One aspect of this blurred distinction between myth and history is Ramsay's lifelong preoccupation with the lives of the Saints. The fantastic nature of their stories were always grounded in actual events, but their miracles were given attention and focus based on the psychosocial attitudes and needs of the day, so that what the public wanted had a large measure of influence over what became the accepted canon.

Fifth Business here is Dunstan Ramsey, a pedantic old schoolteacher given to traipsing around Europe looking at statues of saints. He's unreliable, possibly as a narrator of events, certainly as a judge of himself. On his retirement he's been condescendingly eulogized as "a senile, former worthy who has stumbled through forty-five years of teaching...with a bee in his bonnet about myth;" this book is a rambling letter meant as a rebuttal, but which accidentally succeeds in proving the eulogy.World of Wonders is the final novel in the trilogy and tells the story of Magnus Eisengrim, a magician who rose to fame in Europe during the 1920s and 1930s. Magnus is a complex character, and the novel explores his past and the events that led him to become a magician. The novel also delves into the themes of illusion and reality, as Magnus struggles to distinguish between the two. Overall, the characters of The Deptford Trilogy are some of the most memorable and compelling in modern literature, and their stories continue to resonate with readers today. Whether you’re a longtime fan of the trilogy or a newcomer to Davies’ work, there’s no denying the power and impact of these unforgettable characters. The Significance of the Title The Green Mouse is the benevolent deity worshipped by the mice. A rodent version of the mythical Green Man, he is the essence of nature and all growing things. His power is strongest in the spring and dies completely in the winter. On December 28, 1908, Paul Dempster was born prematurely after his pregnant mother was hit in the head by a snowball thrown by Percy Boyd Staunton. As a result (it is assumed) of the mishap, she went insane. William 'Twit' Scuttle is a kindhearted country mouse who is the cousin of Oswald Chitter. The result of a forbidden union between a house mouse and a field mouse, he is viewed by most as a simpleton with "no cheese upstairs".

And Fifth Business is a progressively more complicated, murky and allusive affair, as it morphs into the carnival of capricious capers that lurks in the two companion novels of this, the Deptford Trilogy, all set off aptly by the plodding, dourly academic main character (Davies himself?) Dunstan. The book has beautiful prose. Simple yet captivating and perhaps it is what played a big part in what this book is. Around a mysterious death is woven a glittering, fantastical, cunningly contrived trilogy of novels. Luring the reader down labyrinthine tunnels of myth, history and magic, THE DEPTFORD TRILOGY provides an exhilarating antidote to a world from where 'the fear and dread and splendour of wonder have been banished'. Lloyd Alexander called The Dark Portal "a grand-scale epic" that is "filled with high drama, suspense, and some genuine terror", [15] while Madeleine L'Engle said that "Robin Jarvis joins the ranks of Kenneth Grahame, Richard Adams, and Walter Wangerin in the creation of wonderfully anthropomorphic animals. Audrey and Arthur Brown tell us a lot about ourselves." [16] Peter Glassman, owner of the New York City children's bookstore Books of Wonder, obtained a copy of The Dark Portal while on a trip to London. He greatly enjoyed it and would now and then come across others who had as well. [17] The author of The Outsiders, S. E. Hinton, once told Glassman that The Deptford Mice novels became her son's favorites after finding them in Britain, but she could not understand why they were not yet available in the United States. Glassman would eventually obtain the rights for his company, SeaStar Books, to publish the trilogy and make it more readily available to American readers. [18] Adaptations [ edit ] Cancelled film [ edit ]

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Primera parte de la Trilogía de Deptford, del autor canadiense Robertson Davies, pero que en realidad puede leerse sola. Yo aún no estoy segura si continuaré con el resto, pero la verdad es que este libro ha sido una grata sorpresa por su originalidad. Yo me esperaba una especie de policial y es más bien una biografía, aunque sí que hay asesinato, al final, un crimen que se entiende perfectamente por todo lo que el narrador nos ha venido relatando, desde su infancia hasta el presente. Linked to this theme is the idea of illusion and reality, a standard of artists throughout the ages. It is, of course, best seen in the life of Eisengrim, whose life and art are both illusions. He lives under a variety of names and completely fabricates his life, while practicing illusion. Sir John Tresize, the actor manager, who takes the young Eisengrim under his wing in the third book, specifically mentions the role of his theatre as creating this illusion. But this issue is also important for others – Staunton père who is always trying to create an illusion of conventional harmony, Staunton fils who is trying to separate the reality and illusion in his criminal law practice as well as his life and, of course, with his lives of the saints, which may or may not be illusory, depending on your point of view. A strategy of the author is to have the characters from whom the protagonist receives wisdom speak in serial soliloquies--each taking center stage in turn. And it works! The Manticore is the story of David Staunton, a successful lawyer who is struggling to come to terms with his past. David seeks the help of a Jungian analyst, Dr. Jung, to unravel the mysteries of his psyche. The novel is a journey of self-discovery, as David confronts his demons and learns to accept himself for who he is. As part of our problems with our identity is our place in the world. Boy Staunton is very concerned with this and his second wife, who pushes to have him appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario. Staunton compares his place with that of Ramsay, a lowly schoolmaster, unmarried at that. Eisengrim feels it very strongly, too, though in a different way. He felt excluded as a child when the local village children taunted him because his mother was a “hoor”, he felt it in the World of Wonders fair, in Sir John’s theatre and continues to feel it despite his success. Eisengrim/dempster’s father, a minister, feels it too when he is found unsuitable to be a minister because of his wife’s actions. This is, of course, the perennial artist-in-society theme, a staple theme of literature from Shakespeare via Dostoievsky up to Joyce, though perhaps less prevalent nowadays. Like most writers, Davies comes to the not very original conclusion that artists are different from the rest of us.

Cowie, Peter (1997). Variety International Film Guide 1997. Andre Deutsch Ltd. p.72. ISBN 9780233990231. Boy' (Percy Boyd) Staunton – Ramsay's "lifelong friend and enemy" who throws a snowball at him which instead hits Mary Dempster, thereby precipitating the premature birth of Paul Dempster and her subsequent slide into madness. Staunton changes his name from Percy to Boy. A talented businessman and investor, he becomes fabulously wealthy in the sugar-processing business in Canada, eventually owning a conglomerate involved in many different industries (Alpha Corporation). A charming man, he has an immense need for sex. There is sectarianism in Deptford dividing the frontier townsfolk between five Christian churches that do not associate with each other under normal circumstances. It takes emergency situations for them to lend aid to each other, but this is conditional aid based on the assumption that certain moral codes will be preserved regardless of faith. For instance, Mary Dempster is a daft-headed girl who habitually flouts the norms of the society, and so she finds herself ostracised and ridiculed by it, evidenced by the fact that no one comes to her aid when her son runs away. However, she is the only member of Deptford society that Dunstan views as truly 'religious' in her attitude because she lives according to a light that arises from within (which he contrasts with her husband's 'deeply religious' attitude, which 'meant that he imposed religion as he understood it on everything he knew or encountered' (46)). Fifth Business ends with a mysterious death, and though there are clues that seem to point to whodunit, the fact that the story segues straight into a second volume, with a third to come, indicates that it’s all more complicated than it might seem. I was so intrigued that, thanks to my omnibus edition, I carried right on with the first chapter of The Manticore (1972), which is also in the first person but this time narrated by Staunton’s son, David, from Switzerland. Freudian versus Jungian psychology promises to be a major dichotomy in this one, and I’m sure that the themes of the complexity of human desire, the search for truth and goodness, and the difficulty of seeing oneself and others clearly will crop up once again.The Deptford Trilogy by Robertson Davies is a literary masterpiece that explores the themes of history and memory. The importance of these themes cannot be overstated, as they are essential to understanding the human experience. History provides us with a record of the past, while memory allows us to reflect on our personal experiences and the experiences of others. Together, they help us to make sense of the world around us and to learn from the mistakes of the past. Fifth Business is a Really Good Book. I can't say enough about it. But on the other hand I could easily say too much. I hate to say what kind of book it is, since I didn't find that out until the end and don't want to spoil it for others. (I can say read the publisher's blurb, though, which seems to me to have little enough to do with the novel.) This is the Best Kind of Book, that's what! I think that, among other things, it's a bildungsroman, if that encompasses the development of the main character and his discovery of wisdom across his whole lifetime. That could be what makes this book so wonderful.

Perhaps the most important legacy of The Deptford Trilogy, however, is the way it has touched readers on a personal level. The novels’ complex characters and thought-provoking themes have resonated with readers around the world, inspiring them to reflect on their own lives and experiences. The trilogy’s legacy is not just in its literary achievements, but in the way it has enriched the lives of those who have read it. The Reception of The Deptford Trilogy One of the most prominent examples of this is Dunstan’s relationship with his childhood friend, Boy Staunton. While Dunstan is drawn to the spiritual and intellectual aspects of Presbyterianism, Boy sees religion as a means of gaining power and control over others. This fundamental difference in their beliefs ultimately leads to a tragic end for Boy. The influence of Jungian psychology is evident throughout Robertson Davies’ The Deptford Trilogy. Davies, a Canadian novelist, was deeply interested in the works of Carl Jung and incorporated many of his ideas into his writing. Jungian psychology emphasizes the importance of the unconscious mind and the role it plays in shaping our behavior and personality. This theme is explored in depth in the trilogy, particularly in the character of Dunstan Ramsay, who undergoes a profound transformation as he confronts his own unconscious desires and fears. The trilogy also explores the concept of individuation, which is the process of becoming one’s true self. This is a central theme in Jungian psychology and is exemplified in the character of Magnus Eisengrim, who undergoes a journey of self-discovery and transformation throughout the trilogy. Overall, the influence of Jungian psychology is a significant aspect of The Deptford Trilogy and adds depth and complexity to the characters and themes explored in the novels. The Role of Religion and SpiritualityThe second novel in the series, The Manticore, starts off after the death of Staunton and is almost entirely taken up with a narration by David Staunton, the son of Boy Staunton, in the form of a Jungian analysis of Staunton fils by the Zurich-based Dr. von Haller. Staunton fils, of course, goes over many of the events of Fifth Business but, clearly, from a different perspective and, also, adding in a few things, not least of which is his sexuality (he is single and has had sexual intercourse just once, with an older woman, when aged seventeen, arranged by his father). Staunton fils is very much under the shadow of his father, even after the death of the latter, and much of what he does is because of his father – setting up a career contrary to his father’s wishes, for example. This book is, for me, the least satisfactory book of the three, firstly because Staunton fils is not a very interesting person and secondly because the Jungian analysis seems so crude. The trilogy consists of Fifth Business ( 1970), The Manticore ( 1972), and World of Wonders ( 1975). The series revolves around a precipitating event: a young boy throws a snowball at another, hitting a pregnant woman instead, who goes into premature labor. It explores the longterm effects of these events on numerous characters. And if there is evil intent in an act of Fifth Business, that evil will be mitigated. And the good are saved harmless.