Vanity Fair (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Victorian Social Satire of Regency London, Marriage, Money, Ambition, and Class HypocrisyBy William Makepeace Thackeray
Length35h 16m
About this audiobook
Vanity Fair (1847–48), subtitled "A Novel without a Hero," is Thackeray's panoramic satire of early nineteenth-century British society, following the brilliant, unscrupulous Becky Sharp and the gentle, conventional Amelia Sedley through love, war, debt, ambition, and social performance. Written with an intrusive, ironic narrator and the theatrical imagery of a puppet show, the novel belongs to the great tradition of Victorian realism while sharply questioning its moral certainties. Against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars and Regency manners, Thackeray exposes rank, marriage, money, and reputation as unstable fictions. William Makepeace Thackeray, born in Calcutta in 1811 and educated in England, knew both privilege and insecurity: he lost a fortune, worked as a journalist and illustrator, and observed metropolitan society with a satirist's eye. His experience of social pretension, financial precarity, and literary marketplace culture informs the novel's skepticism toward heroism and respectability. Readers seeking a richly comic yet morally unsettling masterpiece will find Vanity Fair indispensable. It rewards attention not with simple redemption, but with a lucid, humane, and devastating anatomy of worldly desire.
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.
- An Author Biography reveals milestones in the author's life, illuminating the personal insights behind the text.
- 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
GenreLiterary Classics, Humor
Length35 hrs 16 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateApr 9, 2020
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Vanity Fair (Annotated)
26Chapter 20 In Which Captain Dobbin Acts as the Messenger of Hymen
2Introduction
27Chapter 21 A Quarrel About an Heiress
3Synopsis
28Chapter 22 A Marriage and Part of a Honeymoon
4Historical Context
29Chapter 23 Captain Dobbin Proceeds on His Canvass
5Author Biography
30Chapter 24 In Which Mr. Osborne Takes Down the Family Bible
Show all chaptersShow less
6Before the Curtain
31Chapter 25 In Which All the Principal Personages Think Fit to Leave Brighton
7Chapter 1 Chiswick Mall
32Chapter 26 Between London and Chatham
8Chapter 2 In Which Miss Sharp and Miss Sedley Prepare to Open the Campaign
33Chapter 27 In Which Amelia Joins Her Regiment
9Chapter 3 Rebecca Is in Presence of the Enemy
34Chapter 28 In Which Amelia Invades the Low Countries
10Chapter 4 The Green Silk Purse
35Chapter 29 Brussels
11Chapter 5 Dobbin of Ours
36Chapter 30 “The Girl I Left Behind Me”
12Chapter 6 Vauxhall
37Chapter 31 In Which Jos Sedley Takes Care of His Sister
13Chapter 7 Crawley of Queen’s Crawley
38Chapter 32 In Which Jos Takes Flight, and the War Is Brought to a Close
14Chapter 8 Private and Confidential
39Chapter 33 In Which Miss Crawley’s Relations Are Very Anxious About Her
15Chapter 9 Family Portraits
40Chapter 34 James Crawley’s Pipe Is Put Out
16Chapter 10 Miss Sharp Begins to Make Friends
41Chapter 35 Widow and Mother
17Chapter 11 Arcadian Simplicity
42Chapter 36 How to Live Well on Nothing a Year
18Chapter 12 Quite a Sentimental Chapter
43Chapter 37 The Subject Continued
19Chapter 13 Sentimental and Otherwise
44Chapter 38 A Family in a Very Small Way
20Chapter 14 Miss Crawley at Home
45Chapter 39 A Cynical Chapter
21Chapter 15 In Which Rebecca’s Husband Appears for a Short Time
46Chapter 40 In Which Becky Is Recognized by the Family
22Chapter 16 The Letter on the Pincushion
47Chapter 41 In Which Becky Revisits the Halls of Her Ancestors
23Chapter 17 How Captain Dobbin Bought a Piano
48Chapter 42 Which Treats of the Osborne Family
24Chapter 18 Who Played on the Piano Captain Dobbin Bought
49Chapter 43 In Which the Reader Has to Double the Cape
25Chapter 19 Miss Crawley at Nurse
50Chapter 44 A Round-about Chapter between London and Hampshire
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