livro

Becoming an Indie Author -...

Pauline Wilson

An honest, heartfelt account of the journey to becoming an independently published author. 
Have you ever wondered if it's too late to chase a dream? 
Six years ago, Pauline Wilson retired from a full-time career and did something most people only talk about: she became a published author. Not once, but three times. 
In Becoming an Indie Author Pauline shares the self-doubt, the steep learning curves, the thrill of holding a finished book, and the quiet determination that kept her going when fear said stop. 
This isn't a step-by-step publishing manual. It's the story behind the story — what it really feels like to write your first novel, navigate the maze of self-publishing, build an author platform from scratch, and put your work into the world. Pauline covers everything from finding your voice and wrestling with research, to editing, cover design, marketing, and the surprising emotional cost of it all. 
 If you've ever quietly wondered whether your dream of writing is still possible, this book is for you.  
Get Your Copy Now

Ver livro

Walden

Henry David Thoreau

Immerse yourself in the serene and reflective world of Walden by Henry David Thoreau, narrated by Gary Middleton. This timeless literary classic chronicles Thoreau’s two years living in a simple cabin near Walden Pond, exploring themes of self-reliance, nature, and the pursuit of a meaningful life. Through his philosophical insights and poetic descriptions of the natural world, Thoreau invites readers to reflect on the essentials of existence and the beauty of simplicity. 
Gary Middleton’s thoughtful narration captures the quiet elegance and profound wisdom of Thoreau’s words, making this audiobook an inspiring journey for listeners seeking solitude and connection with nature. Whether revisiting this masterpiece or experiencing it for the first time, Walden offers a meditative escape into the timeless beauty of the natural world. 
This audiobook celebrates the enduring relevance of Thoreau’s message, reminding us of the value of introspection, the rhythms of nature, and the simplicity of life lived deliberately.

Ver livro

Bibliomysteries Volume 4

Martin Edwards, Michael Koryta,...

A must-listen collection of four bibliomysteries by bestselling and award-winning authors 
 
 
 
Bibliomysteries Volume 4 includes: 
 
 
 
● "Reconciliation Day" by Christopher Fowler 
 
 
 
● "Hoodoo Harry" by Joe R. Lansdale 
 
 
 
● "The Traitor" by Martin Edwards 
 
 
 
● "The Last Honest Horse Thief" by Michael Koryta

Ver livro

Albert Fish: The Notorious Life...

Charles River Editors

Albert Fish did not look like a monster. That was what people remembered after the newspapers had printed every sensationalized story, the trial had ended, and Americans were left with trying to understand who Albert Fish was. Pictures showed him with a slight frame, white hair, and mild blue eyes behind wire-rimmed glasses. Those who actually knew him recalled the way he spoke to children, mixing patience, kindness, and gentleness in ways that children recognize and trust without being taught. Neighbors described him as pleasant, and landladies said he was no trouble at all. He paid his rent on time, never raised his voice, and smiled easily and often. His smile reached his eyes like genuine ones do, in a way that cannot be easily faked.
It turned out that for more than 40 years, Albert Fish had been moving through the country, leaving behind him a trail of victims that the authorities had not yet connected and would not connect for years to come. That trail, when it was finally mapped, would test the limits of what the American criminal justice system had ever been asked to confront. He was, according to the psychiatrists who examined him, the most complex case of sexual psychopathy in American history, and he engaged in behaviors so far outside normal human boundaries that many professionals found themselves lacking adequate clinical language to describe him. His crimes were not driven by money, ambition, or any of the motives that typical criminals possess when committing such acts. What motivated him were issues so deeply rooted in the wreckage of his childhood that the psychiatrists who later examined him could trace his crimes back to his youth and still not fully understand what they found.
Fish was also genuinely good with children, a detail that every person who studies him eventually learns but struggles to internalize. He had a natural ease with young people, a patience and playfulness that boys and girls recognized and responded to.

Ver livro

21 Futures: Financial Fallout

21 Authors

Currencies debased. Privacy under attack. Cash goes underground. The crushing weight of debt. We were never prepared. Welcome to a system designed to keep us poor. The harder we work, the less we gain. And as we struggle, the noose only tightens. And then, when we have nothing left to lose, we turn on those who rigged the game. We stand and fight. These 21 stories portray unfortunate yet brilliant heroes fighting the powers that triggered financial fallout. Money is broken, but hope is not lost.

Ver livro