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Man and Superman (Bernard Shaw Library) Paperback – January 1, 2001
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A Penguin Classic
After the death of her father, Ann Whitefield becomes the joint ward of two men: the respectable Roebuck Ramsden and John Tanner, author of “The Revolutionist’s Handbook.” Believing marriage would prevent him from achieving his higher intellectual and political ambitions, Tanner is horrified to discover that Ann intends to marry him, and he flees to Spain with the determined young woman in hot pursuit. The chase even leads them to the underworld, where the characters’ alter egos discuss questions of human nature and philosophy in a lively debate in a scene often performed separately as “Don Juan in Hell.” In Man and Superman, Shaw combined seriousness with comedy to create a satirical and buoyant exposé of the eternal struggle between the sexes.
This is the definitive text produced under the editorial supervision of Dan H. Laurence. The volume also includes Shaw’s preface of 1903 and his appendix, “The Revolutionist’s Handbook”; the cast list from the first production of Man and Superman; and a list of his principal works.
- Print length288 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherPenguin Classics
- Publication dateJanuary 1, 2001
- Dimensions5 x 0.62 x 7.7 inches
- ISBN-109780140437881
- ISBN-13978-0140437881
The chilling story of the abduction of two teenagers, their escape, and the dark secrets that, years later, bring them back to the scene of the crime. | Learn more
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“[Shaw] did his best in redressing the fateful unbalance between truth and reality, in lifting mankind to a higher rung of social maturity. He often pointed a scornful finger at human frailty, but his jests were never at the expense of humanity.” —Thomas Mann
“Shaw will not allow complacency; he hates second-hand opinions; he attacks fashion; he continually challenges and unsettles, questioning and provoking us even when he is making us laugh. And he is still at it. No cliché or truism of contemporary life is safe from him.” —Michael Holroyd
“In his works Shaw left us his mind. . . . Today we have no Shavian wizard to awaken us with clarity and paradox, and the loss to our national intelligence is immense.” —The Sunday Times
“He was a Tolstoy with jokes, a modern Dr. Johnson, a universal genius who on his own modest reckoning put even Shakespeare in the shade.” —The Independent
“His plays were superb exercises in high-level argument on every issue under the sun, from feminism and God, to war and eternity, but they were also hits—and still are.” —The Daily Mail
About the Author
Dan H. Laurence (series editor; 1920–2008) was series editor for the works of George Bernard Shaw in Penguin. Formerly a New York University faculty member, Mr. Laurence left his tenured position in 1970 to dedicated his life to the collection and curation of Shaw's life, work, and letters. He served as the official literary advisor to Shaw's estate and published four volumes of his correspondence.
Stanley Weintraub (introducer) teaches at the Institute of Arts and Humanistic Studies at Penn State University.
Product details
- ASIN : 0140437886
- Publisher : Penguin Classics; 1st edition (January 1, 2001)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 288 pages
- ISBN-10 : 9780140437881
- ISBN-13 : 978-0140437881
- Item Weight : 2.31 pounds
- Dimensions : 5 x 0.62 x 7.7 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,580,651 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,425 in Comedic Dramas & Plays
- #17,258 in Short Stories Anthologies
- #68,560 in Literary Fiction (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
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Customers find the book readable and a great source of quotes for today's lifestyle. They praise the author as one of the best literary geniuses of all time. The art style is described as incredible, elegant, and brilliant. The book contains social commentary, humor, and wit.
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Customers find the book readable and a great source of quotes for today's lifestyle. They say it's a good read for English lovers and a work of art.
"...This unbelievably great play and work of art marked the true start of my fondness for his works." Read more
"...Readable, yes, Good or very good condition, um, no... So/and considering the work,..." Read more
"Love it, on my shelf. I read the Devil's monologues when I have had enough of people." Read more
"...but its quite readable." Read more
Customers praise the author's work. They find it a thoughtful, philosophical drama delivered in an eloquent way. The book is a great source of quotes for today's lifestyle. It contains social commentary, humor, and wit.
"George Bernard Shaw is a brilliant and masterful author and philosopher...." Read more
"G. B. Shaw is among the best literary geniuses of all time and his work Man and Superman is evidence of his writing taken to and prowess...." Read more
"...Like all of Shaw's stuff, the play contains social commentary, humor, and wit." Read more
"This is my favorite work by Shaw. His characters engage in wonderful plays on words and ideas derected at themselves and others...." Read more
Customers like the art style. They describe it as incredible, elegant, and brilliant.
"...This unbelievably great play and work of art marked the true start of my fondness for his works." Read more
"...great classics, this has to be a choice for you, Shaw has an incredible and elegant (with a touch of wonderful sarcasm) sense of humor, but within..." Read more
"Brillant..." Read more
Customers enjoy the humor in the book. They mention it contains social commentary and wit.
"The end is predicatable, of course. Still, Shaw's sense of humor is brillant!" Read more
"...Like all of Shaw's stuff, the play contains social commentary, humor, and wit." Read more
"...has an incredible and elegant (with a touch of wonderful sarcasm) sense of humor, but within this he puts serious critics about the human condition...." Read more
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Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on May 8, 2021George Bernard Shaw is a brilliant and masterful author and philosopher. This unbelievably great play and work of art marked the true start of my fondness for his works.
- Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2010While the edition of the (George)Bernard Shaw book I purchased IS an authentic early (1904) copy, it was, however, Not in the very GOOD condition as indicated by the vendor (Little Horse (in Colorado) I think)-- And while I don't mind wiping down the classics with a soft, damp cloth every now and again (and who put the recent pencil marks in the book before it shipped--??), it was not what I expected from a book listed in GOOD condition or as well preserved (clearly a point of purchase of some significance for any vintage book collector). -On another note, don't let George Bernard Shaw's inflammatory quips in the dedication turn you off high literature, it was clearly a point they failed to address in the (commercial/bigPub) editorial process (relating to the ongoing issue of mis-editing an author/researcher's work, etc... -a serious problem with some commercial publishing entities)... And while it was shipped in (shoddy) condition, not in any way worthy of a proper public library display and certainly not worthy of a GOOD condition descriptor from any reputable vendor, it is still suitable to one's private/personal library. But, considering it is an early (1904)edition as opposed to a later reprint, I expected much more from the book-vendor in terms of preservation of the book, itself (you know, like how they take the damaging-gunk off the artwork prior to displaying at museums and such)... Readable, yes, Good or very good condition, um, no... So/and considering the work, Very curious indeed, but, anyhoo, "0"/Zero stars for the vendor (F--). Less than one star for the condition of the book (D--). Four-point-Five stars for the overall (intellectual-friendly) book content (B++/A-). Overall a C-/D+ (shopping) experience for an B+/A- literary work.
In otherwords, `Meh/Yeck' to THEM, but `Yay' to Bernard Shaw!
4.5 stars for the book!
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- Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2015G. B. Shaw is among the best literary geniuses of all time and his work Man and Superman is evidence of his writing taken to and prowess. I highly recommend this literary work to anyone of culture and education.
- Reviewed in the United States on July 31, 2016The end is predicatable, of course. Still, Shaw's sense of humor is brillant!
- Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2010I do not study drama; I have not been to a stage play in several years; I've never read G.B. Shaw before nor have I read - though I am familiar with - Nietzsche's works; and, what's more, I was ignorant of the true Don Juan story (which plays an important role in 'Man and Superman') prior to sketching out the barest details from Shaw's introduction and cursory online research. In other words, I can't think of anyone less qualified to review Shaw's play than me. Woohoo! so here goes.
There are four acts to 'Man and Superman' - the first, second and fourth consist of Shaw's comedic inversion of the Don Juan formula, used for effect to ridicule conventional ideas of the time about sex and relationships. The third act Shaw called "extraneous", though that's deceptive - Shaw had a philosophy he wanted to impart to the audience with this play, and the three acts surrounding the third are merely spoonfuls of sugar that help that philosophy go down. To further advance his ideas, there is a long letter to Shaw's contemporary and Times' theater critic, Arthur Bingham Walkley, that functions as an introduction; and an appendix in the form of a pamphlet - The Revolutionist's Handbook and Pocket Companion - facetiously authored by one of the cast of characters.
The three comedy acts are still enjoyable today; as one who does not read much drama, I would say that 'Superman' reminded me a little of fellow Irishman Oscar Wilde's 'The Importance of Being Earnest', except perhaps a little less clever. Here the modern Don Juan, John Tanner, is pursued by the woman Ann Whitefield, instead of vice versa - but both sexes are really only unconscious puppets of the 'Life Force', which insistently demands they play the procreation role. The third act is a dream of the main character's - a long dialectical dream where the original Don Juan, his object of pursuit, her father, and the Devil meet in Hell to further discuss and elaborate on the nature of the 'Life Force'.
The 'Life Force', says Don Juan to the Devil, has created in him a tool, a philosopher's brain, with the overwhelming urge now to know itself and its destination, rather than to follow the path of least resistance - in other words, it is for enlightened mankind to direct its own destiny, and from necessity to pull the masses up along with it. That necessity is a political one - "We must either breed political capacity (in the electorate)," says Shaw in his letter to Walkley, "or else be ruined by Democracy". He saw the work of reformers and progressives as insufficient, and even going so far as suggesting (in the words of the Revolutionary's Handbook) a State Department of Evolution to oversee matters. Before this could happen though, the ridiculous mores of Victorian society concerning sex and relationships had to be torn apart, and Shaw does his part by entertainingly lampooning and lambasting it in the comedic portions of the play. Once the romantic nonsense was swept away, the whole business could be conducted along more sensible lines, thus evolving the Superman. Otherwise, as willing or unwilling members of a democracy, the country would find itself at the whim of the 'swinish multitudes', or, the electorate.
Well, anyone who is familiar with the 20th Century knows that creating supermen has so far proved to be a bad idea, and, as far as I can tell, repudiating the old customs associated with breeding has not brought overwhelming enlightenment to the masses. (Or refudiating, according to one of my companions in the swinish multitude). That a representative democracy is only as good as its public is, unfortunately, an inherent fact of the system. It may have looked tempting to try and improve that public by breeding - I only pray THAT particular method is permanently discredited.
What is clear is that Shaw gives the Devil the most prescient lines of the play. "Beware of the pursuit of the Superhuman: it leads to an indiscriminate contempt for the human." (I believe there are tens, if not hundreds, of millions of people from the last century who found this out firsthand.) Perhaps Shaw thought of this as the 'Devil's advocate' position, but since he more or less ends the third act with these lines indicates to me that he wasn't totally unaware of the dangers involved. Nevertheless, while the play - minus the third act, introduction and appendix - still reflects common habits (requirements?) between men and women today, so far, the empirical evidence of history weighs in against the idea of attempting to purposely breed a race of Supermen.
Otherwise, I think Shaw is dead-on as he describes several primal instincts concerning sexual pursuit. Accurate, and perhaps a bit ruthless - one might even get the idea that Shaw had it in for women as a whole. There are also other conventions of his time that he attacks here, mostly involving class and privilege - but even though I think his points still apply, the framework of the problems have changed enough in the last hundred years to where his description of them is hard to transport to our modern situation. In the end, 'Man and Superman' is mostly interesting as a historical document - evidence of a mindset from the turn of the century, along with a mildly amusing entertainment.
Also of note: At the end of the Revolutionary's Handbook is a lengthy list of aphorisms, such as "He who can, does. He who cannot, teaches," and "Hell is paved with good intentions, not with bad ones." Doubtless others on the list will be as familiar, and may be of interest to those who enjoy that sort of thing. Honestly, they seem self-congratulatory to me, but then I'm only part of the swinish multitude, so what do I know?
This edition of the play is in the trade paperback format, and includes only the letter, the play, and the handbook. It is completely acceptable if this were the only play by Shaw that one wanted, though there are other collections that include more than one play and some commentary also, and surely for less than the cost of this edition.
- Reviewed in the United States on January 1, 2019Love it, on my shelf. I read the Devil's monologues when I have had enough of people.
- Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2011I read this play after enjoying Pygmalion. Shaw creates a female lead who uses her femininity and supposed delicacy/cluelessness to manipulate those around her, ultimately trapping the Don Juan-esque male lead into marrying her despite his objections to the institution. Although she pretends to be helpless, she actually controls the situation, so I think this counts as a feminist work, although I'm confused about what his ultimate message is. I'm also not sure how the whole philosophy of the life-force, superman thing fits in, but I haven't read much philosophy, and I enjoyed the play regardless. Like all of Shaw's stuff, the play contains social commentary, humor, and wit.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2013This is my favorite work by Shaw. His characters engage in wonderful plays on words and ideas derected at themselves and others. I have read this play many times and always find something new in it.
Top reviews from other countries
- AlofradiqueReviewed in Spain on August 5, 2021
2.0 out of 5 stars Shameful edition — Bibliotech Press's
This is not a complete edition of Man and Superman. It conspicuously lacks The Revolutionist's Handbook, which is mentioned in the Epistle Dedicatory. I would not buy this one again.
The Penguin Classics' edition is much more complete and informative, as it even includes an Introduction by Stanly Weintraub which makes sense of the whole oeuvre.
- G.VarshaReviewed in India on August 5, 2019
5.0 out of 5 stars Read it,enjoy it n think over it
I m an unabashed fan of the great GBS ,His works always entertain n never fail to enlighten the readers.The heroine of this drama Ana represents naturally strong feminine force Shaw always believed in.
- Mr. J. N. PlantReviewed in the United Kingdom on May 23, 2015
5.0 out of 5 stars Man and Superwoman
I have been thrilled by the plays of GBS for for than 60 years. This was bought and read by my wife and I as a preparation for the National Theatre's broadcast of the theatre production to local cinemas. It is a variation of the battle of the sexes.John Tanner with all the arguments thinks that he has overcome Anne. But she wins in the end.
- WWReviewed in Germany on March 29, 2015
5.0 out of 5 stars a Classic
After 20 years re-read the Play, and it is as fresh and critical and entertaining as I remember. What a pity that Shaw's plays seems to be out of fashion on stage. Witty, charming, cynical and the essence of the Don Juan theme.
- Amazon KundeReviewed in Germany on May 23, 2021
3.0 out of 5 stars Ok
Ok