Sartor Resartus
Sartor Resartus (meaning 'The tailor re-tailored') is an 1836 novel by Thomas Carlyle, first published as a serial in Fraser's Magazine in November 1833–August 1834. The novel purports to be a commentary on the thought and early life of a German philosopher called Diogenes Teufelsdröckh (which translates as 'god-born devil-dung'), author of a tome entitled Clothes: Their Origin and Influence, but is actually a poioumenon. Teufelsdröckh's Transcendentalist musings are mulled over by a sceptical English Reviewer (referred to as Editor) who also provides fragmentary biographical material on the philosopher. The work is, in part, a parody of Hegel, and of German Idealism more generally. However, Teufelsdröckh is also a literary device with which Carlyle can express difficult truths.
Book I
Chapter 1. Preliminary.
Considering our present advanced state of culture, and how the Torch of Science has now been bran...
Chapter 2. Editorial Difficulties.
If for a speculative man, "whose seedfield," in the sublime words of the Poet, "is Time," no conq...
Chapter 3. Reminiscences.
To the Author's private circle the appearance of this singular Work on Clothes must have occasion...
Chapter 4. Characteristics.
It were a piece of vain flattery to pretend that this Work on Clothes entirely contents us; that ...
Chapter 5. The World in Clothes.
"As Montesquieu wrote a Spirit of Laws," observes our Professor, "so could I write a Spirit of Cl...
Chapter 6. Aprons.
One of the most unsatisfactory Sections in the whole Volume is that on Aprons. What though stout ...
Chapter 7. Miscellaneous-Historical.
Happier is our Professor, and more purely scientific and historic, when he reaches the Middle Age...
Chapter 8. The World Out of Clothes.
If in the Descriptive-Historical portion of this Volume, Teufelsdrockh, discussing merely the Wer...
Chapter 9. Adamitism.
Let no courteous reader take offence at the opinions broached in the conclusion of the last Chapt...
Chapter 10. Pure Reason.
It must now be apparent enough that our Professor, as above hinted, is a speculative Radical, and...
Chapter 11. Prospective.
The Philosophy of Clothes is now to all readers, as we predicted it would do, unfolding itself in...
Book II
Chapter 1. Genesis.
In a psychological point of view, it is perhaps questionable whether from birth and genealogy, ho...
Chapter 2. Idyllic.
"HAPPY season of Childhood!" exclaims Teufelsdrockh: "Kind Nature, that art to all a bountiful mo...
Chapter 3. Pedagogy.
Hitherto we see young Gneschen, in his indivisible case of yellow serge, borne forward mostly on ...
Chapter 4. Getting Under Way.
"Thus nevertheless," writes our Autobiographer, apparently as quitting College, "was there realiz...
Chapter 5. Romance.
"For long years," writes Teufelsdrockh, "had the poor Hebrew, in this Egypt of an Auscultatorship...
Chapter 6. Sorrows of Teufelsdrockh
We have long felt that, with a man like our Professor, matters must often be expected to take a c...
Chapter 7. The Everlasting No.
Under the strange nebulous envelopment, wherein our Professor has now shrouded himself, no doubt ...
Chapter 8. Center of Indifference.
Though, after this "Baphometic Fire-baptism" of his, our Wanderer signifies that his Unrest was b...
Chapter 9. The Everlasting Yea.
"Temptations in the Wilderness!" exclaims Teufelsdrockh, "Have we not all to be tried with such? ...
Chapter 10. Pause.
Thus have we, as closely and perhaps satisfactorily as, in such circumstances, might be, followed...
Book III
Chapter 1. Incident in Modern History.
As a wonder-loving and wonder-seeking man, Teufelsdrockh, from an early part of this Clothes-Volu...
Chapter 2. Church-Clothes.
Not less questionable is his Chapter on Church-Clothes, which has the farther distinction of bein...
Chapter 3. Symbols.
Probably it will elucidate the drift of these foregoing obscure utterances, if we here insert som...
Chapter 4. Helotage.
At this point we determine on adverting shortly, or rather reverting, to a certain Tract of Hofra...
Chapter 5. The Phoenix.
Putting which four singular Chapters together, and alongside of them numerous hints, and even dir...
Chapter 6. Old Clothes.
As mentioned above, Teufelsdrockh, though a Sansculottist, is in practice probably the politest m...
Chapter 7. Organic Filaments.
For us, who happen to live while the World-Phoenix is burning herself, and burning so slowly that...
Chapter 8. Natural Supernaturalism.
It is in his stupendous Section, headed Natural Supernaturalism, that the Professor first becomes...
Chapter 9. Circumspective.
Here, then, arises the so momentous question: Have many British Readers actually arrived with us ...
Chapter 10. The Dandiacal Body.
First, touching Dandies, let us consider, with some scientific strictness, what a Dandy specially...
Chapter 11. Tailors.
Thus, however, has our first Practical Inference from the Clothes-Philosophy, that which respects...
Chapter 12. Farewell.
So have we endeavored, from the enormous, amorphous Plum-pudding, more like a Scottish Haggis, wh...
Appendix
This questionable little Book was undoubtedly written among the mountain solitudes, in 1831; but,...