A Game of Hide and Seek
Encyclopedia
A Game of Hide and Seek is a 1951
novel
by Elizabeth Taylor
.
It is a very human, ordinary and yet very extraordinary story, set in England
between WWI
and WWII
and focused mainly upon Harriet Claridge and Vesey Macmillan. The relationship between these two and the effect it has upon those around them is the structure upon which the novel is built. Wistfully and uselessly in love, Harriet and Vesey play a sad game of hide and seek
for more than 25 years.
When the story opens they are little more than children. Harriet is painfully inarticulate, Vesey defensive and irritating. Yet they are drawn to one another. They are separated when he goes off to Oxford
. She cherishes his photograph and waits for a letter that never arrives. Harriet grows up to marry Charles, a rather dull country solicitor
, and have a daughter, while Vesey leads a second-rate career as an actor
.
The first half of the story leaves the reader at this point. Then there is a sharp chronological break and the characters are reassembled. Nothing has changed greatly–they are 15 years older and their lives have altered considerably, but Harriet is still inarticulate, Vesey still defensive and irritating. They are still in love.
The latter portion of the novel is concerned with the rather pitiful, often lovely, and completely ineffectual affair they embark on. Their intrigue could not possibly be less of a 'grand passion.' When it ends as the reader knows it must, the affair is not completed; it is just forced to stop:
"'If only we were young again!' she said in a tired voice. 'And might have a second chance.'"
"'I think perhaps this is supposed to be it,' he said doubtfully.'
This novel gestures towards Persuasion
by Jane Austen
, which one of the characters is reading and reflecting on during a scene of suppressed tension. Like the hero
and heroine of that novel, the two main characters, who have been childhood sweethearts separated by circumstances, almost get a second chance later in life; however, here one of them is married.
A Game of Hide and Seek was published again in 1986
by Virago Press and Penguin Books, with an introduction by Elizabeth Jane Howard
.
(ISBN 0-14-016137-6)
1951 in literature
The year 1951 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*E. E. Cummings and Rachel Carson are awarded Guggenheim Fellowships.*Flannery O'Connor is diagnosed with lupus....
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor (novelist)
Elizabeth Taylor was a British novelist and short story writer.-Life and writings:...
.
It is a very human, ordinary and yet very extraordinary story, set in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
between WWI
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and WWII
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and focused mainly upon Harriet Claridge and Vesey Macmillan. The relationship between these two and the effect it has upon those around them is the structure upon which the novel is built. Wistfully and uselessly in love, Harriet and Vesey play a sad game of hide and seek
Hide and seek
Hide-and-seek or hide-and-go-seek is a variant of the game tag, in which a number of players conceal themselves in the environment, to be found by one or more seekers.-Variants:Numerous variants of the game can be found around the world...
for more than 25 years.
When the story opens they are little more than children. Harriet is painfully inarticulate, Vesey defensive and irritating. Yet they are drawn to one another. They are separated when he goes off to Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. She cherishes his photograph and waits for a letter that never arrives. Harriet grows up to marry Charles, a rather dull country solicitor
Solicitor
Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
, and have a daughter, while Vesey leads a second-rate career as an actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
The first half of the story leaves the reader at this point. Then there is a sharp chronological break and the characters are reassembled. Nothing has changed greatly–they are 15 years older and their lives have altered considerably, but Harriet is still inarticulate, Vesey still defensive and irritating. They are still in love.
The latter portion of the novel is concerned with the rather pitiful, often lovely, and completely ineffectual affair they embark on. Their intrigue could not possibly be less of a 'grand passion.' When it ends as the reader knows it must, the affair is not completed; it is just forced to stop:
"'If only we were young again!' she said in a tired voice. 'And might have a second chance.'"
"'I think perhaps this is supposed to be it,' he said doubtfully.'
This novel gestures towards Persuasion
Persuasion (novel)
Persuasion is Jane Austen's last completed novel. She began it soon after she had finished Emma, completing it in August 1816. She died, aged 41, in 1817; Persuasion was published in December that year ....
by Jane Austen
Jane Austen
Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
, which one of the characters is reading and reflecting on during a scene of suppressed tension. Like the hero
Hero
A hero , in Greek mythology and folklore, was originally a demigod, their cult being one of the most distinctive features of ancient Greek religion...
and heroine of that novel, the two main characters, who have been childhood sweethearts separated by circumstances, almost get a second chance later in life; however, here one of them is married.
A Game of Hide and Seek was published again in 1986
1986 in literature
The year 1986 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Michael Grade. Controller of BBC One, axes plans to televise Ian Curteis's The Falklands Play.-New books:*Kingsley Amis - The Old Devils...
by Virago Press and Penguin Books, with an introduction by Elizabeth Jane Howard
Elizabeth Jane Howard
Elizabeth Jane Howard, CBE is an English novelist. She was previously an actress and a model.In 1951 she won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize for her first novel, The Beautiful Visit...
.
(ISBN 0-14-016137-6)