Edward FitzGerald's Rubiyt of Omar Khayym Revisited: The Wine, the Vine, and [Hardcover]

Edward FitzGerald's Rub?iy?t of Omar Khayy?m Revisited: The Wine, the Vine, and the Rose examines an overlooked masterpiece which was a phenomenon in its day. Rub?iy?t of Omar Khayy?m, translated by Edward FitzGerald (1809-1883), sold millions of copies between its first publication in 1859 and World War II, becoming one of the best-selling books of all time, only to disappear from the public eye until the age of the Internet revived interest in the work. Russell Brickey synthesizes scholarship and close reading in the first monograph dedicated to the Rub?iy?t, taking into account the original poetry of Omar Khayy?m (1038-1141), a polyglot who lived in medieval Persia, and the western poetic tradition that informed FitzGerald's creative palimpsest. These include the Song of Solomon, 17th century Cavalier Poetry, the Sonnet Sequence, and the poems of Alfred Tennyson, William Wordsworth, and others. This book looks at the offshoots of Omar Khayy?m and Edward FitzGerald's poetic brotherhood, the pulp-novels, movies, and poems their poem inspired.This book examines the poetry and poetic influence, before and after, of Rub?iy?t of Omar Khayy?m, including 17th century poetry, the sonnet sequence, and 19th century poetry, along with the books, movies, and poems inspired by the Rub?iy?t.Russell Brickey is independent scholar.

Preface: A Strange Farrago of Grave and Gay
Chapter 1: Omar's Introduction: Backgrounds & Forms
Chapter 2: Defining the Rub?iy?t
Chapter 3: Omar & Co.
Chapter 4: Omar's Persia
Chapter 5: A New Structural Prospectus
Chapter 6: The Suites of The Rub?iy?t
Chapter 7: Case Studies: The Gardener's Daughter, Gray's Elegy, and The Song of Solomon
Chapter 8: Global Structures and The Sonnet Sequence
Chapter 9: Herrick's Rose in Omar's Garden
Chapter 10: What difference an Edition Makes: Following the Editions of the Rub?iy?t.
Chapter 11: Scions of The Rub?iy?t
Works Cited
About the Author