Saki
A 're-discovered' short story, previously cited as a play and therefore less well known. A house party with its typical social mix of bumbling Major Boventry, the precious Lucien Wattleskeat, the wordy Canon Clore and a breathless hostess, Mrs Gramplain, is beset by a fire in the middle of the night in the east wing of the house. Begged by their hostess to save "my poor darling Eva – Eva of the golden hair," Lucien demurs on the grounds that he has never even met her. It is only on discovering that Eva is not a flesh and blood daughter, but Mrs Gramplain's painting of the daughter that she wished that she had had and which she has faithfully updated with the passing years, that Lucien declares a willingness to forfeit his life to rescue her, since "death in this case is more beautiful," a sentiment endorsed by the Major. As the two men disappear into the blaze, Mrs Gramplain recollects that she "sent Eva to Exeter to be cleaned." Thus the two men have lost their lives for nothing. (Compare with Oscar Wilde's novel The Picture of Dorian Gray.)
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Books
- 1899: "Dogged" (short story, appeared as written by H. H. M. in St. Paul's, February 18)
- 1900: The Rise of the Russian Empire (history)
- 1902: "The Woman Who Never Should" (political sketch, in Westminster Gazette, July 22)
- 1902: The Not So Stories (political sketches, in Westminster Annual)
- 1902: The Westminster Alice (political sketches, with F. Carruthers Gould)
- 1904: Reginald (short stories)
- 1910: Reginald in Russia (short stories)
- 1911: The Chronicles of Clovis (short stories)
- 1912: The Unbearable Bassington (novel)
- 1913: When William Came (novel)
- 1914: Beasts and Super-Beasts (short stories)
- 1914: "The East Wing" (short story, in Lucas's Annual / Methuen's Annual)
Posthumous publications:
- 1919: The Toys of Peace (short stories)
- 1924: The Square Egg and Other Sketches (short stories)
- 1924: "The Watched Pot" (play, with Charles Maude)
- 1926-1927: The Works of Saki (8 vols.)
- 1930: The Complete Short Stories of Saki
- 1933: The Complete Novels and Plays of Saki (includes The Westminster Alice)
- 1934: The Miracle-Merchant (in One-Act Plays for Stage and Study 8)
- 1950: The Best of Saki (ed. by Graham Greene)
- 1963: The Bodley Head Saki
- 1981: Saki (by A.J. Langguth, includes six uncollected stories)
- 1976: The Complete Saki
- 1976: Short Stories (ed. by John Letts)
- 1995: The Secret Sin of Septimus Brope, and Other Stories
- 2006: A Shot in the Dark (a compilation of 15 uncollected stories)
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Television
In 1962, a Granada Television black & white program, produced by Phillip Mackie, dramatized very successfully several stories of Saki. Actors included Mark Burns as Clovis, Fenella Fielding as Mary Drakmanton, Richard Vernon as the Major, Rosamund Greenwood as Veronique and Martita Hunt as Lady Bastable. The program's title was "Saki".
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References
- ^ http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/35149
- ^ AJLangguth.com - "Saki: A Life of Hector Hugh Munro, with six short stories never before collected." (Hamish Hamilton, London, 1981)
- ^ [1] Dominic Hibberd's essay in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- ^ from "Adrian" in The Chronicles of Clovis
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External links
- Works by Saki at Project Gutenberg
- Uncollected stories — six little-known stories from pre-war magazines
- Audiobook recording with accompanying text of "The Open Window".
- A Collection of Short Stories by Saki at American Literature
- Short Stories of Saki — A very complete collection of the works of Saki in an easy-to-read format.
- The East Wing — a short story (mistaken for a play) which has been omitted from all previous collections, apart from later printings (1946 onwards) of the frequently-reprinted 1930 volume The Complete Short Stories of Saki published by John Lane The Bodley Head Limited.
- Link to Works by Saki
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Literary criticism and biography
- Mappining London: Urban Participation in Sakian Satire — by Lorene Mae Birden. Literary criticism focusing on the role of London.
- "People Dined Against Each Other": Social Practices in Sakian Satire — by Lorene Mae Birden. Literary criticism focusing on the social mannerisms.
- The Satire of Saki by George James Spears — A 127 page book encompassing a dissection of satire in Saki's works. Bibliography and overview of all of Saki's works in relation to satire.
- Biography by Ethel M. Munro — A brief biography written by Saki's sister, giving basic information on his life.
- Saki: A Life of Hector Hugh Munro by A. J. Langguth — Includes six uncollected stories and various photographs.
- An Asp Lurking in An Apple-Charlotte: Animal Violence in Saki's The Chronicles of Clovis by Joseph S. Salemi — Literary Criticism about the recurrence of animals in Saki's "The Chronicles of Clovis", ultimately suggesting that the animals represent the characters' primal instincts and true vicious mannerisms. Available in Student Research Center of EbscoHost Database.
- The Unbearable Saki by Sandie Byrne. Oxford University Press. — http://www.sandiebyrne.co.uk/saki.html
- Where the Wild Things Are — by Christopher Hitchens. The enduring, untamable appeal of Saki's short stories. Atlantic Monthly June 2008
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Munro, Hector Hugh |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Saki |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | writer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 18, 1870 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Akyab, Burma |
| DATE OF DEATH | November 14, 1916 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | near Beaumont-Hamel, France |
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