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Audiobook edition · 4 h 28 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What can tempt a ruler who already has palaces, feasts, and every pleasure within reach?
In William Beckford's Vathek: An Arabian Tale, the caliph of Samarah has more than enough, yet nothing satisfies him. Proud and hungry for wonders, Vathek cannot bear to be refused. When the repulsive stranger called the Giaour arrives at court, he brings the promise of hidden treasures and power beyond anything on earth. That promise comes with a price.
Vathek's mother, Carathis, is a sorceress whose dark learning feeds his ambition. Beyond the court, Nouronihar feels the pull of the caliph's power, while her gentle cousin Gulchenrouz remains devoted to her. Around them, Beckford mixes splendor, comedy, and horror. This short Gothic fantasy asks what happens when pleasure stops being enough and the hunger for more takes command.
What you’ll discover
- A ruler without limits Meet a caliph whose endless appetite turns abundance into another reason to want more.
- Wonders with a price Follow the Giaour's tempting promise into a bargain that demands blood.
- A mother's dark ambition Encounter Carathis, whose love of forbidden learning drives her son toward greater ambition.
- Power beside innocence See Nouronihar's attraction to power beside Gulchenrouz's gentle devotion to her.
- Splendor edged with mockery Enter a world of extravagant courts, strange wonders, and horror sharpened by irony.
Who will love it
You will enjoy this if you love dark fairy tales, Gothic atmosphere, sharp satire and Eastern settings full of genii, magic and feasts. It suits readers who like wicked characters and wild invention.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Every wonder leaves Vathek wanting more
- The bargain carries a hidden price
- Cruelty hides behind a generous smile
- Welcome creates a duty of respect
- Ambition draws Nouronihar toward the caliph
- Knowledge without humility becomes a snare
- Gentleness stands against power and cruelty
- Laughter makes the horror feel real
- Kindness holds against the endless hunger
Who’s who
- VathekThe ninth Abassid caliph, he has a deadly eye and boundless appetites, and he wants to know and possess everything, including forbidden powers.
- CarathisHis Greek mother, learned in astrology and magic, she urges her son toward the powers of darkness and delights in every grim experiment.
- The GiaourA hideous stranger from an unknown part of India, he sells marvels to the caliph and offers a palace of fire in return for faith.
- NouroniharThe emir's clever, vain and lively daughter, she is promised to her cousin but is dazzled by the caliph and the treasures he promises.
- GulchenrouzA gentle boy of thirteen who writes poems and loves his cousin, he lives among the women of the harem and fears anything sudden.
- BababaloukThe caliph's chief eunuch, he is fussy, loyal and often humiliated, and he speaks the plain truths that his master ignores.
- FakreddinA pious emir who lives in a green valley amid barren mountains, he welcomes travelers and fights to protect his daughter and his house.
- MorakanabadThe chief vizier, a good and troubled man, he tries to keep order in Samarah while the caliph and his mother drag the court into ruin.
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Vathek: An Arabian Tale
by William Beckford · 1786
A caliph with one deadly eye trades fifty children for a promise of forbidden power.
Challenging2–5 hours to read20 languages
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“'Vathek' is a masterpiece, which, as an Eastern tale, is unrivalled in European literature.”
In short
What happens when a ruler who owns every pleasure on earth still wants more? Vathek, the ninth caliph of the Abassid dynasty, has five palaces built just for his senses, yet he still craves greater knowledge.
Vathek: An Arabian Tale at a glance
- Reading time
- About 2 h 35 min2 h fast, 3 h slow
- Length
- 36,400 words
- Library level
- Challenging long sentences, a rich vocabulary
- First published
- 1786by William Beckford
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A caliph who wants to know everything
Vathek is the grandson of Haroun Al Raschid and comes to the throne young. When he grows angry, one of his eyes becomes so terrible that the person it falls on drops backward and sometimes dies.
His father built the palace of Alkoremmi above the city of Samarah. Vathek adds five more palaces, one for each sense. Yet none of it satisfies him. He wants to know even sciences that do not exist. The Genii help him finish a tower. When Vathek climbs its eleven thousand steps, he sees men as small as ants and nearly worships himself. Then he looks up and finds the stars as far away as ever.
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Details
- First published
- 1786
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 2 h 50 min
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Beckford, William. Vathek: An Arabian Tale. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/vathek-an-arabian-tale.
Beckford, W. (2026). Vathek: An Arabian tale. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/vathek-an-arabian-tale (Original work published 1786)
Beckford, William. Vathek: An Arabian Tale. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/vathek-an-arabian-tale.
@book{beckford2026vathek,
author = {Beckford, William},
title = {Vathek: An Arabian Tale},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/vathek-an-arabian-tale},
note = {First published 1786}
}
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What is Vathek about?
Vathek follows a proud caliph who wants to master every secret in the world. A sinister stranger tempts him with a palace of treasure and forbidden power, and he is drawn into terrible crimes while his mother urges him on.
Who is the Giaour in Vathek?
The Giaour is the ugly stranger from an unknown part of India who sells wonders to the caliph. He laughs at the caliph's deadly eye, offers him hidden treasure, and demands that he give up his faith and obey the powers below.
Who is Carathis in Vathek?
Carathis is the caliph's mother, a Greek woman skilled in astrology and magic. She encourages her son's ambitions, works with the powers of darkness, and pushes him on whenever his courage or his attention starts to fade.
The author
William Beckford
1760–1844 · English novelist and art collector
William Beckford (1760–1844) was an English novelist and art collector. He was born in London and lived at Fonthill in Wiltshire before moving to Bath, where he died. His novel Vathek was first published in 1786. He inherited wealth from Jamaican sugar plantations worked by enslaved people.
“success for the foolish and wicked is the first instrument of their punishment.”
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