Benjamin Disraeli, Coningsby

Nils Clausson (University of Regina)

Ed. by Gillian Fenwick, University of Toronto
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.07: English Writing and Culture of the Victorian Period, 1837-1901.
Vol. editors: Gillian Fenwick (University of Toronto), Jessica Gossling (Goldsmiths College, University of London)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1844

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel

Resources

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For writing

Coningsby, or The New Generation

(1844), Benjamin Disraeli, who had moved from a modestly successful career as a novelist into the limelight of political life, is widely credited with inventing the political novel. “Disraeli has created a new type [of novel]”, says Robert Blake in his biography of Disraeli. “[

Coningsby

] is essentially political, written to expound a political creed” (190). Although earlier novels, such as William Godwin’s

Caleb Williams

(1794) and Robert Bage’s

Hermsprong

(1796), had dealt with such abstract political ideas as reason, justice, and government, it was not until

Coningsby

that a novel devoted itself primarily to the activity of contemporary politics, written from the perspective of a practising politician. A quarter of a century…

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3427 words

Citation: Clausson, Nils. "Coningsby". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 February 2012 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=9772, accessed 20 April 2024.]

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