Is Last Updated and Reviewed the Same as Published
 First edition dust jacket (Viking, 1968)[i] | |
| Author | Peter Due south. Beagle |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Unknown (depicted); Gervasio Gallardo (first paperback)[2] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Publisher | Viking Press |
| Publication date | 1968 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover) |
| Pages | 218 (first)[1] 248 (first paper)[ii] 288 (Deluxe Ed.) |
| ISBN | 0-345-02892-nine [2] 978-0-7607-8374-0 |
| LC Class | PZ4.B3657 Las PS3552.E13 |
| Followed by | "Ii Hearts" |
The Last Unicorn is a fantasy novel by American author Peter S. Beagle and published in 1968, by Viking Press in the U.South. and The Bodley Head in the U.Yard. It follows the tale of a unicorn, who believes she is the last of her kind in the world and undertakes a quest to discover what has happened to the others.[1] Information technology has sold more than 5 million copies worldwide since its original publication, and has been translated into at least xx languages (prior to the 2007 edition). In 1987, Locus ranked The Last Unicorn number 5 amid the 33 "All-Fourth dimension Best Fantasy Novels", based on a poll of subscribers.[3] The 1998 rendition of the poll ranked The Last Unicorn number xviii.[4]
Plot [edit]
The story begins with a group of human hunters passing through a forest in search of game. Later on days of coming up empty-handed, they brainstorm to believe they are passing through a Unicorn'southward forest, where animals are kept safe past a magical aureola. They resign themselves to hunting somewhere else; but, before they leave, ane of the hunters calls out a warning to the Unicorn that she may exist the terminal of her kind. This revelation disturbs the Unicorn, and though she initially dismisses it, eventually dubiety and worry drive her to go out her wood. She travels through the land and discovers that humans no longer fifty-fifty recognize her; instead they see a pretty white mare. She encounters a talking butterfly who speaks in riddles and songs and initially dodges her questions about the other unicorns. Eventually, the butterfly issues a warning that her kind have been herded to a far abroad land by a brute known as the Cherry-red Bull. She continues to search for other unicorns. During her journey, she is taken captive past a traveling carnival led past the witch, Mommy Fortuna, who uses magical spells to create the illusion that regular animals are in fact creatures of myth and legend. The Unicorn finds herself the only true legendary creature amidst the group, salve for the harpy, Celaeno. Schmendrick, a magician traveling with the funfair, sees the Unicorn for what she is, and he frees her in the middle of the night. The Unicorn frees the other creatures including Celaeno, who kills Mommy Fortuna and Rukh, her hunchbacked assistant.
The Unicorn and Schmendrick keep traveling in an attempt to reach the castle of Male monarch Haggard, where the Ruddy Bull resides. When Schmendrick is captured by bandits, the Unicorn comes to his rescue and attracts the attention of Molly Grue, the bandit leader's married woman. Together, the iii proceed their journey and go far at Hagsgate, a town under Haggard's rule and the first one he had conquered when he claimed his kingdom. A resident of Hagsgate named Drinn informs them of a curse that stated that their town would continue to share in Haggard's fortune until such a time that someone from Hagsgate would bring Haggard's castle down. Drinn goes on to claim that he discovered a infant boy in the boondocks's marketplace one night in wintertime. He knew that the kid was the one the prophecy spoke of, but he left the baby where he establish information technology, not wanting the prophecy to come up truthful. King Haggard establish the babe afterward that evening and adopted it.
Molly, Schmendrick and the Unicorn leave Hagsgate and continue toward Haggard's castle, just on their way they are attacked by the Red Bull. The Unicorn runs, simply is unable to escape the balderdash. In an effort to assistance her, Schmendrick unwittingly turns the Unicorn into a homo woman. Confused past the alter, the Red Bull gives upwardly the pursuit and disappears. The change has disastrous consequences on the Unicorn, who suffers tremendous shock at the sudden feeling of bloodshed in her human body. Schmendrick tells the unicorn that he is immortal and that he cannot make existent magic unless he is mortal, and encourages her to keep her quest. The iii continue to Haggard'south castle, where Schmendrick introduces the Unicorn as "Lady Amalthea" to throw off Haggard'south suspicions. They manage to convince Haggard to allow them to serve him in his court, with the hopes of gathering clues every bit to the location of the other unicorns. During their stay, Amalthea is romanced by Haggard'south adopted son, Prince LÃr. Haggard somewhen reveals to Amalthea that the unicorns are trapped in the sea for his own benefit, because the unicorns are the only things that make him happy. He then openly accuses Amalthea of coming to his kingdom to save the unicorns and says that he knows who she really is, only Amalthea has seemingly forgotten about her true nature and her desire to salve the other unicorns.
Following clues given to them by a cat, Molly, Schmendrick, and Amalthea detect the entrance to the Carmine Bull'south lair. Haggard and his men-at-arms attempt to stop them, merely they manage to enter the bull'southward lair and are joined by LÃr. When the Ruby-red Bull attacks them, Schmendrick changes Amalthea dorsum to her original class. At this moment, Schmendrick joyfully becomes mortal. In an try to save the Unicorn, LÃr jumps into the bull'due south path and is trampled. Fueled by anger and sorrow, the Unicorn drives the balderdash into the sea. The other unicorns are freed, and they run back to their homes, with Haggard'southward castle falling in their wake. As the castle falls, its wreckage dissolves into mist earlier it even hits the basis, and nothing remains to betoken that a castle had ever been there.
The Unicorn revives LÃr with the healing impact of her horn. Now king after Haggard'south death, he attempts to follow the Unicorn despite Schmendrick advising against it. Equally they pass through the now-ruined town of Hagsgate, they learn that Drinn is actually LÃr's father, and that he had abandoned him in the marketplace on purpose to fulfill the prophecy. Realizing that he has new responsibilities as male monarch after seeing the country of Hagsgate, LÃr returns to rebuild information technology afterwards accompanying Schmendrick and Molly to the outskirts of his kingdom. The Unicorn returns to her wood. She tells Schmendrick that she is unlike from all the other unicorns now, because she knows what it's like to feel love and regret. Schmendrick and Molly afterward come across a princess in problem and he tells her to go to LÃr because he is the hero to salve her. Schmendrick and Molly leave this story into another as they sing a beloved vocal together.
Characters [edit]
- The Unicorn is the protagonist of the story. She leaves the safety of her wood upon learning that she is the last unicorn in the globe, with information nigh the Crimson Balderdash as her only clue. When she kickoff encounters the Blood-red Bull, Schmendrick manages to inadvertently change the Unicorn into a human being female to confuse the Red Bull and strength its withdrawal. Schmendrick calls her "Lady Amalthea" so as not to arouse King Haggard'south suspicions. Beagle notes that he took the name "Amalthea" from a Greek deity with the same name.[five]
- The butterfly is an eccentric grapheme who happens upon the Unicorn at the beginning of the story. While speaking in riddles and songs, he manages to requite the Unicorn some vital data about the other unicorns' whereabouts. Beagle stated that the butterfly's dialogue is fatigued from things that amused him and his childhood friend, Phil Sigunick, during a trip to Berkshire Hills where Beagle began writing the novel.[5]
- Mommy Fortuna is a wicked old witch, who uses her dark magic to run a sideshow carnival for profit. The carnival features what appear to exist mythical creatures, but are really only normal animals that have been enchanted, with the exception of the harpy, Celaeno. According to Beagle, the proper noun "Fortuna" was taken from the Roman goddess of fortune, and German language mythical hero Fortunatus.[five]
- Schmendrick is a bumbling magician who travels with Mommy Fortuna'south traveling carnival out of pure necessity. Reduced to entertaining the sightseers who come up to the carnival, Schmendrick wants goose egg more than to go a true, powerful wizard who does not rely on menu tricks and cheap illusions. He sees Mommy Fortuna equally an opportunity to gain feel, but when he sees the captured Unicorn for what she is, he decides to free her and join her on her quest. Schmendrick was a grapheme Beagle had initially fabricated upward for his children's bedtime stories, and was called "the globe's worst magician". The name "Schmendrick the Sorcerer" is a parody of the character "Mandrake the Magician", and is also drawn from a Yiddish word that Beagle defines as "somebody out of his depth, the male child sent to do a man'south task, someone who has expanded to the limits of his incapacity."[five]
- Helm Cully is the leader of a second-rate ring of outlaws in direct opposition to King Haggard. Although he attempts to be dashing and hospitable, Cully falls victim to his own jealousy of famous mythical outlaws such as Robin Hood, an illusion of whom Schmendrick inadvertently conjures. According to Beagle, Captain Cully's name is drawn from an one-time English slang give-and-take for "buddy".[v]
- Molly Grue is Captain Cully'southward common-law married woman. Equally a immature woman she had eloped with him, naively attracted to the romance of loving a woodland fugitive and sharing his life. Unfortunately, this turned into years of serving Cully's ragged vagrants equally their camp melt. She seeks a unlike reality from the one fate decided for her, and when she discovers Schmendrick leaving with the unicorn, she decides to follow them and do whatever she can to assistance the unicorn in her quest. Molly Grue's name is drawn from a French word significant "crane". While never initially making the connection, Beagle notes that information technology is possible that the proper name was as well inspired by Molly Epstein, his "favorite writing instructor in high school".[five]
- The Scarlet Bull is a magical animal, blind merely powerful, which is sensitive to the presence of any unicorn and tries to intimidate it into submission, thence driving it into the sea. Neither the Red Balderdash'southward affiliation with King Haggard nor its blueprint of behaviour is explained, but these both end when finally the Last Unicorn stands up to it.[v]
- King Haggard is a miserable and cruel King who cares for no i, not even his adopted son Prince LÃr. His loneliness and misery is only alleviated by the sight of unicorns, and this collection him to capture all of them for his own pleasure. He commands the powerful Red Balderdash, who has driven all the unicorns into the sea underneath of his castle by his own decree. The name "Haggard" is based on the actual word. Beagle stated that "on the i hand, it is a item look, but on the other it's as well a falconer's term. Information technology'due south what you telephone call an undomesticated hawk, a bird that knows the rudiments simply is not reliable. If you lot fly a haggard, you might never encounter information technology once again, information technology might get back to the wild." He also went on to say that he has "never really been able to see [Haggard] as a villain", explaining that he saw much of his ain graphic symbol in Haggard to the indicate that he "felt sorry for him".[5]
- Prince LÃr is a skilled hero who was adopted by King Haggard, who plant him in the town of Hagsgate. Despite living with Haggard, Prince LÃr is the opposite of his adopted male parent, living his life with valor, honor, and compassion for others. He falls in love with Lady Amalthea, not realizing what she is until the very end. For all of her arrogance towards humankind, the Unicorn falls in love with LÃr. Beagle stated that he "knew that the prince's name had to be one syllable", and that he made a long list of one-syllable names to choose from. He chose "LÃr" because he liked the audio of information technology, only afterwards on noted that he had borrowed the proper name of a Celtic ocean god, Llyr, and that the fact that LÃr became "King LÃr" after succeeding his adoptive male parent "echoed Shakespeare".[5]
Conception and cosmos [edit]
It took Beagle "close to two years" to write The Final Unicorn, and he states that "information technology was hard every pace of the style". Beagle came upward with the idea for the novel in 1962 while on an "artistic retreat" in Berkshire Hills after Viking Press rejected his novel The Mirror Kingdom. He stated that though the thought for the novel was "just suddenly there", he also said that he had "read tons of fantasy and mythology" from childhood, and that his mother told him that he had shared a story about unicorns during a visit to one of the elementary school classes she taught. He also mentioned that he loved the book The Colt from Moon Mount by Dorothy Lathrop (a story near a unicorn in Kansas) as a child, and that Spanish artist Marcial Rodriguez had given him a painting of unicorns fighting bulls when he was seventeen. Once he had the thought, he did research on unicorns at the Pittsfield Library.[5]
The 85-page manuscript that Beagle start wrote differs profoundly from the current version of the book. Though the unicorn "is much the same", the story is set up in modern times, and the unicorn is accompanied by a two-headed demon named Webster and Azazel. This original version was published as a limited edition hardcover past Subterranean Press titled The Concluding Unicorn: The Lost Version in 2006.[5] [half-dozen] Beagle stopped working on this initial manuscript in 1963, stating that "[i]t was a dead cease", but picked the projection upwards again in 1965.[five]
Beagle dedicated the novel to Olfert Dapper, a reference to whom Beagle had come across during his research, equally well as Robert Nathan, whose novel One More Bound influenced Beagle's A Fine and Private Place.[5] In 2012, Beagle published a novelet, Olfert Dapper'southward Day, a fictional tale of Dapper's travels.[7]
Publication history [edit]
In English [edit]
There take been many print editions of The Last Unicorn.
A corrected, definitive English language-language text was prepared for the 2007 Deluxe Edition and used also in the merchandise paperback 40th Anniversary Edition (Roc Books, 2008). The Deluxe Edition was available for purchase only from Barnes & Noble, with co-publishers Roc imprint and Barnes & Noble (OCLC 243775547).[8] Abreast the corrected text of the novel it included an edition of the sequel and new material including cover illustration by the prominent fantasy and children's book illustrators Leo and Diane Dillon.
Audiobook [edit]
In 2004, Beagle recorded an entire audiobook of his novel for Conlan Press.[9] The audiobook was sold in iii formats with varying prices: as downloadable MP3 files (released in 2005), an MP3 CD, and as an viii-CD collector's set containing the audiobook on seven sound CDs and an sectional interview with Beagle on the eighth.
| | This article needs to be updated. (January 2018) |
Purchasers of this edition were to be sent a complimentary autographed 3,000-re-create limited hardcover edition of Two Hearts.[10] Preorders began in belatedly 2004; as of August 2009, the volume and CDs were finished but non yet manufactured.[xi]
[edit]
Beagle published a coda story to The Final Unicorn titled "Two Hearts" in the October/November 2005 issue of Fantasy and Science Fiction magazine. Though commencement with a new narrator, four main characters from the original story announced once again. The story is too included in the short story anthology The Line Between, published in July 2006, besides as in the deluxe edition of The Last Unicorn that was published in 2007.[12] Two Hearts won the almanac Hugo and Nebula Awards as the twelvemonth's best novelette.[13]
At the end of December 2008, Peter S. Beagle announced that he had written several new stories which were directly or indirectly linked to The Last Unicorn. These included three unicorn stories ("The Story of Kao Yu" about a Chinese ki-lin, "My Son Heydari and the Karkadann", and "Olfert Dapper's Day", a fictional business relationship of the Dutch physician and author'due south encounter with a unicorn in the Maine forest) and ii Schmendrick stories ("The Greenish-Eyed Boy" and "Schmendrick Lone"). In 2017, these stories were gathered in a short story drove titled The Overneath. "The Green-eyed Boy", which earlier appeared in the September/October 2016 result of Fantasy and Science Fiction mag, describes the early days of Schmendrick's apprenticeship under Nikos. A third completed Schmendrick story was also mentioned by Beagle in December 2008.
IDW Publishing published a six-consequence comic book adaptation of The Last Unicorn beginning Apr 2010. It will be followed by an accommodation of A Fine and Individual Identify.[14]
The short story drove Sleight of Paw from 2011 contains a Schmendrick story titled "The Woman Who Married the Human in the Moon", and "Oakland Dragon Blues", a story apropos the fate of the dragon from Beagle's abandoned early version of The Final Unicorn (circa 1962).
2017 saw the publication of a novella titled In Calabria, in which the appearance of a unicorn on a quiet Italian farm leads to upheaval, violence and decease.
Adaptations [edit]
Rankin/Bass [edit]
In 1982 the novel was made into an animated film of the same name directed and produced by Rankin/Bass for ITC Amusement, with a screenplay written by Beagle himself and blithe by Topcraft (predecessor of Studio Ghibli). The music was composed and written by Jimmy Webb and performed by America. The voice actors include Christopher Lee, Angela Lansbury, Alan Arkin, Jeff Bridges, and Mia Farrow. The first DVD release of the pic past Lionsgate was of poor quality,[15] simply a "25th Anniversary Edition" DVD with superior quality was released in February 2007.[15] [16]
Continent Films [edit]
In addition, a alive-activity accommodation of the original book has been announced as in development for several years, but it is not clear what progress (if whatsoever) has been made towards production.
In Feb 2006, Continent Films unveiled a new official website for the projection which made clear that the film was still in evolution.[17] It was not yet funded, did non accept a shooting script, and had non been cast. In the new website, all actor names simply Christopher Lee's had been removed; and even Lee'due south involvement was revealed to exist nothing more than than a hope to appear in the flick if he was available and if terms could exist worked out with his agent.[ commendation needed ] Lee passed abroad in 2015 and the website was inverse in April 2016 to promote the 2015 film, Angels in Notting Loma, which was Lee's final appearance on screen. The website was changed back in August to The Concluding Unicorn and, every bit of January 2022, bears only a background flick and the words "The Terminal Unicorn" and "This website is currently not in service".[17]
Phase accommodation [edit]
In 1988, a phase accommodation of the novel was presented by the Intiman Playhouse in Seattle. Peter South. Beagle wrote the script, which was a musical presented in collaboration with Pacific Northwest Ballet. The product was directed by Elizabeth Huddle.[18]
In fall 2009, a new stage accommodation was presented in Chicago by Promethean Theatre Ensemble.[19] [twenty]
Reception [edit]
Cliff Ramshaw reviewed The Last Unicorn for Arcane magazine, rating it a ten out of 10 overall.[21] Ramshaw comments that "this latest edition gives a new generation of readers the chance to permit a lilliputian beauty into their lives. Don't miss information technology."[21]
Reviews [edit]
- Review past Fred Patten (1968) in Shangri 50'Affaires, #72 April 1, 1968[22]
- Review by One thousand. John Harrison (1968) in New Worlds, December 1968
- Review by Alexei Panshin (1969) in Fantastic, April 1969
- Review by Gahan Wilson (1969) in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Oct 1969
- Review by John Brunner (1969) in Vector 54 Fall 1969
- Review past Spider Robinson (1977) in Galaxy, June 1977
- Review by Baird Searles (1979) in Isaac Asimov'southward Science Fiction Mag, May 1979
- Review by Peter Bernhardt (1988) in Riverside Quarterly, March 1988
- Review past David Pringle (1988) in Modernistic Fantasy: The Hundred Best Novels
- Review past John C. Bunnell (1991) in Dragon Magazine, May 1991
- Review? [Polish] by Jacek Dukaj (1995) in Nowa Fantastyka, #158 Listopad 1995
- Review by Charles de Lint (2007) in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, June 2007
- Review past Sara Polsky (2009) in Strange Horizons, 16 February 2009
- Review by Stephen E. Andrews and Nick Rennison (2009) in 100 Must-Read Fantasy Novels
- Review by Bill Fawcett and Jody Lynn Nye (2017) in Milky way's Edge, Outcome 28: September 2017
References [edit]
- ^ a b c The Terminal Unicorn championship listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database (ISFDB). Retrieved 2012-04-25.
- ^ a b c First paperback edition, February 1969, Ballantine Adult Fantasy, catalogue #345-01503. According to ISFDB the earliest gimmicky ISBN for this edition is ISBN 0-345-02892-nine for the quaternary printing, October 1972.
- ^ "Locus Poll All-time All-time Novel Results: 1987, fantasy novels". Locus . Retrieved 2012-04-xviii . Originally published in the monthly Locus, Baronial 1987.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
• See also "1987 Locus Poll Honour". ISFDB. Retrieved 2012-04-25. - ^ The Locus Online website links multiple pages providing the results of several polls and a fiddling other information. "The Locus Index to SF Awards: 1998 Locus Best Poll". Locus Publications. Archived from the original on 2004-01-13. Retrieved 2012-04-25 .
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l g Palatial Edition, pp. 247–280.
- ^ "Beagle, The Last Unicorn: the Lost Version: Subterranean Press". Subterranean Printing. Retrieved 2009-05-20 .
- ^ Beagle, Peter Southward. (March 2012). "Olfert Dapper's Day". F&SF . Retrieved 2012-05-17 .
- ^ The Last Unicorn Deluxe Edition publication contents at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Retrieved 2012-04-26.
- ^ "The Raven". www.peterbeagle.com. 2004-11-17. Retrieved 2020-04-xi .
- ^ "Two Hearts". www.conlanpress.com . Retrieved 2007-09-09 .
- ^ Conlan Printing - Updates Archived 2008-01-09 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Deluxe Edition, pp. 201–246.
- ^ "Peter S. Beagle" Archived 2015-08-29 at the Wayback Automobile. Locus Alphabetize to SF Awards: Alphabetize of Literary Nominees. Retrieved 2012-04-eighteen.
- ^ "Wondercon Special Guests" Comic-Con mag; Wintertime 2010; Page xviii.
- ^ a b "Conlan Press — DVDs". www.conlanpress.com. Archived from the original on 2009-05-26. Retrieved 2009-05-15 .
- ^ "Fans help world-famous author Peter S. Beagle when they get the new 25th Ceremony DVD Edition of The Final Unicorn through Conlan Press" (PDF) (Press release). Retrieved 2007-09-04 .
- ^ a b "The Last Unicorn — a magical moving-picture show take a chance". Retrieved 2008-12-15 .
- ^ "INTIMAN HISTORY". www.intiman.org. Archived from the original on 2008-12-22. Retrieved 2008-12-15 .
- ^ "The Last Uniblog". www.lastuniblog.blogspot.com . Retrieved 2009-02-07 .
- ^ Trailer, The Last Unicorn, Promethean Theatre Ensemble
- ^ a b Ramshaw, Cliff (May 1996). "The Great Library". Cabalistic. Future Publishing (half dozen): 80.
- ^ "Title: The Last Unicorn". isfdb.org.
- Citations
- Beagle, Peter Southward. (1968). The Concluding Unicorn. New York: Viking Press. LCCN 68016075.
- Beagle, Peter Due south. (2007). The Terminal Unicorn. Deluxe Edition. New York: Roc Books. ISBN 978-0-7607-8374-0.
Further reading [edit]
- Lin Carter. Imaginary Worlds: The Art of Fantasy NY: Ballantine, 1973, pp160–63.
External links [edit]
- Official Peter Beagle website
- Peter S. Beagle at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_Unicorn
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