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Set In Authority... - Primary Source Edition
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections
such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact,
or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections,
have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works
worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.
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The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to ensure edition
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Set In Authority
Sara Jeannette Duncan
Doubleday, Page & Company, 1906
such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact,
or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections,
have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works
worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.
++++
The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to ensure edition
++++
Set In Authority
Sara Jeannette Duncan
Doubleday, Page & Company, 1906
298 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1906
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About the author
Sara Jeannette Duncan
106 books6 followersCanadian born author and journalist.
After her marriage to Everard Charles Cotes she spent most of her time between England & India.
Duncan had been treated for tuberculosis in 1900, spending the summer out of doors in the fresh air of Simla, as chronicled in On the Other Side of the Latch (1901), published in the United States and Canada as The Crow's Nest. Duncan died of chronic lung disease on 22 July 1922 at Ashtead, Surrey, whence she and her husband had moved in 1921.
In 2016, she was named a National Historic Person on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.
information extracted from Wikipedia
a.k.a.:
Mrs. Everard Cotes
Sara Everard Cotes
Sara Jeannette Duncan Cotes
This author also writes under the pseudonym Mrs Everard Cotes.
After her marriage to Everard Charles Cotes she spent most of her time between England & India.
Duncan had been treated for tuberculosis in 1900, spending the summer out of doors in the fresh air of Simla, as chronicled in On the Other Side of the Latch (1901), published in the United States and Canada as The Crow's Nest. Duncan died of chronic lung disease on 22 July 1922 at Ashtead, Surrey, whence she and her husband had moved in 1921.
In 2016, she was named a National Historic Person on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.
information extracted from Wikipedia
a.k.a.:
Mrs. Everard Cotes
Sara Everard Cotes
Sara Jeannette Duncan Cotes
This author also writes under the pseudonym Mrs Everard Cotes.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 19, 2009
The most remarkable traditional novel that I've read in years: sort of E.M. Forster's India (he visited Duncan) without the caves' boom. You have to rely on the gloassary for the Indian terms, but no matter: this book has a Jamesian reflectiveness and a terrific plot.
I think you can skip the over-roasted Introduction, which certainly needs editing; but Duncan, who has other novels, should be on your list.
I think you can skip the over-roasted Introduction, which certainly needs editing; but Duncan, who has other novels, should be on your list.
March 25, 2019
"Set In Authority" (1906, India) is a complex novel about the failing British Empire. The Canadian perspective of the author shines through the imperial complexities. George Orwell's essay on Burma, "Shooting an Elephant" (1936) is a worthy little companion piece.
March 5, 2020
A forgotten treasure which really belongs in NYRB Classics or Persephone.
The story revolves around the trial of a Tommy accused of killing a native in India. The soldier is initially sentenced to 2 years in prison by a court presided by a native judge, Sir Ahmed Hossein, who is thereafter accepted into the white Pilaghur Club. However, the Viceroy, Lord Thame, wants to make an example of Henry Morgan and puts pressure on the Chief Commissionner, Eliot Arden, to reopen the case of Henry Morgan. The Viceroy wants to send a signal to the native population that the British army is under control and cannot randomly mistreat them without serious consequences. Meanwhile all the brass and most of the white population of India do not want to see one of them hanged for dispatching a native whose wife was supposedly his mistress. What is very clever is that neither Lord Thame nor Henry Morgan is ever seen in the course of the story. Both of them are extolled or vilified by people pursuing their own agenda without any real concern for the facts of the case or the actual motives of the principals. Duncan gives a brilliant analysis of how a fait divers can turn into a cause célèbre without anyone controlling the process. Furthermore, there is a thrilling plot twist towards the end which adds a whole other layer of irony to the story.
Spoiler alert: Morgan turns out to be none other than the disgraced brother of the girl Lord Thame was said to have wooed unsuccessfully at the beginning of the book. Besides, Morgan/Herbert was framed in retaliation by a native whose uncles had been killed by members of Morgan's regiment. The native assaulted by Morgan survived and an unrelated corpse provided so that Morgan would face murder charges. Only a lady doctor who followed the case closely ever gets to know all the facts, but she desists from telling Victoria that her fiancé was responsible for her beloved bother's death (Herbert committed suicide in prison a few hours before his scheduled execution) on the grounds that there is no point in making more people unhappy over the wretched business.
Not only does this book provide a razor-sharp analysis of colonial India but the points she makes about how societies work are applicable today.
The story revolves around the trial of a Tommy accused of killing a native in India. The soldier is initially sentenced to 2 years in prison by a court presided by a native judge, Sir Ahmed Hossein, who is thereafter accepted into the white Pilaghur Club. However, the Viceroy, Lord Thame, wants to make an example of Henry Morgan and puts pressure on the Chief Commissionner, Eliot Arden, to reopen the case of Henry Morgan. The Viceroy wants to send a signal to the native population that the British army is under control and cannot randomly mistreat them without serious consequences. Meanwhile all the brass and most of the white population of India do not want to see one of them hanged for dispatching a native whose wife was supposedly his mistress. What is very clever is that neither Lord Thame nor Henry Morgan is ever seen in the course of the story. Both of them are extolled or vilified by people pursuing their own agenda without any real concern for the facts of the case or the actual motives of the principals. Duncan gives a brilliant analysis of how a fait divers can turn into a cause célèbre without anyone controlling the process. Furthermore, there is a thrilling plot twist towards the end which adds a whole other layer of irony to the story.
Spoiler alert: Morgan turns out to be none other than the disgraced brother of the girl Lord Thame was said to have wooed unsuccessfully at the beginning of the book. Besides, Morgan/Herbert was framed in retaliation by a native whose uncles had been killed by members of Morgan's regiment. The native assaulted by Morgan survived and an unrelated corpse provided so that Morgan would face murder charges. Only a lady doctor who followed the case closely ever gets to know all the facts, but she desists from telling Victoria that her fiancé was responsible for her beloved bother's death (Herbert committed suicide in prison a few hours before his scheduled execution) on the grounds that there is no point in making more people unhappy over the wretched business.
Not only does this book provide a razor-sharp analysis of colonial India but the points she makes about how societies work are applicable today.
July 30, 2017
Not bad but not exactly an exciting reading experience either.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews