Customer Reviews

Ivanhoe (World's Classics)

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I would doubtlessly recommend Ivanhoe to read. History may be often dull but Sir Walter Scott makes history extremely exciting by romanticizing his novel. It directly deals with hatred between the Normans and the Saxons, the discrimination of the Jews, chivalry, and politics--but it is a unforgettable tale of heroism, honor, and love. I felt that the characters were so fascinating and fun to read about. I was enjoying and cheering on the good characters like Ivanhoe, King Richard, and Robin Hood to beat the hated and evil villains. I liked the idea of love added in the story, like how Rowena and Rebecca were both in love with Ivanhoe. I even felt a little sorry for Brian de Bois-Guilbert who would do anything for Rebecca's love but is constantly rejected. I thought how it was appealing how the author questions Ivanhoe and Rebecca's feelings for each other. Suspenseful and action sequences also added entertainment to the story. This book may be a little too detailed for some readers, but I didn't mind. I felt that the details were brilliantly used to decorate the story in an outstanding fashion. The old English wording made me feel like I was actually in the medieval England. I have to admit that it took a great deal of persistence for me to finish this book and it was a challenge for me to read. However, I found Ivanhoe to be a wonderful pleasure. It is no wonder that Ivanhoe is such a well-loved tale!

Each reader brings to a book a set of expectations and experience. Giving my particular background and interests, I was startled at how perceptive and understanding Scott was of his Jewish characters.

Having read Ivanhoe in high school, begrudingly, I was bemused that I got so enraptured with the story, however off to a slow start it was at the beginning.

But by the time I got to Rebecca's prayer, I was utterly taken. An argument could be made that that chapter, a prayer that could be read as a distillation of the medieval Jewish world view, is perhaps the intellectual center of the novel. Scott's awareness of how Jews saw themselves, and how they experienced the world, and his sympathy for a group, who, in early 19th century England were few and despised, is stunning.

One could perhaps even read his treatment of Isaac, Rebeca's father and a money-lender, as a counter-play on The Merchant of Venice, a character who starts off cold and avaricious, and ends loving, caring and humane.

All in all, a highly commendable novel.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but this book, by Sir Walter Scott, was the progenitor of what was to become a venerable tradition in English letters (and in other European literatures as well): the historical romance. There have been many after IVANHOE, and frequently with a finer eye to the period in which the tale is set (for IVANHOE contains quite a number of anachronisms -- even Scott acknowledged it), but few have done it quite as well as Scott. He uses an archaic English to give voice to his characters, but one which is readily absorbed because of the speed & quality of the tale. So, though these people certainly wouldn't really have spoken as he has them speaking, they yet sound as though they should have. Peopled by many 'stock' characters and situations, this tale was fresh in its time & still reads well today -- a testament to Scott's skills as a teller of tales and a sketcher of marvelously wrought characters. In this tale of the 'disinherited knight' returning home to find the world he left turned upside down, young Ivanhoe, after a stint with King Richard in the Holy Land, must fight the enemies of his king and kinsmen anew. Yet the hero is oddly sidelined for much of the tale as events swirl around him and the brilliantly evoked villain, Sir Brian de Bois Gilbert, in the pay of Prince John, struggles to win treasure and the beautiful Rebeccah, who yet has eyes only for Ivanhoe, a knight she can never hope to win herself. There's lots of action and coincidences galore here and Robin Hood makes more than a cameo appearance, as does the noble Richard. In sum, this one's great fun, a great tale, and the progenitor of a whole genre. All those which came after owe their form to it. Worth the price and the read.

Ivanhoe is one of my favorite works. I can't stand to read some of these disparaging reviews. First of all I need to clear something up: Ivanhoe is NOT by any means BORING. It is full of ACTION and EXCITEMENT. What leads some to call it "BOOORING" is really the result of Sir Walter's careful eye for detail. The reader must also keep in mind that Scott was a Romantic, and works of that genre tend to be wordy. Ivanhoe is not a quick read- if you choose to read it, be prepared to spend some quality time with the characters. The only complaint that I have of Scott are the numerous anachronisms- however, they are usually rather slight and should not upset the story's credibility for the reader. On a brighter note, Scott paints realistic, though not three-dimensional, characters who always stay true to themselves. This work is a must-read for those who wish to enhance their literary backgrounds. Having read it, I have come across numerous references and allusions to the story, which I can now fully appreciate.

I have been notoriously shy of Sir Walter Scott's novels these many years - afeared my imagination would fatefully be swallowed in the fog of the misty dawn - the ominous steps pacing stoically and relentlessly toward my doom - a duel with the spirit of "That old War Horse."

But I was quite mistaken: ~ This story is alive - or rather, so very lively! Human fallibilities, such as greed, pride, and bigotry are unabashedly exploited and made ridiculous with as ever a brilliant wit that novelists Jane Austen or Charles Dickens have ever displayed!

Scott lights a flame that gives his readers a warm, glowing glance into a dark and murky age. Legends - King Richard the Lionheart and even Robin Hood - embodiment of the spirit of the age - are given eloquent voice and movement through vistas and airs that touch my - the reader's - every sense! Nobility in IVANHOE is not written on the charters or conquests of the characters peopling this novel - but within their hearts and in their actions.

No, this is not old and out of sync with everything that we, in the 21st century, know. Scott shows us that humans cannot be bound by time or mortality - but only by the restraints of our own imaginations - our own reticent hearts. I tell you this - IVANHOE may very well induce your imaginations to throw far from your mortal boundaries every conceivable stipulation that would endeavor to restrain them!

20 years later (much evolved from my brain dead, high school student period ) I had a blast reading Ivanhoe. The descriptions are rich, the dialog snappy and often very witty (not to mention sarcastic and snide)......the story held my interest from the get go. Wamba the Jester is my hero!

Highly recommended for more mature audiences, but I can see how a younger person (for example: average brain dead, high schoolers) would be completely bemused by the book.

Ivanhoe, written by Sir Walter Scott, is a remarkable story of good versus evil, and a story of love. The story takes place about a century after the Norman Conquest and is set in medieval England. The story is based upon the hero Ivanhoe, who falls deeply in love with Rowena. Throughout the story Ivanhoe has to overcome all sorts of obstacles to get his love back, the biggest optical was Ivanhoe rescuing her from Brian de Bois-Guilbert. The great aspect of Ivanhoe is that it is totally fictional yet almost all the events are based upon real historical events, like the fact that King Richard was off the thrown for the crusades only to be imprisoned when he comes back. Sir Walter Scott also paints a vivid picture of the status of the people of the time. There were the highest noblemen, each having vassals, who in turn had surfs who were tied to a died of land given to the vassals. Then of course were the nights, which were men of higher status who were brought up to fight. He depicts the whole feudal system well. Sir Walter Scott made this novel more like a story being told. It was almost always being told to the reader unless there is something vital to be explained. I personally liked this story because of it's the way the setting and time are depicted so well. I like stories of medieval times that are often struggles between good and evil.

Depending on your tastes Ivanhoe could either be considered a favorite or despised. Make no mistake - for today's average reader "Ivanhoe" is an extremely difficult read. The language was considerd archaic 200 years ago. Also, the reader must have a fair amount of knowledge about the Middle Ages - if you have never heard of the battle of Hasting or why it is significant... this is defintely not the book for you!

Personally, I found "Ivanhoe" to be both enjoyable and enlightening. While I do realize that Sir Walter Scott did make some historical errors - I found his despriction of "the Lists" to be informative.

The quality of the plot for "Ivanhoe" can not be questioned. It has all of the elements for a great read... deceipt, honour, a love triangle, prejuidices, castle sieges and battles to death! Scott's mastery of detail (sometimes a little TOO mastered) engulfs you into the world of the 12th century.

I especially enjoyed the involvement of Robin Hood, Richard The Lionheart and Prince John as main characters. Their historical involvement really helped to hold my interest.

The treatment of Jews is an interesting development throughout "Ivanhoe". Despite all the characters treating people of the jewish faith as sub-human "Ivanhoes" the last three pages show the prejuidices can be overcome and people of different faiths should learn tolerance. This is suprising stuff for the perion in which Sir Walter Scott penned it!

I found "Ivanhoe" to be very enjoyable - and at times a page-turner. The difficulty of the language was a challenge at times (and I am sure their are few plot points that I did miss), but as a whole I would suggest it to all readers who enjoy a bit of a challenge.

I'm glad that I read this book and I think that it had many exciting and enjoyable moments. The characters were interesting, for the most part, although I thought it slightly odd that Ivanhoe was hardly the main character of the book. It did have some very slow moments, but like all romantic novels, the character's feelings are talked about for pages and pages. If you know all of this beforehand, it is quite a fun read. I agree with the reviewer that the anti-semitism was brutal throughout the novel but at the end, you felt that there was an enlightenment with Ivanhoe and other characters about the fact that Jewish people are, in fact, PEOPLE! I liked that part of the book very much.

Sir Walter Scott. Ivanhoe. Edited with an Introduction and Notes by Ian Duncan, Barbara and Carlisle Moore Professor of English at the University of Oregon. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press (Oxford World's Classics Edition), 1996.

Reading some of the reviews published on the site about "Ivanhoe", I have been shocked and horrified to discover that well-meaning (?) English teachers have apparently been letting schoolchildren loose on "Ivanhoe" without the necessary guidance and preparation. No wonder that some of them have turned away from a book, which, although famous (thanks probably to the early-1950's film starring a stunning young Elizabeth Taylor as Rebecca), is almost as difficult to read as anything else Scott wrote and despite its phantastic tale of knights in armour tries the patience of the modern reader until the very last page.

That is one very good reason to opt for the Oxford World's Classics version, which I believe contains just about all the additional information that a normal reader could require. Ian Duncan has not only printed Scott's final text (which he has carefully scrutinized and compared with both the autograph and early editions), but also includes Scott's own introduction and his notes (21 pages of them) as well as his own editorial notes containing explanations of difficult terms, speculation on where Scott may have got his details wrong and, last but not least, details of Scott's use of the language of the Bible, Shakespeare, Chaucer, Spenser, Webster, Dryden and Pope. Of course, reading the book with one thumb in the notes at the back is not as comfortable as reading a modern novel, but it is probably the only way to understand Scott.

And if you want to understand Scott, I would strongly advise not reading "Ivanhoe" before tackling some of his earlier novels. In "The Antiquary", for example, Scott portrays himself under the pseudonym of Jonathan Oldbuck. In "Ivanhoe", Scott is pursuing not only his literary career but also his antiquarian predilections. That is why the book is full of old-fashioned vocabulary and why there are long descriptions of things medieval which matter little to the plot; Scott found history interesting of itself, and was also an expert on medieval law, on heraldry etc. And he also had an interesting personal background as the scion of a fairly strict Calvinist family who had turned episcopalian; Scott himself was a member of the Freemasons and took very much an "enlightened" stance on the things of religion (to be followed in books such as "Old Mortality" and "The Heart of Midlothian"). Yet he was never a scoffer; rather, he portrayed characters who fulfilled his ideals as well as gross hypocrites. Here in "Ivanhoe", his ideal is obviously Rebecca whose tolerance (despite persecution), humanity and self-denial are painted in the clearest colours, contrasting greatly with the pseudo-religious values of the Templars but also of Friar Tuck who here seems to represent the degenerate Saxon form of the Roman Catholic Church. It is perhaps the supreme irony that in a book populated by devout Catholics, the only character who really behaves in a model Christian way is the Jewess Rebecca.

It would take too long to enumerate all the other fascinating aspects of this novel here, but I recommend it to anyone looking for more than just entertainment. Pay attention to the nuances, and these 500 pages will amply reward the not inconsiderable effort needed to comprehend them.