Franklin Library: Ambrose Bierce:The Devil's Dictionary

Franklin Library FULL leather top-of-the-line edition of Ambrose Bierce's "The Devil's Dictionary," a Limited edition,  one of the 100  GREATEST MASTERPIECES OF AMERICAN LITERATURE series, published in 1980. Bound in a Most Handsome scarlet red Moroccan cowhide, the book has scarlet red French moire silk endleaves, satin book marker, hubbed spine, 22 kt. gold gilding on three edges--in near FINE condition. Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce, who lived from 1842-1914, was a journalist, short-story writer, and satirist.  He is best known for his short story, "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" and his satirical dictionary, "The Devil's Dictionary." The sardonic view of human nature that informed his work – along with his vehemence as a critic – earned him the nickname "Bitter Bierce". Despite his reputation as a searing critic, however, Bierce was known to encourage younger writers. Bierce was born in Horse Cave Creek, a religious settlement in Ohio. He was the tenth of thirteen children (all their names starting with the letter "A") born to Laura Sherwood and Marcus Aurelius Bierce.  Ambrose was never close to his parents, devotees of the fire-and-brimstone First Congregational Church of Christ. He does use them for many of his stories, including "Three and Three are One."  Marcus Aurelius was unsuccessful in his many pursuits ranging from farming to shop keeping. His youngest son found solace and education in his father's extensive library and developed an admiration for the written word. When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, Bierce enlisted in the Ninth Indiana Infantry.  For the next four years he travelled to many states, fought in many of the well-known battles, including SHILOH, PICKETT'S MILL and CHICKAMUNGA. After a distinguished period of service, he resigned in 1865 after a bullet wound to the head continued to plague him with dizziness and black outs. The origins of the "Devil's Dictionary" can be traced to when Bierce was a columnist in San Francisco. The News Letter, although a serious magazine aimed at businessmen, contained a page set aside for informal satirical content, entitled The Town Crier. Bierce was hired as this page's editor in December 1868, writing with satire, irreverence and a lack of inhibition, thus becoming known as the 'laughing devil' of San Francisco. In 1875 when Bierce, who had resigned as the Town Crier and had spent three years in London, returned to San Francisco, he wrote 48 words with new definitions in Bierce's trademark style of acerbic wit. It was in early 1881 that Bierce first used the title, "The Devil's Dictionary."  The "dictionary" proved popular, and during his time in this post (1881-86) he included 88 installments, each of 15-20 new definitions. A number of the definitions are accompanied by satiric verses, many of which are signed with comic pseudonyms such as Salder Bupp and Orm Pludge; the most frequently appearing "contributor" is "that learned and ingenious cleric, Father Gassalasca Jape. For example, a "Conservative is "A statesman" who is enamoured of existing evils, as distinguished from the Liberal, who wishes to replace them with others. A LAWYER  (noun) One skilled in circumvention of the law. Bierce had a special distaste for the trappings of religion:  Hence, a CLERGYMAN is a "man who undertakes the management of out spiritual affairs as a method of bettering his temporal ones."  Or EVANGELIST, a "bearer of good tidings, particulary ( in a religious sense) such as assure us of our own salvation and the damnation of our neighbors."  Or RITE "a religious or semireligious ceremony fixed by law, percept, or custom, with the essential oil of sincerity carefully squeezed out of it."  Or my favorite: QUILL: "An implement of torture yielded by a goose and commonly wielded by an ass.  This use of the quill is now obsolete, but its modern equivalent, the steel pen, is wielded by the same everlasting Presence." Or CLAIRVOYANT "a person, commonly a woman, who has the power of seeing that which is invisible to her patron---namely, that he is a blockhead."  FOLKS, this is a  MAGNIFICENT title----EXTREMELY RARE title. Shipping in U.S. with media postage is $4.00 or $10.00 priority shipping or actual charges world wide.  Seller accepts PayPal or personal checks---held until check clears bank---or immediate shipment with 50 positive feedbacks on Ebay.  Good luck and see my other Franklin Library and Easton Press books.