M. R. James

Montague Rhodes James ( born August 1, 1862 in Goodnestone, Dover, Kent, England; † June 12, 1936 in Eton, Berkshire, England ) was an English classical scholar and author of ghost stories.

Life and work

The school career went through the gifted MR James with great success. He attended Temple Grove School, Eton College at Eton and King's College. Later he took a position at King's College and eventually became its chief in 1905. In 1918 he became the head of Eton College.

The gregarious James had a large circle of friends, but remained unmarried. He described himself as open to supernatural phenomena, but was by no means what you would call a ghost hunter in the UK. His love for the ghost story he cultivated in dealing with the Irish writer Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu (1814-1873), whose relevant stories he published new.

Over time, he wrote an immense number of textbooks and elaborations. His particular interest was apocryphal Bible scriptures and medieval manuscripts. As a profound knowledge of the matter, he cataloged a large part of the manuscript holdings of the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford.

James was known to the public in 1894 by his ghost stories, which he won on numerous trips on the European continent suggestions. His profound knowledge of history, which he incorporated into his stories, give them an air of authenticity.

James often used the elements of "classic" ghost stories and perfected this: The venue is often a rural area, small town or an honorable university with an eccentric scholars as protagonists. The discovery of an old book or other Antique evokes the disaster or a dark threat up. This evil is rather hinted at and left to the imagination of the reader, while the characters and the scene in detail.

The by HP Lovecraft -appreciated James inspired numerous writers of the genre, including ANL Munby, EG Swain and AC Benson. His stories were in England at times very popular and were - following an English tradition - often read aloud on Christmas evening in friendly company.

James' stories appeared several times in a collected form, and have been adapted for radio and television. The BBC sent over many years Christmas readings.

Works

Collected stories

• Ghost Stories of an Antiquary, 1904, online text

• More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary, 1911, online text
• A Thin Ghost and Others, 1919, online text
• A Warning to the Curious and other Ghost Stories, 1925, The cover story as an online text

German editions: " 13 ghost stories " (13 Ghost Stories ) Rothenberg ob der Tauber: Hegereiter -Verlag 1962, translated by Otto Knörrich. Reprint: Suhrkamp 1990 Contents: The engraving (The mezzotint); Number 13 ( Number 13 ); " Whistle and I 'll come to you, my friend!" ( Whistle and I'll Come to You My Lad ); A School Story (A School Story); The Rose Garden ( The Rose Garden ); The treatise middoth (The Tractate middoth ); Mr. Humphreys and his Inheritance ( Mr. Humphreys and His Inheritance ); The Domherrnwohnung in Whitminster ( The Residence at Whitminster ); The Diary of Mr. Poynter ( The Diary of Mr. Poynter ); The mysterious prayer books (The Uncommon Prayer -Book); A view from a hill (A View from a Hill ); A warning for the curious ( A Warning to the Curious ); Rats ( Rats ).

"The Treasure of Abbot Thomas" Frankfurt / Main: Insel Verlag, 1970, Translated by Friedrich Polakovics. Reprint: Suhrkamp 1979 Contents: The Treasure of Abbot Thomas (The Treasure of Abbot Thomas ); A heart cousin (Lost Hearts); " Ibi cubavit Lamia " (An Episode of Cathedral History); The Doll's House ( The Haunted Doll's House); The legacy of Canon Alberic ( Canon Alberic 's Scrap -Book); A Scout history ( Wailing Well); The Ash Tree ( The Ash - Tree ); Three months period (Casting the Runes ); " Liber nigrae peregrinationis " ( Count Magnus ).

" Two strange ghost stories " Amsterdam: Verlag Munniksma 1988 Translated by Harald Schablow Content: One neighbor landmark (A Neighbour 's Landmark ); Martins enclosure ( Martin 's Close ).

" The wickedness of inanimate things " Giessen: privately printed Robert N. Bloch 2008, Translated by Michael Siefener Content: The Witch of Fenstanton (The Fenstanton Witch ); Evening entertainment ( An Evening Entertainment); There was once a man who lives ' at the Cemetery ( There was a Man dwelt by a Churchyard ); The story of a disappearance and reappearance (The Story of a Disappearance and to appearance); The Experiment ( The Experiment ); A vignette ( vignette A ), A night in the chapel of King's College (A Night at King's College Chapel ); After dark on the sports field ( After Dark in the Playing Fields ); The malice inanimate things (The Malice of Inanimate Objects).

2002, two other ghost stories were published in edited by Frank Rainer check and Erik Hauser anthology " touches of the Night" at the Festa Verlag, documenting numerous other stories of the James tradition.

TV adaptations and films

• Night of the Demon, 1957 ( U.S. title: Curse of the Demon; German title: Curse of the Demon ); Presentation was "three months period " (Casting the Runes )
• Whistle and I'll Come to You, 1968
• A Warning to the Curious 1972