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Phineas Redux (Oxford World's Classics)
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Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
Author: Anthony Trollope
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
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Our Price: $8.95
You Save: $ ( % )
Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
Author: Anthony Trollope
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Average Customer Rating:
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Phineas Redux (Oxford World's Classics) Description
Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 822
EAN: 9780192835598
ISBN: 0192835599
Label: Oxford University Press, USA
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 768
Publication Date: 2002-11-28
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Studio: Oxford University Press, USA
Dewey Decimal Number: 822
EAN: 9780192835598
ISBN: 0192835599
Label: Oxford University Press, USA
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 768
Publication Date: 2002-11-28
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Studio: Oxford University Press, USA
Editorial Review of Phineas Redux (Oxford World's Classics)
The fourth novel in Trollope's Palliser series, Phineas Redux stands on its own as a compelling work of political intrigue, personal crisis, and romantic jealousy. Phineas Finn lives quietly in Dublin, resigned to the fact that his political career is over and coming to terms with the death of his wife. He receives an unexpected invitation to return to Parliament, and jumps at the chance, whereupon old romances and rivalries are revived. When his adversary, Mr. Bonteen, is murdered, suspicion immediately falls on Finn, and his former friends and lovers seem only to add to his shame.
Customer Reviews of Phineas Redux (Oxford World's Classics)
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Phineas Finn the intriguing Irish MP returns to London in a fine sequel to :Phineas Finn
Review: As the novel Phineas Finn ends the Irish member leaves Parliament for marriage with a beautiful Irish lass. As Phineas Redux begins Mr.Finn is widowed and has returned to resume his career in the British Parliament.
This novel is one of Trollope's works in the Parliamentary series featuring such old favorites as Planty Pall and his wife the Duchess Glencora. Finn returns to find Laura Kennedy eager to win his favor after her mad husband Robert Kennedy casts her out of house and home. Kennedy is enflamed by jealousy of Finn (he courted her when she was Laura Standish). Along the way Kennedy attempts to murder Phineas. Phineas is himself tried for the murder of his politcal rival in the Liberal ranks the odious Mr. Bonteen who has been elevated to President of the Board of Trade.
We also meet the sexy, dark and beautiful continental belle Madame Max
who loves Finn helping him in his time of trouble with the law. She lives after almost 140 years in the vibrant pages she graces with her beauty, wit and tact.
The novel devotes several chapters to Trollope's love of fox hunting which to this reviewer is abhorrent as a blood sport. Some American readers will be confused, bored and bewildered by the machinations afoot in the House of Commons.
A good subplot concerns the triangle existing between Gerald Maule and
the farmer Spooner over the hand of Adelaide Palliser. Meanwhile, Gerald's wastrel father seeks the hand of Madame Max.
Trollope doesn't have the genius of Dickens; the intellect of Eliot or the imagination of the Brontes but he did produce good stories of realistc
characters. This novel is a good way to spend a few nights with a wonderful novelist of the Victorian age.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A Darker Phineas Finn
Review: In PHINEAS FINN, Anthony Trollope wrote about a happy-go-lucky young Irish Member of Parliament who romances the ladies and achieves a minor ministerial rank in the Liberal government. A dispute with his party regarding the Irish question, however, results in his leaving politics and returning to Ireland.
PHINEAS REDUX brings Phineas back, but the slogging is now harder. The vicious infighting between Daubeny (Disraeli) and Gresham (Gladstone) has soured Phineas somewhat. He is repeatedly slandered by a yellow journalist named Quintus Slide; and many in his party, including some of his friends, believe that the Irishman is carrying on an adulterous affair with Lady Laura Kennedy. At one point, the aggrieved husband takes a pot shot at Phineas, but misses. Matters turn still darker when J. Bonteen, a political rival to Phineas, is murdered one night in the street shortly after a quarrel with Phineas at the Universe Club.
The major set piece of PHINEAS REDUX is the trial of Phineas Finn for the murder of Bonteen. Opinion is evenly split on the question of his guilt and the issue seems to be in doubt until Mme Max Goesler, whose love Finn had rejected in the earlier volume, conducts her own investigation and produces evidence that turns the tide and results in a resounding acquittal.
If Trollope were a lesser author, everything at this point would be all sweetness and light. Here, however, Phineas suffers what appears to be a nervous breakdown and contemplates pulling out of politics altogether. What Trollope presents us with is an updated version of the Book of Job, with the difference that Phineas averts his face from his new good fortune and concentrates on his losses. His good friends rally round the young M.P. and slowly wean him from his depression.
The pot of gold at the end of this dark rainbow is Mme Max. Phineas proposes to the wealthy young widow and is accepted.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Spinning his wheels
Review: Trollope supposedly wrote this book in response to public disappointment at the ending of _Phineas Finn_. I can't imagine why; it seemed to me that the former novel's ending was quite brilliant, really, and Phineas himself was always rather a cipher. In both novels, he seems to represent little more than a conduit for the influence of womanly wiles (as Trollope conceived of them) upon the political process.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Five Stars On Any Other Scale
Review: How can one criticise a delicious chocolate in one's favourite box? Sheer enjoyment though by no means a perfect novel. The Bonteen murder thing does not survive re-readings. Madame Max never comes to life and as such one cannot envision Phineas's married life with her, though one is pleased that he ends the novel wealthy! The Phineas in this novel is a weaker depiction than the hero of "Phineas Finn" and this is not a consequence of the author's deliberate attempt to depict a more mature and jaded Phineas - Trollope presumes we should know him. What works in "Phineas Redux" are the tiny details which provide bulletins of the maturing marriage between Glencora and the Duke, virtually all of the contributing characters, and the world of Victorian politics; in this novel we are not quite so subject to the slavish accounts of parliamentary 'to'ings and 'fro'ings as we were in the first Phineas novel. And whilst we miss the energy of the wonderful "Eustace Diamonds" sandwiched between the two, we are grateful that Lizzie and her revolting husband reappear to be reviled and admired on cue. Trollope's depiction of Lizzie shows why he is an incredible novelist, and how, despite himself, he thought wildly outside the Victorian sphere of morality. He loves her as one would love a creature or specimen held within one's control, pinned to a butterfly board or caged in a zoo. He loves her animalism. And then he is dragged back down to Victorian ignorance by the anti-semitism rampant in his depiction of the reverned Emilius. Unfortunate, but it was of its time and few can escape their time - Dickens certainly could not. One closes this novel feeling they have partaken of the politics and society of Victorian Britain. One has brushed coats with the Duke of St Bungay, compassionated the fall of Lady Laura, and shared the warmth of the Chiltern drawing room. It's not Trollope's best work, but it would make stunning television were it to be remade with the modernity required by current audiences, and it carries the reader on to Trollope's next novels, with full assurance that he is one of the greatest pleasure givers of all time.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Good sequel to "Phineas Finn."
Review: The Pallisers carry on in this rambling Victorian novel. Phineas Finn's wife dies, and he again enters politics. He picks up with the various women in his life. Violet Effingham is now happily married. Laura Standish is married, but estranged from her husband. Marie Goesler is the eternal enigma. Love and money again wreaks havoc with Phineas's life. Trollope mesmerizes the reader with polished prose that adds a touch of elegance. Style prevails over substance in his novels. British politics are bewildering, but Victorian manners and morals are the real story. The mating dance that unfolds in drawing rooms and country weekends is amusing. Subplots abound. The novel has more drama than usual. Phineas is accused of murder. Trollope manages unexpected tenderness in his depiction of Laura Kennedy. She longs for Phineas, who once was her lover. Fearing scandal, she suffers a lonely life, and regrets what might have been. Lady Glencora and Plantagenet Palliser play a role in the book. They are now the Duke and Duchess of Omnium. Consequently, a new dilemma confronts Plantagenet. Lady Glencora is the tireless meddler, regardless. Marie Goesler is ever more important in Phineas's life. Trollope's work is lightweight, but refreshing. This book is good down time reading to escape the clamor and fast pace of modern life. ;-)
Review Summary: Phineas Finn the intriguing Irish MP returns to London in a fine sequel to :Phineas Finn
Review: As the novel Phineas Finn ends the Irish member leaves Parliament for marriage with a beautiful Irish lass. As Phineas Redux begins Mr.Finn is widowed and has returned to resume his career in the British Parliament.
This novel is one of Trollope's works in the Parliamentary series featuring such old favorites as Planty Pall and his wife the Duchess Glencora. Finn returns to find Laura Kennedy eager to win his favor after her mad husband Robert Kennedy casts her out of house and home. Kennedy is enflamed by jealousy of Finn (he courted her when she was Laura Standish). Along the way Kennedy attempts to murder Phineas. Phineas is himself tried for the murder of his politcal rival in the Liberal ranks the odious Mr. Bonteen who has been elevated to President of the Board of Trade.
We also meet the sexy, dark and beautiful continental belle Madame Max
who loves Finn helping him in his time of trouble with the law. She lives after almost 140 years in the vibrant pages she graces with her beauty, wit and tact.
The novel devotes several chapters to Trollope's love of fox hunting which to this reviewer is abhorrent as a blood sport. Some American readers will be confused, bored and bewildered by the machinations afoot in the House of Commons.
A good subplot concerns the triangle existing between Gerald Maule and
the farmer Spooner over the hand of Adelaide Palliser. Meanwhile, Gerald's wastrel father seeks the hand of Madame Max.
Trollope doesn't have the genius of Dickens; the intellect of Eliot or the imagination of the Brontes but he did produce good stories of realistc
characters. This novel is a good way to spend a few nights with a wonderful novelist of the Victorian age.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A Darker Phineas Finn
Review: In PHINEAS FINN, Anthony Trollope wrote about a happy-go-lucky young Irish Member of Parliament who romances the ladies and achieves a minor ministerial rank in the Liberal government. A dispute with his party regarding the Irish question, however, results in his leaving politics and returning to Ireland.
PHINEAS REDUX brings Phineas back, but the slogging is now harder. The vicious infighting between Daubeny (Disraeli) and Gresham (Gladstone) has soured Phineas somewhat. He is repeatedly slandered by a yellow journalist named Quintus Slide; and many in his party, including some of his friends, believe that the Irishman is carrying on an adulterous affair with Lady Laura Kennedy. At one point, the aggrieved husband takes a pot shot at Phineas, but misses. Matters turn still darker when J. Bonteen, a political rival to Phineas, is murdered one night in the street shortly after a quarrel with Phineas at the Universe Club.
The major set piece of PHINEAS REDUX is the trial of Phineas Finn for the murder of Bonteen. Opinion is evenly split on the question of his guilt and the issue seems to be in doubt until Mme Max Goesler, whose love Finn had rejected in the earlier volume, conducts her own investigation and produces evidence that turns the tide and results in a resounding acquittal.
If Trollope were a lesser author, everything at this point would be all sweetness and light. Here, however, Phineas suffers what appears to be a nervous breakdown and contemplates pulling out of politics altogether. What Trollope presents us with is an updated version of the Book of Job, with the difference that Phineas averts his face from his new good fortune and concentrates on his losses. His good friends rally round the young M.P. and slowly wean him from his depression.
The pot of gold at the end of this dark rainbow is Mme Max. Phineas proposes to the wealthy young widow and is accepted.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Spinning his wheels
Review: Trollope supposedly wrote this book in response to public disappointment at the ending of _Phineas Finn_. I can't imagine why; it seemed to me that the former novel's ending was quite brilliant, really, and Phineas himself was always rather a cipher. In both novels, he seems to represent little more than a conduit for the influence of womanly wiles (as Trollope conceived of them) upon the political process.
So what we get here is Trollope's _Merry Wives of Windsor_. The plot trundles along through a minutely reported debate between Liberals and Conservatives upon the disestablishment of the church, followed by a very run-of-the-mill murder trial that pales in comparison to just about any one of John Mortimer's Rumpole stories. One gets the sense that Trollope is marking time, here.
Nonetheless, there are some wonderful character sketches sandwiched inbetween the long passages of reportage, and it's a fairly quick read. The Palliser completist should approach it with only mild apprehensiveness, not outright dread.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Five Stars On Any Other Scale
Review: How can one criticise a delicious chocolate in one's favourite box? Sheer enjoyment though by no means a perfect novel. The Bonteen murder thing does not survive re-readings. Madame Max never comes to life and as such one cannot envision Phineas's married life with her, though one is pleased that he ends the novel wealthy! The Phineas in this novel is a weaker depiction than the hero of "Phineas Finn" and this is not a consequence of the author's deliberate attempt to depict a more mature and jaded Phineas - Trollope presumes we should know him. What works in "Phineas Redux" are the tiny details which provide bulletins of the maturing marriage between Glencora and the Duke, virtually all of the contributing characters, and the world of Victorian politics; in this novel we are not quite so subject to the slavish accounts of parliamentary 'to'ings and 'fro'ings as we were in the first Phineas novel. And whilst we miss the energy of the wonderful "Eustace Diamonds" sandwiched between the two, we are grateful that Lizzie and her revolting husband reappear to be reviled and admired on cue. Trollope's depiction of Lizzie shows why he is an incredible novelist, and how, despite himself, he thought wildly outside the Victorian sphere of morality. He loves her as one would love a creature or specimen held within one's control, pinned to a butterfly board or caged in a zoo. He loves her animalism. And then he is dragged back down to Victorian ignorance by the anti-semitism rampant in his depiction of the reverned Emilius. Unfortunate, but it was of its time and few can escape their time - Dickens certainly could not. One closes this novel feeling they have partaken of the politics and society of Victorian Britain. One has brushed coats with the Duke of St Bungay, compassionated the fall of Lady Laura, and shared the warmth of the Chiltern drawing room. It's not Trollope's best work, but it would make stunning television were it to be remade with the modernity required by current audiences, and it carries the reader on to Trollope's next novels, with full assurance that he is one of the greatest pleasure givers of all time.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Good sequel to "Phineas Finn."
Review: The Pallisers carry on in this rambling Victorian novel. Phineas Finn's wife dies, and he again enters politics. He picks up with the various women in his life. Violet Effingham is now happily married. Laura Standish is married, but estranged from her husband. Marie Goesler is the eternal enigma. Love and money again wreaks havoc with Phineas's life. Trollope mesmerizes the reader with polished prose that adds a touch of elegance. Style prevails over substance in his novels. British politics are bewildering, but Victorian manners and morals are the real story. The mating dance that unfolds in drawing rooms and country weekends is amusing. Subplots abound. The novel has more drama than usual. Phineas is accused of murder. Trollope manages unexpected tenderness in his depiction of Laura Kennedy. She longs for Phineas, who once was her lover. Fearing scandal, she suffers a lonely life, and regrets what might have been. Lady Glencora and Plantagenet Palliser play a role in the book. They are now the Duke and Duchess of Omnium. Consequently, a new dilemma confronts Plantagenet. Lady Glencora is the tireless meddler, regardless. Marie Goesler is ever more important in Phineas's life. Trollope's work is lightweight, but refreshing. This book is good down time reading to escape the clamor and fast pace of modern life. ;-)