The Twilight of the Gods and Other Tales

by Garnett, Richard; Keen, Henry; Lawrence , T. E.

• ISBN13: 9780486801513
• ISBN10: 0486801519
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2015-11-18
• Publisher: Dover Publications

Summary

What happened to the Greek gods when people stopped believing in them? This fantasy classic, originally published in 1888, speculates by revisiting the myth of Prometheus in "Twilight of the Gods." Twenty-seven additional parables and fairy tales, each rich in humor and thought-provoking situations, unfold in medieval China, pre-Islamic Arabia, ancient Rome, and other historic settings.
Highlights include "The Potion of Lao-Tsze," concerning an emperor's pursuit of eternal life; "The Apostle of God," in which even the most devout believer falls prey to temptation; "The Demon Pope," involving the pontiff and a favor owed to Lucifer; and "Philosophy and the Law," which pits a Roman philosopher against a Hindu king. This edition features an Introduction by T. E. Lawrence as well as Henry Keen's atmospheric black-and-white illustrations of goblins, satyrs, centaurs, and other mythological creatures.

Author Biography

Richard Garnett (1835–1906) worked for decades at the British Museum, rising to the rank of Keeper of Printed Books. In addition to many translations from Greek, German, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese, he wrote several books of poetry as well as biographies of Blake, Carlyle, Milton, and other literary figures.

Printmaker, painter, and lithographer Henry Keen (1871–1935) illustrated fiction by Oscar Wilde, plays by John Webster, and the works of Voltaire.
T. E. Lawrence (1888–1935), better known as Lawrence of Arabia, was an Oxford-educated archaeologist, author, and soldier.