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Devereux — Volume 01 — Context and Discussion
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Project Gutenberg
2005
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Great Britain -- History -- Anne, 1702-1714 -- Fiction
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Edition facts
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38,921
Reading time
170 min
Text sections
4
For Devereux — Volume 01 — Context and Discussion, the stored edition analysis reports 38,921 words, 2 hr 50 min estimated reading time, and 4 detected text sections.
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Project Gutenberg metadata also associates the work with “Great Britain -- History -- Anne, 1702-1714 -- Fiction,” connecting these edition facts with the source record’s subject description.
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Project Gutenberg record #7624
Bulwer Lytton's early novel opens with a narrator reflecting on his youth and a mysterious Spanish exile, Don Diego D'Alvarez, and his daughter Isora. The excerpt reveals a jealous narrator, a rival named Barnard, and a detailed description of Devereux Court, setting up a psychological and historical romance.
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- Title & short description10 pts
- Source metadata20 pts
- Text length15 pts
- Chapters / structure15 pts
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CHAPTER I. Of the Hero's Birth and Parentage.--Nothing can differ more from the End of Things than their Beginning
CHAPTER II. A Family Consultation.--A Priest, and an Era in Life
CHAPTER III. A Change in Conduct and in Character: our evil Passions will some- times produce good Effects; and on the contrary, an Alteration for the better in Manners will, not unfrequently, have amongst its Causes a little Corruption of Mind; for the Feelings are so blended that, in suppressing those disagreeable to others, we often suppress those which are amiable in themselves
CHAPTER IV. A Contest of Art and a League of Friendship.--Two Characters in mutual Ignorance of each other, and the Reader no wiser than either of them
CHAPTER V. Rural Hospitality.--An extraordinary Guest.--A Fine Gentleman is not necessarily a Fool
CHAPTER VI. A Dialogue, which might be dull if it were longer
CHAPTER VII. A Change of Prospects.--A new Insight into the Character of the Hero. --A Conference between two Brothers
CHAPTER VIII. First Love
CHAPTER IX. A Discovery and a Departure
CHAPTER X. A very short Chapter,--containing a Valet
CHAPTER XI. The Hero acquits himself honourably as a Coxcomb.--A Fine Lady of the Eighteenth Century, and a fashionable Dialogue; the Substance of fashionable Dialogue being in all Centuries the same
CHAPTER XII. The Abbe's Return.--A Sword, and a Soliloquy
CHAPTER XIII. A mysterious Letter.-A Duel.--The Departure of one of the Family
CHAPTER XIV. Being a Chapter of Trifles
CHAPTER XV. The Mother and Son.--Virtue should be the Sovereign of the Feelings, not their Destroyer
CHAPTER I. The Hero in London.--Pleasure is often the shortest, as it is the earliest road to Wisdom, and we may say of the World what Zeal-of- the-Land-Busy says of the Pig-Booth, "We escape so much of the other Vanities by our early Entering"
CHAPTER II. Gay Scenes and Conversations.--The New Exchange and the Puppet- Show.--The Actor, the Sexton, and the Beauty
CHAPTER III. More Lions
CHAPTER IV. An intellectual Adventure
CHAPTER V. The Beau in his Den, and a Philosopher discovered
CHAPTER VI. A universal Genius.--Pericles turned Barber.--Names of Beauties in 171-.--The Toasts of the Kit-Cat Club
CHAPTER VII. A Dialogue of Sentiment succeeded by the Sketch of a Character, in whose Eyes Sentiment was to Wise Men what Religion is to Fools; namely, a Subject of Ridicule
CHAPTER VIII. Lightly won, lightly lost.--A Dialogue of equal Instruction and Amusement.--A Visit to Sir Godfrey Kneller
CHAPTER IX. A Development of Character, and a long Letter; a Chapter, on the whole, more important than it seems
CHAPTER X. Being a short Chapter, containing a most important Event
CHAPTER XI. Containing more than any other Chapter in the Second Book of this History
CHAPTER I. Wherein the History makes great Progress and is marked by one important Event in Human Life
CHAPTER II. Love; Parting; a Death-Bed.--After all human Nature is a beautiful Fabric; and even its Imperfections are not odious to him who has studied the Science of its Architecture, and formed a reverent Estimate of its Creator
CHAPTER III. A great Change of Prospects
CHAPTER IV. An Episode.--The Son of the Greatest Man who (one only excepted) /ever rose to a Throne/, but by no means of the Greatest Man (save one) /who ever existed/
CHAPTER V. In which the Hero shows Decision on more Points than one.--More of Isora's Character is developed
CHAPTER VI. An Unexpected Meeting.--Conjecture and Anticipation
CHAPTER VII. The Events of a Single Night.--Moments make the Hues in which Years are coloured
CHAPTER I. A Re-entrance into Life through the Ebon Gate, Affliction
CHAPTER II. Ambitious Projects
The real Actors Spectators to the false ones
CHAPTER IV. Paris.--A Female Politician, and an Ecclesiastical One.--Sundry other Matters
CHAPTER V. A Meeting of Wits.--Conversation gone out to Supper in her Dress of Velvet and Jewels
CHAPTER VI. A Court, Courtiers, and a King
CHAPTER VII. Reflections.--A Soiree.--The Appearance of one important in the History.--A Conversation with Madame de Balzac highly satisfactory and cheering.--A Rencontre with a curious old Soldier.-- The Extinction of a once great Luminary
CHAPTER VIII. In which there is Reason to fear that Princes are not invariably free from Human Peccadilloes
CHAPTER IX. A Prince, an Audience, and a Secret Embassy
CHAPTER X. Royal Exertions for the Good of the People
CHAPTER XI. An Interview
CHAPTER I. A Portrait
CHAPTER II. The Entrance into Petersburg.--A Rencontre with an inquisitive and mysterious Stranger.--Nothing like Travel
CHAPTER III. The Czar.--The Czarina.--A Feast at a Russian Nobleman's
The narrator of Devereux — Volume 01 begins by recalling his youth and a chance encounter with a Spanish exile, Don Diego D'Alvarez, and his daughter Isora. The scene is set by the sea, where the narrator's growing attachment to Isora is shadowed by the appearance of a rival, Mr. Barnard. The narrator's jealousy is immediate, and his attempts to learn more about Barnard are met with evasion—Don Diego responds only with smoke. This early passage establishes a tone of romantic tension and psychological introspection, characteristic of Bulwer Lytton's style.
The excerpt also includes a detailed description of Devereux Court, the ancestral home, which the narrator describes as it slowly emerges along the coastal path. This architectural set-piece hints at the historical and familial weight that will shape the narrative. The author's own preface notes that the work was composed in early youth and revised later, with the character of Algernon Mordaunt intended as a type of Christian heroism.
A Narrator Prone to Jealousy and Self-Analysis
The narrator's voice is marked by acute self-awareness and a tendency toward jealousy. When Isora blushes at the mention of Mr. Barnard, the narrator immediately becomes suspicious: “I was already susceptible of jealousy. My lip trembled.” He presses Don Diego for information, oversteps the bounds of politeness, and is rebuffed. This moment reveals a protagonist who is emotionally volatile and introspective, qualities that drive the romantic plot. The narrator's internal reactions are given as much weight as external events, a hallmark of psychological fiction. Readers should note how his perceptions color every scene, and how his unreliability may shape the story's unfolding.
The Spanish Exile and His Daughter: Mystery and Restraint
Don Diego D'Alvarez is introduced as a figure of dignity and reserve, smoking his pipe with gravity. His daughter Isora speaks English like a native but is described with “evident confusion” and blushes. The narrator's fascination with her is clear, but the text offers only glimpses of her character. The Spaniard's past and the nature of his exile are left unexplained, creating an air of mystery. The cottage by the sea, with its “rippling sea” and “fragrance from the earth,” provides a pastoral setting that contrasts with the narrator's turbulent emotions. This section of the excerpt suggests that the romance will be intertwined with secrets from the past, and that Isora's true feelings remain ambiguous.
Devereux Court: A Setting Steeped in History
The narrator interrupts his romantic narrative to describe Devereux Court, an old building that “had anciently belonged to Ralph de Bigod.” The description is architectural and evocative, with towers emerging one by one as the narrator rides home. This pause signals the importance of place and lineage in the novel. The house is not merely a backdrop but a symbol of the family's history and the narrator's inheritance. The author's own preface mentions that the work was revised to remove “episodical and irrelevant passages,” yet this description remains, suggesting its thematic weight. Readers should attend to how the physical setting reflects the narrator's inner state and the novel's historical concerns.
The Author's Preface: A Clue to the Novel's Ambitions
In the advertisement to the present edition, Bulwer Lytton acknowledges the work's youthful flaws but also states that the character of Algernon Mordaunt was intended as “a type of the Heroism of Christian Philosophy.” This preface, written decades after the novel's first publication, offers a lens through which to read the narrative. The author describes his early immersion in metaphysics and ethics, and notes that the novel was composed in “the happiest period of my literary life.” While the excerpts do not include Mordaunt, the preface signals that philosophical and moral concerns underpin the romantic and historical plot. Readers may find it useful to consider how the narrator's psychological struggles align with or diverge from this stated ideal.
The excerpts from Devereux — Volume 01 reveal a work that balances romantic intrigue with psychological depth and historical setting. The narrator's jealousy, the mystery of the Spanish exiles, and the detailed evocation of Devereux Court all invite careful reading. The author's own preface provides a valuable context, but the story itself unfolds through the narrator's subjective lens. As you read, pay attention to how the narrator's emotions shape the narrative, and how the past—both personal and historical—intrudes upon the present.
Re-reading old Devereux’s jealous, half-ashamed youth lately, I found myself drifting to another volume on the shelf. His burning possessiveness feels almost ancient now, yet it lingers. It made me think of how idolatry weaves through devotion, quietly twisting love into fixation. That same ache lives in Idolatry: A Romance — Key Ideas to Explore, I believe, just dressed in different clothes and carrying a heavier weight.
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