1 h 43 minAudiobook4 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 42 pagesHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 42 pagesAbout this book
What happens when a man who makes illusions enters a room full of people certain they know what is real?
In the drawing room of an English country house, a visiting stranger unsettles more than the evening. The Conjurer makes things seem to happen, but his arrival tests the household’s ideas about reality. In Magic, G. K. Chesterton turns stage tricks and sharp conversation into a fantastic comedy about reason, faith, and doubt.
Patricia Carleon is open to wonder. Dr Grimthorpe trusts what can be measured and explained. Between these outlooks stands a question neither a clever trick nor a confident argument can easily settle: what should you do when you see something you cannot explain? The comedy puts their certainties at stake without turning its questions into a lecture.
What you’ll discover
- A stranger with illusions Meet the Conjurer, whose presence tests what an entire household accepts as real.
- Wonder meets firm certainty Watch Patricia’s openness to mystery stand beside Dr Grimthorpe’s trust in measurable explanations.
- A drawing room unsettled Enter a country house where conjuring turns familiar surroundings into ground for doubt.
- Serious questions, playful wit Enjoy Chesterton’s paradoxes as comedy gives difficult ideas room to breathe.
- The limits of proof Consider whether an unexplained sight asks for belief, skepticism, or a little more wonder.
Is it for you?
This is for readers who enjoy plays of ideas, who like Chesterton's paradoxes, or who wonder what it means to believe in something unseen. It may suit you less if you want fast action or a realistic drama.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A play born from a long argument
- A conjurer enters a doubting household
- What counts as belief, and what counts as proof
- How a comedy carries the argument
Who’s who
- The ConjurerA stranger whose trade is illusion and whose arrival tests what everyone in the household thinks is real.
- Patricia CarleonA young woman who is open to wonder and does not share the doctor's habit of explaining things away.
- Dr GrimthorpeA doctor and man of science who trusts only what can be measured and explained.
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Magic
by G. K. Chesterton· 1913
A conjurer unsettles a household’s beliefs about what is real.
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Language: English
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 4
A play born from a long argument
Chesterton wrote Magic when the stage was full of problem plays by writers such as Shaw. Shaw was his friend and sparring partner, and the two often debated in public. Chesterton chose the theatre to put his own side of the case.
His side is simple to state. He thought that modern people who proudly explained everything away had actually lost something. For him, ordinary life was strange and bright, and a sense of mystery was a sign of good sense.
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The author
G. K. Chesterton
1874–1936 · English writer and Christian apologist
G. K. Chesterton (1874–1936) was an English writer born in London. He wrote novels, essays, poems and plays. His books include Heretics (1905), The Man Who Was Thursday (1908) and The Innocence of Father Brown (1911). He moved to Beaconsfield in 1909 and lived there until his death.
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What is Magic by G. K. Chesterton about?
It is a comedy play about a conjurer who comes among people with very different views of what is real. Through that meeting, Chesterton asks how we should respond to wonder, trickery and the limits of explanation.
When was Chesterton's play Magic first performed?
It was first staged in London in 1913. Chesterton was then a well-known journalist and author, and he wrote the play as a fantastic comedy that carried his ideas about belief and doubt.
Is Magic a novel or a play?
Magic is a play, meant for the stage, and Chesterton described it as a fantastic comedy. Its dialogue is written to be spoken, so it often reads best aloud.
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