Nightmare Abbey - Thomas Love Peacock

Nightmare Abbey Is A Novella By Thomas Love Peacock, First Published In 1818, Widely Considered To Be Peacock's Most Enduringly Popular Work. The Narrative Centres On Christopher Glowry, A Miserly Widower, His Son Scythrop And A Host Of Dismal-sounding Servants In His Family Pile, Nightmare Abbey. Recovering From An Ill-fated Love Affair, Scythrop Dreams Up Various Schemes To Reform And Regenerate The Human Species, But Misanthropy Lurks Around Every Corner, And Everything Changes When A Mermaid Is Spotted And A Strange Woman Appears In His Chamber.although Fundamentally A Gothic Novel, And Rich In Allusion - From Pope To Dante, Rossini To Mozart - Nightmare Abbey Is, At Heart, A Satire, As Peacock Makes Clear In The Preface To A Later Edition, In Which He Describes The Characters - Allusions To His Friends - As 'status-quo-ites', 'morbid Visionaries', 'romantic Enthusiasts' And 'lovers Of Good Dinners'.