The Great Allan Quatermain Read at Chrons -- Weird Adventures of Rider Haggard's Hunter Hero

[Bick]

Incidentally, how do you pronounce Quatermain?
In my head I say "Korter-mane",
but given the spelling it could easily be "Kayter-mane"

It could also be "Kwayter-mane" or Kworter-main" with more stress on the Q, or even "Kwayt-aman" or "Kayt-aman" with more of a french sounding 'main', like 'mun' or 'man'

Is there a 'right' answer?

 

[Vince W]

I hear Qway-teh-main, similar to Qway-teh-mass.

 

[Extollager]

Kwatter mane. That's how I hear it.

 

[Bick]

Ha! That's three suggestions, three different views. I suspect there will not be a consensus.

 

[mosaix]

Kworter-main. Probably how my English teacher pronounced it when he read extracts.

 

[Bick]

I started She last night. Very promising start and set up for the adventure to come.

 

[Extollager]

It has one of the best openings of any book I've ever read, and, as C. S. Lewis put it, the story's catastrophe keeps its promise.

 

[Bick]

I finished She, and enjoyed it very much. It is deeper and better realised than Allan Quatermain, and I was also interested in the fantasy elements, which are not to be found in AQ. She most certainly belongs in the classic SFF forum, not general fiction. I was interested in the final destination of She-Who-Must-be-Obeyed and the three English adventurers - I wondered whether Tolkien perhaps considered the struggle to reach a volcanic source of power and/or destruction when devising his own plotting of LoTR.

I have Maiwa's Revenge, Allan's Wife and Marie on order (as an omnibus paperback volume), and will enjoy those when the book arrives, but until then, I shall have to divert to other things.

 

[Hugh]

And I've just finished She and Allan.

Mixed feelings about it. For the first 40 pages or so I was excited and thought I was going to really enjoy it. I was very interested in Allan's introductory musings on the ever-changing nature of the human personality and hoped that, seeing as Haggard was nearing the end of his life, there could be some interesting reflections from him further on in the book. I also loved the early encounter with the old witchdoctor Zikali and was disappointed not to see more of him, though in a way he was present in the background for much of the book. It was also great to meet up with Umslopogaas again.
However, then my interest began to drift away and in the end I was glad to finish it. Perhaps two Haggards in a row has been enough for me for a while as there are other books waiting for me to read, but it's likely I'll be drawn back sooner or later to read more on Zikali.
Sadly, the place where it began to lose my attention was at much the same point as in Ayesha - when the travellers first meet She-who-must-be-obeyed. I say 'sadly' because there is much of interest regarding Haggard's (probable) spiritual beliefs in the dialogues between Ayesha and Allan, but the prose style of their conversations is a tad turgid with too many 'wouldst's and 'perchance's, and the adventure loses momentum. Obviously Haggard is using Allan's rationalism to make a point, but his cynicism becomes frustrating. Perhaps also I get a little tired of the obligatory battles and fight scenes.

There is another sticking point for me as well. This is the hackneyed use of the phrase that a book is 'of its time' to make excuses for outdated racial terminology and attitudes . The problem of course is that Haggard was writing in a specific cultural context but his stories are both greater than, and transcend, this cultural context. He was also, I think, looking to open the minds of his readers to the wisdom and humanity of other cultures. Despite these allowances, the terminology that he uses jumps out at me at times, takes away from the pleasure of reading, and affects the flow of the adventure.

 

[Bick]

I do see what you mean, Hugh, but when it comes to the language, I find I recalibrate my brain quite quickly to Victorian prose and dialogue. I sometimes wonder if I harbour some handed down Victorian group memory or some such peculiar thing*. It often feels more right to me in some ways (not, of course, the misogyny or racism) than modern times.

 

[Hugh]

I do see what you mean, Hugh, but when it comes to the language, I find I recalibrate my brain quite quickly to Victorian prose and dialogue. I sometimes wonder if I harbour some handed down Victorian group memory or some such peculiar thing*. It often feels more right to me in some ways (not, of course, the misogyny or racism) than modern times.

I'm OK with the prose/dialogue most of the time - I grew up reading some of this stuff - it's just the dialogues with Ayesha that get to befuddle me.

 

[Extollager]

I'm in the final third or so of the middle book of Haggard's Zulu trilogy, Child of Storm. Cetewayo is one of the main characters and was a real person, and I expect one or two of the other characters were also real. One of Haggard's earliest books was called Cetywayo and His White Neighbours, or Remarks on Recent Events in Zululand, Natal, and the Transvaal (1882).

Cetywayo and His White Neighbours: Or, Remarks on Recent Events in Zululand, Natal, and the ... : Henry Rider Haggard : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

Book digitized by Google from the library of the University of Michigan and uploaded to the Internet Archive by user tpb.

archive.org

I wish I had a reasonably concise and fair discussion of the historical authenticity of Haggard's novel, one of the Quatermain books. I imagine that the beautiful and self-seeking Zulu woman Mameena and the vengeful dwarf Zikali, represented as greatly influencing developments towards the Zulu civil war, are wholly imaginary, but perhaps Haggard has worked them and their machinations in cleverly. Incidentally I would recommend this book as a good one to start with if someone wanted to zero in on Haggard's "racial attitudes" vis-avis the Zulus.

 

[Extollager]

A good idea, if you're going to embark on Haggard's Zulu trilogy, or even just if you're going to read Child of Storm, would be to keep a running list, with page references, of the characters. In Child, Quatermain is a spectator for the most part, and all of the principal characters have African names, sometimes more than one. You'll need to keep distinct in your mind Umbezi and Umbelazi; you'll need to keep in mind Zikali's hatred for the house of Senzangacona, you'll want to remember Chaka, Dingaan, Panda, Cetewayo, & c. and who's related to whom and how. It's like an Icelandic saga in that way, and I wonder if it wasn't a fascination with Zulu history and warrior culture that prepared Haggard to take an interest in the sagas -- for it seems sure that immersion in African history preceded his interest in Iceland. My guess is that Haggard still took the Zulu history pretty seriously although he was writing fiction in this work from relatively late in his career. This book is more an historical novel rather than a tale of romantic, fantastic adventure, though it has its dramatic and bloody episodes.

There are various reprints of the novel that use public domain artwork that is ridiculously inappropriate, by the way. For sure you can't judge a book by its cover in these instances.

Here, by the way, is a handy list of Haggard's books -- quite an array of them!

R. D. Mullen- The Books of H. Rider Haggard: A Chronological Survery

 

[Bick]

A good idea, if you're going to embark on Haggard's Zulu trilogy, or even just if you're going to read Child of Storm, would be to keep a running list, with page references, of the characters. In Child, Quatermain is a spectator for the most part, and all of the principal characters have African names, sometimes more than one. You'll need to keep distinct in your mind Umbezi and Umbelazi; you'll need to keep in mind Zikali's hatred for the house of Senzangacona, you'll want to remember Chaka, Dingaan, Panda, Cetewayo, & c. and who's related to whom and how. It's like an Icelandic saga in that way, and I wonder if it wasn't a fascination with Zulu history and warrior culture that prepared Haggard to take an interest in the sagas -- for it seems sure that immersion in African history preceded his interest in Iceland. My guess is that Haggard still took the Zulu history pretty seriously although he was writing fiction in this work from relatively late in his career. This book is more an historical novel rather than a tale of romantic, fantastic adventure, though it has its dramatic and bloody episodes.

Sounds interesting, but also like I'll need my wits about me. I don't have this volume yet, but I do now have Maiwa's Revenge and will be starting it shortly (tonight or tomorrow). Maiwa's Revenge is the third novel Haggard wrote to feature Allan Quatermain, though it goes back to 1859, i.e. set 21 years before King Solomon's Mines.

 

[Bick]

Having looked up the dating of when Maiwa's Revenge was set, I thought I'd just present a chronological order (novels only), in case anyone is interested. I know we are not in the main reading in chronological order, but our preferred publication order, but its of interest to see the story progression perhaps.

 

[Extollager]

The design here for Heu-Heu is striking:

 

[Extollager]

That design, however (above), for another of the lesser-known Quatermain tales, is not very enticing.

 

[Extollager]

Better!

 

[Bick]

I read Maiwa's Revenge (1988). This is an interesting Allan Quatermain volume; its a short novel, made up of two quite distinct sections. The tale is told as an after dinner story by Quatermain to his friends after a day hunting woodcock on his land in England. In this way it reminded somewhat of Conrad's Heart of Darkness, which uses a similar narrative method. The first section is essentially just a hunting story, in which Quatermain shoots plenty of game, and ultimately hunts and kills 3 big bull elephants. In many ways this hasn't aged especially well, but it's fascinating to read the Victorian perspective on hunting and shooting, and some of the passages are very well done. The second section has a more interesting storyline, and has aged better. Having bagged his elephants, Quatermain meets Maiwa, the wife of a sadistic tribal chief, Wambe, who has killed her baby and from who she has escaped. She asks Quatermain to help her get revenge on Wambe. Interesting, our hero only really agrees to help Maiwa once he realises Wambe has a huge store of ivory and also holds a white friend of Quatermain as captive. Quatermain's eyes light up especially at the thought of the ivory! A perfect hero he ain't, and Haggard was well aware of this I think. He doesn't want us to think Quatermain is a perfect lion-advanturer, but a rounded character with flaws like all of us. Much adventure and fighting then ensues. This is the first Haggard tale I've read which isn't based on the 'lost city' trope. The prose and pacing are both quite good and the tale is exciting toward the end. Moreover, the Victorian perspectives are fascinating and educational. Quatermain does seem to harbour a self-belief a sense of superiority compared to the Africans in the tale, but this comes across as a personal comparison between himself and others, and doesn't give the impression of generalized racism. Indeed, Quatermain takes everyone very much on their own individual merits, regardless of race; thus Maiwa presents as a brave heroine. So, while one might imagine racist undertones would potentially cast a shadow in book about hunting in 1880's Africa, in fact they really don't; it's actually the shooting of big game that has aged least well and which may be unpalatable to some. In any event, I enjoyed it as a classic adventure novel.

Next up (when I get to it, which may not be immediately) will be Allan's Wife (1889).

 

[Hugh]

Well I've finished "Ayesha: The Return of She" (1905)
I'm sure I've re-read She in the last few years, but Ayesha I probably read just the once when I was fifteen or sixteen, so it's been a while. All I remembered was an unlikely-shaped mountain and a battle towards the end.
Anyway, I enjoyed the first two thirds or so, consisting mainly of the travels and adventures of Leo and Holly searching for the mountain of their vision. Haggard, like Tolkien, has a great feel for landscape and so the journey was never dull. Sadly I found much of the last third, after they've reached their destination a little tedious and the various dialogues with Ayesha, for the most part, uninteresting.

One particular point of interest for me, which I'm sure will have been noted by Tolkien researchers, including, I expect, yourself @Extollager : this passage is very reminiscent of The Black Riders/Elrond/Glorfindel at the Ford of Bruinen......

SPOILER

Leo and Holly have been pursued by the pack of Death Hounds unleashed by the crazed Khan. They have made it to a river (about a hundred yards wide), though Holly is painfully wounded in his right arm from a bite, and have managed to cross to a small island about thirty yards out, where they've collapsed and fallen asleep. Leo has a dream, though subsequent events show this not to have been a dream.
"he heard those accursed death-hounds in full cry. Nearer and nearer they came...... Then suddenly a puff of wind brought the scent of us upon the island to one of them which lifted up its head and uttered a single bay. The rest clustered about it, and all at once they made a dash at the water....
Giving tongue as they came, half-swimming and half-plunging, the hounds drew near to the island where we slept. Then suddenly Leo saw that we were no longer alone. In front of us, on the brink of the water, stood the figure of a woman clad in some dark garment. He could not describe her face or appearance, for her back was towards him. All he knew was that she stood there, like a guard, holding some object in her raised hand, and that suddenly the advancing hounds caught sight of her. In an instant it was as though they were paralysed by fear - for their bays turned to fearful howlings. One or two of those that were nearest to the island seemed to lose their footing and be swept away by the stream. The rest struggled back to the bank, and fled like whipped curs. Then the dark commanding figure, which in his dream Leo took to be the guardian Spirit of his Mountain, vanished."
Later they are told that the river marks the boundary of Ayesha's realm and entering it is forbidden.

There are obvious parallels here. Leo and Holly are in desperate straits. One of them is wounded (as was Frodo). Their terrible pursuers enter a river protecting the realm of someone with special powers (Rivendell and Elrond) and it seems to be all over for Leo and Holly. A mysterious figure intervenes. One or two of the pursuers are swept away, the others flee. The mysterious figure had held some object in her raised hand, paralleling Glorfindel (and others) holding flaming branches. Note also the acute sense of smell of the pursuers.

Anyway.

I've now located "Allan and She" and will probably make a start on it in the next few days.

The above, in slightly extended form, has now been published in the December issue of "Beyond Bree".