| Black Mischief | |
|---|---|
First edition cover |
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| Author(s) | Evelyn Waugh |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Comedy |
| Publisher | Chapman and Hall |
| Publication date | 1932 |
| Media type | |
| ISBN | NA |
Black Mischief was Evelyn Waugh's third novel, published in 1932. The novel chronicles the efforts of the English-educated Emperor Seth, assisted by a fellow Oxford graduate, Basil Seal, to modernize his Empire, the fictional African island of Azania, located in the Indian Ocean off of the eastern coast of Africa. This has been understood as a reference to Abyssinia and Haile Selassie, though the author himself denied the connection.
This now controversial book helped to establish Waugh's reputation as a master satirist.
The novel was written by Waugh whilst staying as a house guest at Madresfield Court in Worcestershire.
The novel is published in the U.K. by Penguin Classics (ISBN 9780141183985), and in the U.S.A. by Back Bay Books (ISBN 0316917338).
After winning a civil war Seth, emperor of the fictional nation of Azania, makes it his goal to "modernise" his country. He recruits Basil Seal, a college friend and heir to an English political family, to preside over the newly established Ministry of Modernization, with the help of Krikor Yokoumian, a successful entrepreneur. Unbeknownst to Seth and the Ministry, the French consul Ballon plans a coup d'état. At a "Birth Control Parade" organized by Seth, Ballon and several religious leaders overthrow the Emperor and install his senile uncle Achon. However, Achon dies upon coronation, and Seth dies in hiding. With no heir to the monarchy, the League of Nations steps in and claims the country as a League of Nations Mandate.
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