The String of Pearls; Or, The Barber of Fleet Street. A Domestic Romance (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. A Victorian Penny Dreadful of London Gothic Crime and Urban TerrorBy Thomas Peckett Prest, James Malcolm Rymer
Length48h 51m
About this audiobook
A landmark of Victorian popular fiction, The String of Pearls; Or, The Barber of Fleet Street explores urban terror, domestic vulnerability, criminal enterprise, and the sensational appetite of the penny press. Combining melodrama, Gothic menace, satire, and brisk serial plotting, it situates the infamous barber of Fleet Street within a bustling London of apprentices, sailors, shopkeepers, and hidden economies. Its standout episodes of disappearance, disguise, and gruesome commerce helped establish one of the nineteenth century's most enduring urban legends. Associated with Thomas Peckett Prest and James Malcolm Rymer, two prolific architects of penny dreadful culture, the work reflects the energies of mass-market serial publication in the 1840s. Their fiction drew upon popular theatre, crime reporting, Newgate narratives, and working-class readerships newly served by cheap print. Together, these voices helped shape a literary movement in which sensational entertainment became a vehicle for anxieties about class, consumption, policing, and metropolitan anonymity. This volume is recommended for readers interested in Victorian literature, crime fiction, Gothic studies, and the history of popular media. It offers a rare opportunity to encounter multiple registers—comic, horrific, moralizing, and theatrical—within a single influential narrative. Readers will find not only the origins of Sweeney Todd but also a vivid dialogue between popular imagination and the social realities of industrial London.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
GenreHorror, Mystery and Thriller
Length48 hrs 51 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateDec 12, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2Introduction
3Synopsis
4Historical Context
5PREFACE.
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6CHAPTER I . THE STRANGE CUSTOMER AT SWEENEY TODD'S.
7CHAPTER II THE SPECTACLE-MAKER'S DAUGHTER.
8CHAPTER III . A MAN IS LOST.
9CHAPTER IV . THE PIE-SHOP, BELL-YARD.
10CHAPTER V THE MEETING IN THE TEMPLE.
11CHAPTER VI . THE CONFERENCE, AND THE FEARFUL NARRATION IN THE GARDEN.
12CHAPTER VII . THE BARBER AND THE LAPIDARY.
13CHAPTER VIII . THE THIEVES' HOME.
14CHAPTER IX . JOHANNA AT HOME, AND THE RESOLUTION.
15CHAPTER X . THE COLONEL AND HIS FRIEND.
16CHAPTER XI . THE STRANGER AT LOVETT'S.
17CHAPTER XII . THE RESOLUTION COME TO BY JOHANNA OAKLEY.
18CHAPTER XIII . JOHANNA'S INTERVIEW WITH ARABELLA WILMOT, AND THE ADVICE.
19CHAPTER XIV . TOBIAS'S THREAT, AND ITS CONSEQUENCES.
20CHAPTER XV . THE SECOND INTERVIEW BETWEEN JOHANNA AND THE COLONEL IN THE TEMPLE GARDENS.
21CHAPTER XVI . THE BARBER MAKES ANOTHER ATTEMPT TO SELL THE STRING OF PEARLS.
22CHAPTER XIV . THE GREAT CHANGE IN THE PROSPECTS OF SWEENEY TODD.
23CHAPTER XV . TOBIAS'S ADVENTURES DURING THE ABSENCE OF SWEENEY TODD.
24CHAPTER XVI . THE STRANGE ODOUR IN OLD ST. DUNSTAN'S CHURCH.
25CHAPTER XVII . SWEENEY TODD'S PROCEEDINGS CONSEQUENT UPON THE DEPARTURE OF TOBIAS.
26CHAPTER XVIII . THE MISADVENTURE OF TOBIAS.—THE MAD-HOUSE ON PECKHAM-RYE.
27CHAPTER XIX . THE MADHOUSE CELL.
28CHAPTER XX . THE NEW COOK TO MRS. LOVETT GETS TIRED OF HIS SITUATION.
29CHAPTER XXI . THE NIGHT AT THE MADHOUSE.
30CHAPTER XXII . MR. FOGG'S STORY AT THE MADHOUSE TO SWEENEY TODD.
31CHAPTER XXIV . COLONEL JEFFERY MAKES ANOTHER EFFORT TO COME AT SWEENEY TODD'S SECRET.
32CHAPTER XXV . TOBIAS MAKES AN ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE FROM THE MADHOUSE.
33CHAPTER XXVI . THE MADHOUSE YARD, AND TOBIAS'S NEW FRIEND.
34CHAPTER XXVII . THE CONSULTATION OF COLONEL JEFFERY WITH THE MAGISTRATE.
35CHAPTER XXVIII . TOBIAS'S ESCAPE FROM MR. FOGG'S ESTABLISHMENT.
36CHAPTER XXIX . TOBIAS'S RAPID JOURNEY TO LONDON.
37CHAPTER XXX . MRS. LOVETT'S COOK MAKES A DESPERATE ATTEMPT.
38CHAPTER XXXI . SHOWS HOW TOBIAS GOT TO LONDON.
39CHAPTER XXII . TOBIAS HAS A MIND DISEASED.
40CHAPTER XXXIII . JOHANNA WALKS ABROAD IN DISGUISE.
41CHAPTER XXXIV . MR. FOGG FINDS THAT ALL IS NOT GOLD THAT GLITTERS.
42CHAPTER XXXV . MRS. LOVETT'S NEW LOVER.
43CHAPTER XXXVI . TOBIAS'S MOTHER AWAKENS OLD RECOLLECTIONS.
44CHAPTER XXXVII . THE SEARCH AT TODD'S.
45CHAPTER XXXVIII . SIR RICHARD PRIES INTO TODD'S SECRETS.
46CHAPTER XXXIX . THE MYSTERIOUS CUPBOARD.
47CHAPTER XL . CROTCHET ASTONISHES MR. TODD.
48CHAPTER XLI . TODD'S VISION.
49CHAPTER XLII . THE GREAT SACRIFICE.
50CHAPTER XLIII . AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE.
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