The Master of Ballantrae Author:Robert Louis Stevenson In every respect, this magnificent novel plunges deeply into the roots of human nature, probes the psychology of motives, conceives a kaleidoscope of ambiguous and curiously ambivalent situations which turn into and upon every phase of man's moral experience. We have the political situation to make a judgment upon: who is right, the Master in ... more »joining the rebellious cause of Bonnie Prince Charlie against the English crown, or Henry and the old lord, who remain faithful to the King and the peers of the realm? We have the domestic situation. Is Alison right or wrong in keeping alive some feeling for James, who has, in the eyes of the world, lost everything: cause, estate, wife, and livelihood? We have the inner moral and mental vacillations of two men's souls in the agonies of relentless conflict, altering the structure of human nature, and finally beating each other in exhaustion to literal death. In the end, it is impossible to judge one man good and redeemed and another man evil and damned. We are aware only that we have been on a journey into the depths of human nature.« less