Product Description

Narrated by Clara, the only survivor of the cursed Wieland family, this Gothic tale builds in suspense to one tragic night when Clara's brother, in a divinely inspired seizure, commits an unspeakable act. Edited and with an Introduction by Fred Lewis Pattee.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1660619 in Books
• Published on: 1969-10-22
• Released on: 2009-05-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 408 pages

About the Author
Charles Brockden Brown

17 January 1771 - 21 February 1810

Generally regarded as the first American novelist, Brown is a key figure in the tradition of Gothic fiction, for some of his novels--Edgar Huntly, Wieland, Arthur Mervyn--are responsible for "Americanizing" the Gothic, which in its European incarnation featured imagery (ruined castles, etc) that was simply non-existent, and hence symbolically inert, in America. Brown shifted the settings of his works to American locales--forests, towns, caves, outlying estates -- and relocated the sources of terror, yet retained a Gothic mood of emotional and psychological extremity.

Customer Reviews

Wieland
I was required to read this novel for an American Ficiton class in college. Most students would rate required reading very low just because it is required reading. Wieland has a low rating because it deserves it, not only because it was required. As an English major I love to read but Wieland tests any readers ability and patience. Brown's writing style is comparable to James Fenimore Cooper's Deerslayer - extremely descriptive and at times, without a difinitive end. The many themes that are found in the novel are outdated to today's readers and will have little if any effect on the interest of the novel. The grotesque theme of familial murder mimicks the writing of Edgar Allan Poe. If you are a Poe fan, Wieland may interest you. For those that are not Poe or Cooper fans, I would suggest looking for reading elsewhere. Wieland is time consuming and not worth the trouble.