Mortal Coils Explained

Mortal Coils is a collection of five short fictional pieces written by Aldous Huxley, published in 1921. The book consists of three short stories, a novelette and a play.

The title uses a phrase from Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 1:

[...] To die, to sleep,
To sleep, perchance to dream; aye, there's the rub,
For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause [...]

The stories all concern themselves with some sort of trouble, normally of an amorous nature, and often ending with disappointment.

Content

is a mixture of social satire and murder story,[1] which Huxley later adapted into a film called A Woman's Vengeance (1948).[2] [3]

is a play concerning the amorous problems encountered by various patrons of a hotel.

tells of an old artist who was thought to be dead, and is "rediscovered"; a not entirely successful honorary dinner is organised for him.

is about the boredom of a young girl on holiday with her family. She develops a romantic fantasy, and is ultimately disillusioned.

is a second-hand story told of a nun falling in love. The story mocks the writer's process, a concept Huxley used in his novel Crome Yellow.

Adaptations

Based on novelette "The Gioconda Smile":

Based on play :

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Books: Antic Antiques. https://web.archive.org/web/20110131154013/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,810327,00.html. dead. January 31, 2011. 21 April 1958. 9 June 2018. Time.com.
  2. Web site: A Woman's Vengeance – News – The Harvard Crimson. Thecrimson.com. 9 June 2018.
  3. Web site: Huxley's acid reign . Theage.com.au. 3 July 2002 . 9 June 2018.