Author: Samuel Johnson
Paperback - 209 pages (lengthy introduction and various appendices)
Publisher: Broadview Editions
ISBN 13: 9781551116013
ISBN 10: 1551116014
SUMMARY
In Samuel Johnson’s classic philosophical tale, the prince and princess of Abissinia escape their confinement in the Happy Valley and conduct an ultimately unsuccessful search for a choice of life that leads to happiness. Johnson uses the conventions of the Oriental tale to depict a universal restlessness of desire. The excesses of Orientalism—its superfluous splendours, its despotic tyrannies, its riotous pleasures—cannot satisfy us. His tale challenges us by showing the problem of finding happiness to be insoluble while still dignifying our quest for fulfillment.
REVIEW
This novel presents a two-fold challenge, firstly the reader might often strain against the complexities of Johnson's 18th century writing style (for which the edition has provided extensive explanatory appendices and dictionary references) and secondly, Johnson packs his narrative so full of arguments about life that one often has to pause and consider his implications and their true meanings.
Once one is able to get used to the writing style, the tale of Rasselas' journey from the Happy Valley into the real world flows fairly easily. The repetitive nature of Rasselas and his sister's trials and failures in discovering the source of happiness leaves more room for the reader to consider the consequences of their decisions. At times, the constant failure is frustrating but it leads one to consider the notion that happiness is not easily found in singular and lifelong pursuits.
What frustrated me about this book was it's lack of novelistic qualities. By this I mean it lacked much qualitative description of the characters, setting and events of the novel. At times it was more like a discussion of ethics in which the characters were merely mouthpieces. As a vehicle for philosophical discourse, The History of Rasselas is chock full of juicy ideas about the decisions one has to make in life. As a novel written for the enjoyment of a plot and characters, it is decidedly lacking. I couldn't help wishing there was more of a story and less of a lesson in virtue.
Had it not been for an English Literature class I do not think I would have picked this book up. However, if it's food for the mind which you seek, and preferably from an 18th century point of view, then you might want to consider the grave and yet anticlimactic tale of Rasselas' escape from the Happy Valley.
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