Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction, and the Drama, Vol. 4 A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook

About this book

The work is a scholarly reference rather than a narrative, presenting a catalogue of characters drawn from romance, fiction, and drama. Its opening explains the editorial situation: an originally illustrated volume now appears without pictures, with the list of illustrations retained but the page numbers struck out and corrected by hand. The text, originally printed in two‑column pages, has been reformatted into a single‑column layout, and typographical quirks such as macrons and breves are noted for modern readers. After the front matter, the book launches into a series of entries that define and illustrate literary figures, ranging from Goldsmith’s “Skeggs” to Dickens’s “Skimpole”, and includes brief biographical notes, source citations, and occasional mythic or historical asides. The entry style is concise, encyclopedic, and anchored in the cited works, offering a compact guide to the names that populate classic English literature.

The voice is that of a late‑Victorian scholar, precise and formal, with a tone that balances factual description and occasional wit. Its diction reflects the academic conventions of the 1890s, employing terms like “the Hon. Mrs.” and “the precentor” while preserving original spellings and archaic references. Readers who enjoy literary reference books, students of 18th‑ and 19th‑century English literature, or anyone interested in the way characters were catalogued for educational purposes will find this volume rewarding. It appeals especially to those who appreciate the meticulous cross‑referencing of Dickens, Scott, and other canonical authors, and who relish the occasional foray into myth, legend, and etymology that enriches the entries.