Leonid Andreyev was once considered one of Russia's greatest dramatists, but his opposition to the Bolshevik Revolution and the Communist government's unilateral support of naturalism on the stage conspired to undermine his career. He was imprisoned, died in poverty, and has become increasingly obscure. Andreyev is symbolic and romantic. Fate and Chance are the two dark, unknown, at times brutal forces which dwell ever before his mind's eye. He sees human beings in the form of ghosts and ghosts in the form of human beings. Andreyev's best-known play, He Who Gets Slapped tells the story of a famous writer who takes a job as a circus clown in order to escape his past. In this carnival of human outcasts, Andreyev fashions a meaningful portrait of an intellectual's struggle to exist in a world ruled by Fate, Chance, and the almighty dollar. Also included are two extraordinarily haunting plays adapted from Andreyev's short stories: Call of the Revolution and The Serpent's Tale.

A mysterious gentleman arrives at Papa Briquet’s circus, and applies to be a clown; unable to do a backflip, and with the circus unwilling to accept the idea of political discourse among the clowns, they settle together on the role of He Who Gets Slapped. Unfortunately for the troupe, He has motives for joining that aren’t immediately apparent; motives that start to threaten the integrity of the circus. He Who Gets Slapped was first presented in Moscow in 1915 to enthusiastic audiences, although critics at the time were confused about Leonid Andreyev’s subtexts. It is his most famous play, at least partially due to the later release in 1924 of a film adaptation by the newly-formed MGM Studios.

A mysterious gentleman arrives at Papa Briquet’s circus, and applies to be a clown; unable to do a backflip, and with the circus unwilling to accept the idea of political discourse among the clowns, they settle together on the role of He Who Gets Slapped. Unfortunately for the troupe, He has motives for joining that aren’t immediately apparent; motives that start to threaten the integrity of the circus. He Who Gets Slapped was first presented in Moscow in 1915 to enthusiastic audiences, although critics at the time were confused about Leonid Andreyev’s subtexts. It is his most famous play, at least partially due to the later release in 1924 of a film adaptation by the newly-formed MGM Studios. This book is part of the Standard Ebooks project, which produces free public domain ebooks.

n A Slap in the Face, William Irvine undertakes a wide-ranging investigation of insults, their history, the role they play in social relationships, and the science behind them. He offers advice, based primarily on the writings of the Stoic philosophers, on how best to curb our own insulting tendencies and how to respond to the insults that are directed our way. A rousing follow-up to The Good Life, A Slap in the Face will interest anyone who's ever delivered an insult or felt the sting of one--in other words, everyone.

This novel was adapted from the Leonid Adreyev drama and the Victor Seastrom photoplay. Illustrated with scenes from the MGM motion picture starring Norma Shearer and John Gilbert.

Winner of Child Magazine's Best Parenting Boo of 1991. "An honest look at how children can drive the most loving parent to periodic madness, along with practical suggestions for how to cope."—Adele Faber.