My Cousin Rachel (Roman)
My cousin Rachel is a novel by the British writer Daphne du Maurier .
History of origin
The novel was first published in 1951. For the names of the main characters, Daphne du Maurier is said to have inspired a visit to Antony House . There she noticed a portrait from the 17th century showing Rachel Carew , who was married to the politician and country nobleman Ambrose Manaton .
content
Philip Ashley lives in Cornwall with his older cousin Ambrose, whom he values and adores. Ambrose had taken in Philip, who was orphaned prematurely, after his parents' death and raised them like a child of his own. Philip grew up in a male-dominated household in which there were no females apart from a nanny in his early childhood. The only girlfriend he has is his godfather's daughter, who is about the same age, and - according to Ambrose Ashley's will - guardian Nick Kendall.
When Philip was 24 years old, Ambrose, who did not tolerate the humid English climate, went on another long trip to the Mediterranean to cure his rheumatism. He writes letters to Philip regularly. One day he meets a distant relative, cousin Rachel, who after the death of her Italian husband lives in a prestigious property in Fiesole . He falls in love with the beautiful young woman, marries her and in his letters reports enthusiastically about their life together. However, the letters gradually become sparse and the tone changes. Ambrose writes that he is not feeling well, complains of headaches, complains about the constant control by his wife, her wastefulness, and finally indicates that she wants to poison him. Philip is very worried, sets off for Italy and learns that Ambrose has died and is already buried. The house has been emptied, Ambrose's clothes and books have also been removed and there is no trace of Ambrose's wife. Rachel's lawyer, a seedy Italian whom Philip distrusted from the start, also supposedly knows nothing of her whereabouts.
Philip returns to Cornwall. He learns that, according to the death certificate, Amrose died of a brain tumor and that Ambrose has not changed his will, in which Philip is his heir: Philip inherits the country estate and property. One day back in London, he receives news that Rachel has arrived in Plymouth , and despite the suspicion and prejudice against her, he first invites her to his house for a few days. Within a short time she has won the affection of the servants, the neighbors and the tenants, and Philip falls head over heels in love with the woman, without realizing it. His guardian and his daughter, his childhood playmate, watch with suspicion how the story unfolds. Since Rachel is penniless, Philipp gives her a generously endowed account that Rachel has overdrawn in a very short time.
expenditure
- My cousin Rachel . London: Gollancz 1951. Around 22 new editions
- My cousin Rachel. From the English by NO Scarpi . Stuttgart: Joke 1952.
- My cousin Rachel . Newly translated from the English by Christel Dormagen and Brigitte Heinrich. Frankfurt a. M .: Suhrkamp 2017. (Suhrkamp Taschenbuch. 4497.) ISBN 978-3-458-36197-8
Film adaptations
- In 1952, Henry Koster's My Cousin Rachel appeared with Richard Burton and Olivia de Havilland in the lead roles.
- In 1983 the BBC broadcast a four-part mini-series with Christopher Guard and Geraldine Chaplin in the title roles.
- In June 2017, Roger Michell's My Cousin Rachel appeared with Rachel Weisz , Sam Claflin and Iain Glen .
criticism
In her book review on the occasion of the latest film adaptation of the novel, Julie Myerson calls the book "a tightly knitted, intricate, undeniably wild piece of literature".
Web links
- Julie Myerson: My Cousin Rachel: Daphne du Maurier's take on the sinister power of sex, The Guardian, June 17, 2017.
Individual evidence
- ^ The National Trust: Antony, Cornwall . The National Trust 2010. ISBN 978-1-84359-015-6 , p. 19
- ↑ Julie Myerson: My Cousin Rachel: Daphne du Maurier's take on the sinister power of sex The Guardian, June 17, 2017. Retrieved February 18, 2018