Autorentext

Margaret Oliphant was a Scottish author and historical writer who usually wrote under the name Mrs. Oliphant. She was born Margaret Oliphant Wilson on April 4, 1828, and died on June 20, 1897. She writes "domestic realism, the historical novel, and tales of the supernatural" as her short stories. Margaret Oliphant was born in Wallyford, near Musselburgh, East Lothian. She was the only daughter and youngest child still living of Margaret Oliphant (c. 1789 17 September 1854) and Francis W. Wilson, a clerk. We lived in Lasswade, Glasgow, and Liverpool when she was a child. In Wallyford, a street called Oliphant Gardens is named after her. As a girl, she was always trying new things with writing. Passages in the Life of Mrs. Margaret Maitland, her first book, came out in 1849. This was about the mostly successful Scottish Free Church movement, which was something her folks agreed with. Next came Caleb Field in 1851, the same year she met publisher William Blackwood in Edinburgh and was asked to write for Blackwood's Magazine. She did so for the rest of her life and wrote over 100 articles, including one that criticized Arthur Dimmesdale in Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter".

Klappentext

A country gentleman and his family explores the tensions between personal ambition and inherited duty as a young scholar grapples with the weight of expectation following his father s death. The contrast between intellectual pursuits and the responsibilities tied to family legacy highlights the struggle between individual fulfillment and societal obligation. The quiet routines of country life stand in opposition to the protagonist s inner turmoil, emphasizing the constraints placed on those who seek a different path. The narrative captures the subtleties of grief, duty, and the quiet disillusionment that comes with realizing the limits imposed by tradition. Through moments of introspection and shifting relationships, the novel examines the complexities of self-discovery in the face of rigid social structures. The journey toward defining one s identity unfolds against a backdrop of familial expectation and societal judgment, revealing the difficult choices required to balance personal desires with inherited responsibility. The novel reflects on the sacrifices and compromises necessary to navigate the pressures of both past and future.