Arthur Conan Doyles visit to Egypt in 189596 included a trip up the Nile from Cairo to Wadi Halfa in a Cooks steamer, which he documents in The Nile Journal, published here for the first time. His trip also included a month reporting on Kitcheners expeditionary armys march south to confront the Dervish forces of the Khalifa. Both experiences informed the novella The Tragedy of the Korosko, a tale of abduction and rescue on the Sudanese frontier, published serially in the Strand in 1897 and in book form in 1898. This edition is the first scholarly treatment of this important book, a key text for the understanding of Conan Doyles imperialism.
A decade later saw the staging of The Fires of Fate, his dramatisation of the tale, with significant changes to characters and story. This play had a modest success on the stage, but has never appeared in print. Juxtaposing these two works highlights Conan Doyles mastery of two forms of storytelling, while the differences between the two illustrate his evolving views and practices in the middle years of his literary career.
Arvustused
Conan Doyles ripping yarn of kidnapped tourists in the Sudanese badlands is impeccably edited by Douglas Kerr. The volume includes Doyles dramatic adaptation, The Fires of Fate, as well as the Nile journal he mined for the novel, both of which appear in print here for the first time. -- Ian Duncan, University of California Berkeley
General Editors Preface
Acknowledgements
Chronology of the Life of Arthur Conan Doyle
Introduction to The Tragedy of the Korosko
- Genesis and Composition
- Publication History
- Reception
- Context: The Dervish Wars
- Context: Tales of Empire
The Tragedy of the Korosko
- Preface
Chapter I
Chapter II
Chapter III
Chapter IV
Chapter V
Chapter VI
Chapter VII
Chapter VIII
Chapter IX
Chapter X
Introduction to The Fires of Fate
- Genesis and Composition
- Production and Performance History
- Reception
- Context: The Edwardian Theatre
- Context: Dramatic Styles and Genres
The Fires of Fate
- Act I
- Act II
- Act III
- Act IV Scene 1
- Act IV Scene 2
Introduction to The Nile Journal
The Nile Journal
Essays on the Texts
- The Tragedy of the Korosko
- The Fires of Fate
Apparatus for The Tragedy of the Korosko
Explanatory Notes
- The Tragedy of the Korosko
- The Fires of Fate
- The Nile Journal
Douglas Kerr is Honorary Research Fellow at Birkbeck College, University of London and Honorary Professor of English and former Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Hong Kong. He is the author of Orwell and Empire (2022), Conan Doyle: Writing, Profession, and Practice (2013), Eastern Figures: Orient and Empire in British Writing (2008), and Wilfred Owens Voices: Language and Community (1993). He is General Editor of the Edinburgh Edition of the Works of Arthur Conan Doyle (22 vols), for which he has edited Conan Doyles autobiography, Memories and Adventures (2022).
