Gothic Immortals: The Fiction of the Brotherhood of the Rosy Cross PDF
Preview Gothic Immortals: The Fiction of the Brotherhood of the Rosy Cross
Routledge Revivals Gothic Immortals First published in 1990, this book represents the first full-length study into the group of novels designated ‘Rosicrucian’ and traces the emer- gence of this distinct fictional genre, revealing a continuous occult tradition running through seemingly diverse literary texts. Taking the Enlightenment as a starting point, the author shows how the physi- cian’s secular appropriation of the idea of eternal life, through the study of longevity and physical decay, attracted writers like William Godwin. It focuses on the bodily immortality of the Rosicrucian hero and investigates the novels of five major writers — Godwin, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Mary Shelley, Charles Maturin, and Bulwer-Lytton. This page intentionally left blank Gothic Immortals The Fiction of the Brotherhood of the Rosy Cross Marie Mulvey-Roberts Firstpublishedin1990 byRoutledge Thiseditionfirstpublishedin2016byRoutledge 2ParkSquare,MiltonPark,Abingdon,Oxon,OX144RN andbyRoutledge 711ThirdAvenue,NewYork,NY10017 RoutledgeisanimprintoftheTaylor&FrancisGroup,aninformabusiness ©1990MarieMulvey-Roberts TherightofMarieMulvey-Robertsto beidentifiedasauthorofthisworkhas been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, DesignsandPatentsAct1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now knownor hereafterinvented,includingphotocopyingandrecording,orin any informationstorageorretrievalsystem,withoutpermissioninwritingfromthe publishers. Publisher’sNote Thepublisherhasgonetogreatlengthstoensurethequalityofthisreprintbut pointsoutthatsomeimperfectionsintheoriginalcopiesmaybeapparent. Disclaimer The publisher has made every effort to trace copyright holders and welcomes correspondencefromthosetheyhavebeenunabletocontact. ALibraryofCongressrecordexistsunderLCcontrolnumber:89005983 ISBN13:978-1-138-67151-5(hbk) ISBN13:978-1-315-61692-6(ebk) ISBN13:978-1-138-67158-4(pbk) Gothic Immortals The Fiction of the Brotherhood of the Rosy Cross Marie Roberts First published 1990 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge a division of Routledge, Chapman and Hall, Inc. 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 © 1990 Printed in Great Britain by T.J. Press (Padstow) Ltd, Padstow, Cornwall All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Roberts, Marie Gothic immortals: the fiction of the brotherhood of the Rosy Cross 1. Gothic novels in English. Influence of Rosicrucianism. 1745-1837 I. Title 823'.0872 Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Roberts, Marie. Gothic immortals: the fiction of the brotherhood of the Rosy Cross/Marie Roberts, p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 0-415-02368-8 1. English fiction - 19th century - History and criticism. 2. Rosicrucians in literature. 3. Gothic revival (Literature). 4. Occultism in literature. 5. Godwin, William, 1756-1836. St. Leon. 6. Lytton, Edward Bulwer Lytton, Baron, 1803-1873 - Knowledge - Occultism. I. Title PR868.R75R67 1990 89-5983 823'.009'37 - dc 19 CIP ISBN 0-415-02368-8 For Catherine, Emrys, Marie, Janet, Wimbo and in Memory of Laly and Nogga This page intentionally left blank Contents List of Plates Acknowledgements 1. The Brotherhood of the Rosy Cross 1 Forbidden Knowledge 9 The Philosopher’s Stone and Elixir of Life 14 The Eternal Wanderer 18 2. William Godwin’s Darkness of Enlightenment 25 The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters 25 An Enlightenment Panacea: The Cure for Death 27 Godwin and Malthus 31 Lives of the Necromancers 34 St Leon - A Rosicrucian Novel 37 Alchemist and Adept 40 The Anarchy of Immortality 45 St Godwin 47 Hermippus Redivivus 49 3. Percy Bysshe Shelley: A Gothic Immortal 57 Science and Magic 57 The Bavarian Illuminati 59 Nightmare Abbey 63 St Irvyne: The Rosicrucian 67 The Wandering Jew 72 4. Mary Shelley and the Mortal Immortal 86 The Mortal Immortal 87 ‘Valerius: The Reanimated Roman’ and ‘Roger Dodsworth: the Reanimated Englishman’ 92 ‘Transformation’ and ‘The Evil Eye’ 94 Frankenstein 95 The Rosicrucian Cavern 98
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