This volume is an American adaptation and expansion of Ebenezer Cobham Brewer's renowned reference work, designed to serve students, readers, and speakers seeking concise yet comprehensive accounts of literary characters and plots. While preserving the core erudition of the original English edition, this expanded version incorporates prominent names, figures, and sketches drawn from American poetry, novels, and drama, alongside classic European selections.
The text functions as an encyclopedic directory, cataloging figures ranging from tragic heroes like Falkland in William Godwin's Caleb Williams to comedic and satirical icons like Shakespeare's Falstaff, and Dickens's grasping magistrate Fang. Each entry delves into the substance of the source work, explaining the character's role, the moral or social problems posed by the author, and the general movement of the narrative or dramatic plot.
Compiler notes within the text reveal the immense editorial labor required to select and condense material from vast national literatures. Rather than offering mere mechanical retellings, the entries retain concrete details, quotations from literary critics like Dr. Johnson, and historical context that illuminate how authors derived their plots.
The volume balances classic European figures with rich selections from American literature, utilizing resources from major public libraries and foundational national collections. Through systematic entries arranged alphabetically, the work provides a reliable key to understanding the allusions, references, and dramatis personæ of world literature without diluting the specific flavor of the original texts.
