Tuesday, December 2, 2008

What is the time and historical period of "The Interlopers"?

The Interlopers is a story by Hector Hugh Munro (Saki).  It was part of a collection of short stories (The Toys of Peace, and Other Papers ) that was published in 1919 after Saki's death.  While the physical setting of the story is indicated, the time period is not.  


There are several clues that enable us to speculate that the time period of the book is the early Twentieth Century. First, the fact that both characters have rifles is an indication.  Also, most of the short stories in the collection are set in pre-war Europe.  A third hint about the time period is the fact that we do know that the author lived between 1870 to 1916.  


This time period was before the Great War.  It was a period of industrialism and militarism in Europe.  England was the most powerful industrial power, but Germany was also moving in that direction.  Many of the European countries had acquired empires in Africa and Asia.  The historical period is referred to as the Industrial Age or the Age of Oil.  

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