Description
Book SynopsisThe book examines the text of Edward FitzGerald’s three main versions of the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, and features commentary on the origins, role and influence of the poem.
Trade Review‘William H. Martin and Sandra Mason’s edition is a worthy addition. Seeming to respond to Edmund Gosse’s entreaty, in an introduction to a deluxe 1902–1903 American edition of FitzGerald’s works, to “regain in the study of him a little of his own chaste moderation,” Martin and Mason have succeeded, as is their stated aim, in producing a highly accessible version of the text.’ —Ailise Bulfin, ‘English Literature in Transition, 1880–1920’
‘[“Edward FitzGerald’s Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám: A Famous Poem and Its Influence” and “FitzGerald’s Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám: Popularity and Neglect”] are dual complementary works of scholarship, reflection, and academic research, in the strongest sense of the adjectives. Scholars, academics, literary critics, translators, and those who love poetry and share Khayyam’s and FitzGerald’s twofold concerns with the human lived experience of being and nonbeing will find these twin texts of much interest.’ —Erick Nakjavani, ‘Iranian Studies’
Table of ContentsIntroduction; Acknowledgements; List of Illustrations; Part 1. Edward FitzGerald’s Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám; A Note on the Texts; First Edition (1859); Second Edition (1868); Fourth Edition (1879); Edward FitzGerald’s Notes; Edward FitzGerald’s Prefaces; Part 2. The Rubáiyát, Its Story and Its Influence; Omar Khayyám and his Rubáiyát; Edward FitzGerald and his Rubáiyát; The Poem Itself; How the Rubáiyát Became Popular; Worldwide Spread and Influence; Exploitation in Many Forms; Relevance to the Modern Day; Notes to Part 2; Part 3. Further Notes and References; The Texts Presented – Editors’ Notes; Quatrain Numbers in the Rubáiyát; Note References in the Rubáiyát; Glossary of Names and Terms; Further Reading and Online Resources; Index
