 The first edition of The Good Soldier, with original title and surname. | |
| Author | Ford Madox Ford |
|---|---|
| Original title | The Saddest Story or The Good Soldier: A Tale of Passion |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Novel |
| Publisher | John Lane, The Bodley Head |
Publication date | March 1915 |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
| Media type | Print (hardback and paperback) |
The Good Soldier: A Tale of Passion is a 1915 novel by the British writer Ford Madox Ford. It is set just before World War I, and chronicles the tragedy of Edward Ashburnham and his seemingly perfect marriage, along with that of his two American friends. The novel is told using a series of flashbacks in non-chronological order, a literary technique that formed part of Ford's pioneering view of literary impressionism. Ford employs the device of the unreliable narrator[1] to great effect, as the main character gradually reveals a version of events that is quite different from what the introduction leads the reader to believe. The novel was loosely based on two incidents of adultery and on Ford's messy personal life, specifically “the agonies Ford went through with his wife and his mistress in the six preceding years."[2]
The novel's original title was The Saddest Story, but after the onset of World War I the publishers asked Ford for a new title. Ford suggested (sarcastically) The Good Soldier, and the name stuck.[3]
In 1998, the Modern Library ranked The Good Soldier 30th on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. In 2015, the BBC ranked The Good Soldier 13th on its list of the 100 greatest British novels.[4] It has been called "the greatest French novel in English."[5]
- ^ Womack, Kenneth and William Baker, eds. The Good Soldier: A Tale of Passion. Broadview Press, 2003.[1]
- ^ Moser, Thomas C (Fall 1974). "From Olive Garnett's Diary: Impressions of Ford Madox Ford and his friends, 1890-1906". Texas Studies in Literature and Language. 16 (3): 511–533. JSTOR 40754340. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
- ^ Ford, Madox Ford (2003). Kenneth Womack; William Baker (eds.). The Good Soldier: A Tale of Passion. New York: Broadview Press. ISBN 1-55111-381-3.
- ^ Ciabattari, Jane (7 December 2015). "The 100 greatest British novels". BBC. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
- ^ Dirda, Michael (2005). Bound To Please. W. W. Norton. p. 176.