The Man Who Was Thursday
Overview
G.K. Chesterton’s masterpiece novel, The Man Who Was Thursday, is both a metaphysical thriller and Christian allegory. Set in London at the beginning of the twentieth century, the story involves the infiltration of a secret anarchist council whose leaders use code names corresponding with days of the week.
This annotated edition explicates and enriches the complete text with extensive footnotes. In addition, annotator Martin Gardner offers an introductory essay on the metaphysical meaning of Chesterton’s profound allegory, noting how this extraordinary work “revolves around two of the deepest of all theological mysteries: the freedom of the will and the existence of massive, irrational evil.”
Gardner sees the novel’s anarchists as symbols of our God-given free will. The mysterious figure of Sunday represents nature, with its strange mixture of good and evil when considered as distinct from God, as a mask hiding the transcendental face of the creator.
The book also includes a bibliography listing the novel’s many earlier editions and stage dramatizations, as well as numerous illustrations that further illuminate the text.
In the Verbum edition, this volume is enhanced by amazing functionality. Important terms link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. Perform powerful searches to find exactly what you’re looking for. Take the discussion with you using tablet and mobile apps. With your software, the most efficient and comprehensive research tools are in one place, so you get the most out of your study.
Looking for more by G.K. Chesterton? Check out the G. K. Chesterton Collection (11 vols.).
Key Features
- Provides insight into this famous novel
- Offers an introductory essay, footnotes for the entire text, and a bibliography of the novel’s previous editions
- Includes illustrations from the book’s first edition
Contents
- The Two Poets of Saffron Park
- The Secret of Gabriel Syme
- The Man Who Was Thursday
- The Tale of a Detective
- The Feast of Fear
- The Exposure
- The Unaccountable Conduct of Professor de Worms
- The Professor Explains
- The Man in Spectacles
- The Duel
- The Criminals Chase the Police
- The Earth in Anarchy
- The Pursuit of the President
- The Six Philosophers
- The Accuser
Praise for the Annotated Edition
Gardner’s annotating of Chesterton’s famous novel is a delight. His notes bring Edwardian London to life, and he offers exciting new insights into the novel’s meaning.
—Joseph Pearce, author, Bilbo’s Journey: The Hidden Meaning in the Hobbit
Gardner is a gift to anyone interested in genuine literary scholarship. He magnifies the fascinating pictures seen through the gorgeous window that is a Chesterton novel.
—Michael Coren, author, Gilbert: The Man Who Was G.K. Chesterton
Gardner’s annotations provide everything required for the study and enjoyment of Chesterton’s best novel, a grand thriller.
—John Peterson, editor, Father Brown of the Church of Rome
Product Details
About the Author
G.K. Chesterton (1874–1936) was born in London in 1874. He worked at the Redway and T. Fisher Unwin publishing house until 1902, when he began writing regularly. His weekly columns appeared for decades in the Daily News and The Illustrated London News. In all, he wrote more than 80 books, hundreds of poems, 200 short stories, 4,000 essays. Among his writings are his famous apologetic work Orthodoxy, a biography of St. Aquinas, his Father Brown detective stories, The Napoleon of Notting Hill, and The Man Who Was Thursday.
About the Annotator
Martin Gardner spent 25 years as the writer of mathematical games for Scientific American. He has combined his skills in math, science, philosophy, and literature to produce more than 60 books. His diverse works include two novels and a collection of short stories. Some of his other annotated works include The Annotated Alice and The Annotated Ancient Mariner.
Sample Pages from the Print Edition
Looking for more by G.K. Chesterton? Check out the G. K. Chesterton Collection (11 vols.).
- Provides insight into this famous novel
- Offers an introductory essay, footnotes for the entire text, and a bibliography of the novel’s previous editions
- Includes illustrations from the book’s first edition
- The Two Poets of Saffron Park
- The Secret of Gabriel Syme
- The Man Who Was Thursday
- The Tale of a Detective
- The Feast of Fear
- The Exposure
- The Unaccountable Conduct of Professor de Worms
- The Professor Explains
- The Man in Spectacles
- The Duel
- The Criminals Chase the Police
- The Earth in Anarchy
- The Pursuit of the President
- The Six Philosophers
- The Accuser
Gardner’s annotating of Chesterton’s famous novel is a delight. His notes bring Edwardian London to life, and he offers exciting new insights into the novel’s meaning.
—Joseph Pearce, author, Bilbo’s Journey: The Hidden Meaning in the Hobbit
Gardner is a gift to anyone interested in genuine literary scholarship. He magnifies the fascinating pictures seen through the gorgeous window that is a Chesterton novel.
—Michael Coren, author, Gilbert: The Man Who Was G.K. Chesterton
Gardner’s annotations provide everything required for the study and enjoyment of Chesterton’s best novel, a grand thriller.
—John Peterson, editor, Father Brown of the Church of Rome
G.K. Chesterton (1874–1936) was born in London in 1874. He worked at the Redway and T. Fisher Unwin publishing house until 1902, when he began writing regularly. His weekly columns appeared for decades in the Daily News and The Illustrated London News. In all, he wrote more than 80 books, hundreds of poems, 200 short stories, 4,000 essays. Among his writings are his famous apologetic work Orthodoxy, a biography of St. Aquinas, his Father Brown detective stories, The Napoleon of Notting Hill, and The Man Who Was Thursday.
About the Annotator
Martin Gardner spent 25 years as the writer of mathematical games for Scientific American. He has combined his skills in math, science, philosophy, and literature to produce more than 60 books. His diverse works include two novels and a collection of short stories. Some of his other annotated works include The Annotated Alice and The Annotated Ancient Mariner.
