Cette autrice, mieux connue sous le nom de Charlotte Dacre, est célébrée pour ses contributions significatives à la fiction gothique. Ses œuvres se caractérisent souvent par des récits sombres et pleins de suspense qui explorent les profondeurs psychologiques de la nature humaine. Par son style distinctif et son approche narrative innovante, elle a laissé une marque notable sur le paysage de l'horreur littéraire.
This antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of an original work, preserving its historical significance. It may exhibit imperfections typical of older texts, such as marks and flawed pages. The publisher emphasizes its cultural importance and aims to protect and promote literature by offering this edition in a modern format that remains faithful to the original.
`Few venture as thou hast in the alarming paths of sin.' This is the final judgement of Satan on Victoria di Loredani, the heroine of Zofloya, or The Moor (1806), a tale of lust, betrayal, and multiple murder set in Venice in the last days of the fifteenth century. The novel follows Victoria's progress from spoilt daughter of indulgent aristocrats, through a period of abuse and captivity, to a career of deepening criminality conducted under Satan's watchful eye. Charlotte Dacre's narrative deftly displays her heroine's movement from the vitalized position of Ann Radcliffe's heroines to a fully conscious commitment to vice that goes beyond that of `Monk' Lewis's deluded Ambrosio. The novel's most daring aspect is its anatomy of Victoria's intense sexual attraction to her Moorish servant Zofloya that transgresses taboos both of class and race. A minor scandal on its first publication, and a significant influence on Byron and Shelley, Zofloya has been unduly neglected. Contradicting idealized stereotypes of women's writing, the novel's portrait of indulged desire, gratuitous cruelty, and monumental self-absorption retains considerable power to disturb. The introduction to this edition, the first for nearly 200 years, examines why Zofloya deserves to be read alongside established Gothic classics as the highly original work of an intriguing and unconventional writer.
The book is a facsimile reprint of a scarce antiquarian work, preserving its historical significance despite potential imperfections like marks and flawed pages. It aims to protect and promote cultural heritage by making classic literature accessible in high-quality modern editions that remain true to the original text.
Starke weibliche Charaktere prägen den Roman und brechen mit den traditionellen Stereotypen der Gothic Novels. Charlotte Dacre verleiht Victoria, Laurina und Magalina Strozzi eine außergewöhnliche Kraft und Handlungsfähigkeit, die in diesem Genre selten anzutreffen ist. Diese Frauen nutzen die in Gothic Novels oft männlich konnotierte Gewalt, um ihre eigenen Fantasien und Wünsche zu verwirklichen. Dadurch wird ein neues Bild der Frau gezeichnet, das von Stärke und Eigenständigkeit geprägt ist.