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''The Ordeal of Gilbert Pinfold'' is a novel by the British writer Evelyn Waugh, first published in July 1957. It is Waugh's penultimate full-length work of fiction, which the author called his "mad book"—a largely autobiographical account of a period of mental illness that he experienced in the early months of 1954, recounted through his protagonist Gilbert Pinfold. Waugh's health in the winter of 1953–54 was indifferent, and he was beset with various personal anxieties that were stifling his ability to work. He was also in the grip of a serious drug addiction. In search of a peaceful environment in which he could resume writing, he embarked on a sea voyage to Ceylon, but was driven to the point of madness by imagined voices that assailed him throughout the voyage. These experiences are mirrored in the novel by those of Pinfold, a successful writer in the Waugh mould who, as an antidote to his lassitude and chronic insomnia, is dosing himself with a mixture of barbiturates and alcohol. This cocktail brings about a series of hallucinatory episodes during a sea voyage taken by Pinfold for the sake of his health; he hears voices that insult, taunt and threaten him. Believing that his life may be in danger he leaves the ship, but his unseen tormentors follow him. After medical treatment on his return home he is advised that the voices were imaginary, the product of his excessive drug-taking. However, Pinfold ascribes his rapid cure not to the cessation of his drug habit but to a private victory over the forces of evil. On the book's publication, Waugh's friends praised it, but its general critical reception was muted. Most reviewers admired the self-portrait of Waugh with which the novel opens, but expressed divided views about the rest, in particular the ending. Commentators have debated whether the novel provides a real-life depiction of Waugh, or if it represents the exaggerated persona that he cultivated as a means of preserving his privacy. The book has been dramatised for radio and as a stage play. ==Plot== Gilbert Pinfold is a reputable English novelist who at the age of 50 can look back on a varied life that has included a dozen reasonably successful books, wide travel, and honourable service in the Second World War. His reputation secure, he lives quietly, on good but not close terms with his neighbours; his Roman Catholicism sets him slightly apart in the local community. He has a pronounced distaste for most aspects of modern life, and has of late become somewhat lazy, given to drinking more than he should. To counter the effects of his several aches and pains, Pinfold has taken to dosing himself with a powerful sedative of chloral and bromide. He conceals this practice from his doctor. Pinfold is very protective of his privacy, but uncharacteristically agrees to be interviewed on BBC radio. The main inquisitor is a man named Angel, who is civil enough, yet something about his voice and manner disconcerts Pinfold, who detects a veiled malicious intent. In the weeks that follow, Pinfold broods on the incident. The encroaching winter depresses him further; he decides to escape by taking a cruise, and secures passage on the SS ''Caliban'', bound for Ceylon. As the voyage proceeds, Pinfold finds that sounds and conversations from other parts of the ship are somehow being transmitted into his cabin. At first this is a mild annoyance, but when he catches the sound of his own name in conversation, he realises he is being talked about. Amid an increasingly bizarre series of overheard incidents, the personal remarks become progressively more insulting, and then directly threatening. Pinfold perceives that his main tormentors are a man and a woman, whose vicious words are balanced by those of a provocative and amorous younger woman, Margaret. He is convinced that the man is the BBC interviewer Angel, using his technical knowledge to broadcast the voices. Pinfold spends sleepless nights, awaiting either the promised physical attacks or a seductive visit from Margaret. To escape his persecutors Pinfold disembarks at Alexandria and flies on to Colombo, but the voices pursue him. Pinfold has now reconciled himself to their presence and is able to ignore them, or even converse rationally with them. After a brief stay in Colombo he returns to England. On the flight home he is told by "Angel" that the whole episode was a scientific experiment that got out of hand; if Pinfold will keep silent about his experiences, he is told, he will never be bothered by the voices again. Pinfold refuses, declaring Angel a menace that must be exposed. The voices grow fainter; back in England and reunited with his wife, Pinfold hears Margaret faintly say: "I don't exist, but I do love you", before the voices disappear. Pinfold's doctor tells him that the voices were imagined, a result of his drug addiction, but he thinks differently. Believing that he has won a significant battle over his personal demons, he begins to write an account of his experiences: "The Ordeal of Gilbert Pinfold". 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Ordeal of Gilbert Pinfold」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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