Lot Details
Lot 121
IBSEN, HENRIK Hedda Gabler. Skuespil i Fire Akter.
Copenhagen: Gyldendalske Boghandels Forlag (F. Hegel & Son), 1890. First edition (after the 12 copyright copies with the London imprint of Heinemann). Original publisher's red decorative cloth stamped in gilt and black, endpapers with acanthus design in gray, all edges speckled. 6 3/4 x 4 1/2 inches (17 x 11.5 cm); [iv], 236 pp. Very minor rubbing to front joint, spine slightly faded, but in all a very fresh copy. Neat name to the extreme head of title.
One of the classics of world drama, the plot of Hedda Gabler hinges on the neurotic impulses of the title character, which ultimately destroy her. Ibsen's depiction of Hedda's instabilities has been viewed by some critics to be a foreshadowing of Freud's psychoanalytic theories. The play was not immediately a critical success, precisely because of its difficult subject matter and the unsympathetic nature of its characters. Still, Ibsen's sensitive, selfish heroine made for a strong female lead role, and by the end of the century she was played by actresses as diverse as Eleonora Duse (1898) and Mrs. Patrick Campbell (1907), the play swiftly gaining acceptance as part of the standard repertoire. Printing and the Mind of Man 375.
C
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