Edward Baltram, a college student living in London, gives his best friend Mark a sandwich laced with a hallucinogenic drug for a joke. After Mark, still high, falls to his death from a window, Edward is wracked with guilt and depression — worsened by daily letters from Mark's mother cursing him as a murderer.
In search of his father, Jesse, Edward sets off for Seegard, the family home, away from the harsh reality of London. As Edward progresses through the novel, he revives somewhat, thanks to the love of his eccentric father and his extended family of supportive women. He eventually finds, however, that he must come to terms with Mark's death.
Meanwhile, Edward's stepbrother Stuart Cuno decides to give up his studies and goes in search of the "pure" life of an aesthete, to his family's bewilderment. Stuart has a close bond with thirteen-year-old Meredith, the son of Thomas and Midge McCaskerville.
While Edward seeks redemption and Stuart salvation, Midge is having an affair with her husband's best friend, Harry Cuno - stepfather to Edward and father to Stuart. Her passionate love affair comes to a head after two years when she is disgraced publicly and falls unexpectedly in love with Stuart. Left with a difficult decision, Midge turns to Edward for support.
The critic Harold Bloom listed The Good Apprentice in his The Western Canon (1994) as one of the books in his conception of artistic works that have been important and influential in Western culture.[3]
^(PDF). The Man Booker Prize. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 September 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
^Bloom, Harold. The Western Canon: The Books and School of the Ages. Riverhead Books, 1995, 523.
December 14, 2023
good, apprentice, 22nd, novel, iris, murdoch, first, published, 1985, cover, first, editionauthoriris, murdochcover, artisttom, phillips, countryunited, kingdomlanguageenglishpublisherchatto, winduspublication, date1985media, typeprint, hardback, paperback, pa. The Good Apprentice is the 22nd novel by Iris Murdoch first published in 1985 The Good ApprenticeCover of the first editionAuthorIris MurdochCover artistTom Phillips 1 CountryUnited KingdomLanguageEnglishPublisherChatto amp WindusPublication date1985Media typePrint Hardback amp Paperback Pages522ppISBN0 670 80940 3OCLC12549497Dewey Decimal823 914 19LC ClassPR6063 U7 G6 1986 Contents 1 Plot 2 Awards and nominations 3 Reception 4 ReferencesPlot editEdward Baltram a college student living in London gives his best friend Mark a sandwich laced with a hallucinogenic drug for a joke After Mark still high falls to his death from a window Edward is wracked with guilt and depression worsened by daily letters from Mark s mother cursing him as a murderer In search of his father Jesse Edward sets off for Seegard the family home away from the harsh reality of London As Edward progresses through the novel he revives somewhat thanks to the love of his eccentric father and his extended family of supportive women He eventually finds however that he must come to terms with Mark s death Meanwhile Edward s stepbrother Stuart Cuno decides to give up his studies and goes in search of the pure life of an aesthete to his family s bewilderment Stuart has a close bond with thirteen year old Meredith the son of Thomas and Midge McCaskerville While Edward seeks redemption and Stuart salvation Midge is having an affair with her husband s best friend Harry Cuno stepfather to Edward and father to Stuart Her passionate love affair comes to a head after two years when she is disgraced publicly and falls unexpectedly in love with Stuart Left with a difficult decision Midge turns to Edward for support Awards and nominations editThe Good Apprentice was shortlisted for the 1985 Booker Prize 2 Reception editThe critic Harold Bloom listed The Good Apprentice in his The Western Canon 1994 as one of the books in his conception of artistic works that have been important and influential in Western culture 3 References edit 1985 Booker Prize www middlemiss org The Man Booker Prize Archive PDF The Man Booker Prize Archived from the original PDF on 15 September 2013 Retrieved 20 October 2014 Bloom Harold The Western Canon The Books and School of the Ages Riverhead Books 1995 523 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Good Apprentice amp oldid 1120187802, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
