Buried Alive

by Arnold Bennett

Overview

"Buried Alive" tells the story of Priam Farll, a talented artist who gains recognition for his remarkable skill in portrait painting. He is celebrated and admired in the art world, and his works are highly sought after. However, despite his artistic success, Farll is a reclusive and introverted individual who shies away from the public eye. The novel takes a dramatic turn when Farll is mistaken for a vagrant by a group of people, including a policeman and a journalist, as he attempts to leave his house. When Farll is taken to a police station, his true identity is discovered, and it is revealed that he has been living a solitary life for years. Intriguingly, Farll is declared deceased during his brief incarceration, and this news spreads throughout the media and society. Instead of revealing the truth, Farll decides to embrace his supposed death as an opportunity for a fresh start. He adopts the pseudonym "Henry Leek" and sets off on a journey to experience life beyond his sheltered existence. As "Henry Leek," Farll immerses himself in a world of new experiences and encounters various individuals who offer different perspectives on life and human nature. He takes on various roles, including that of a valet, and begins to see life from a new and liberating vantage point. "Buried Alive" delves into themes of identity, self-discovery, and the human desire for escape and transformation. It explores the consequences of reinventing oneself and the opportunities that can arise from leaving behind the constraints of one's past. Arnold Bennett's novel offers a thought-provoking examination of the complexities of human nature and the yearning for a life unburdened by societal expectations. The story invites readers to contemplate the choices we make in our lives and the potential for rebirth and renewal, even when one's identity has been declared "buried alive" by the world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781983831867
Publisher:	CreateSpace Publishing
Publication date:	01/24/2018
Pages:	164
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.35(d)

About the Author

Enoch Arnold Bennett, the son of a solicitor, was born in Hanley, Staffordshire in 1867. He was educated locally and at London University, before working initially as a solicitor’s clerk, but soon turned to writing popular serial fiction and editing a women’s magazine. After the publication of his first novel, ‘A Man from the North’ in 1898 he became a professional writer and some of his best and most enduring and acclaimed work, including ‘Anna of the Five Towns’, ‘The Old Wives' Tale’, ‘Clayhanger’, ‘The Card’ and ‘Hilda Lessways’ followed over the next twelve years. Soon after the outbreak of the First World War, Bennett was invited to join the War Propaganda Bureau, concerned with finding ways of best promoting Britain's interests. He was in good company, as others who contributed to this effort included Conan Doyle, John Masefield, G. K. Chesterton, Sir Henry Newbolt, John Galsworthy, Thomas Hardy, Rudyard Kipling, Gilbert Parker, G. M. Trevelyan and H. G. Wells. Bernard Shaw knew nothing of the Bureau, but attacked what he believed to be jingoistic articles and poems being produced by British writers. Bennett was the one chosen to defend their actions. He served on a War Memorial Committee at the invitation of the then Minister of Information, Lord Beaverbrook, and was also appointed director of British propaganda in France. His spells in Paris added to his reputation as a man of cosmopolitan and discerning tastes. After the War he inevitably returned to writing novels and also became a director of the ‘New Statesman’. Bennett’s great reputation is built upon the success of his novels and short stories set in the Potteries, an area of north Staffordshire that he recreated as the ‘Five Towns’. ‘Anna of the Five Towns’ and ‘The Old Wives’ Tale’ show the influence of Flaubert, Maupassant and Balzac as Bennett describes provincial life in great detail. Arnold Bennett is an important link between the English novel and European realism. He wrote several plays and lighter works such as ‘The Grand Babylon Hotel’ and ‘The Card’. Arnold Bennett died in 1931.