413:. In the magazine serialisation of the novel, at the end of "The Overworld" the character Derwe Coreme rides off in her walking-boat never to be heard of again, and at the beginning of "The Mountains of Magnatz" Cugel finds himself alone in the northern wasteland. Cugel pays the Busiacos a jewelled button to ferry him across a river that he could just as easily have waded through and then proceeds south, refusing to believe he has been duped even when he sees a nearby bridge. In the novel the episode is longer and more elaborate, and reveals Cugel to be not only gullible, but also capable of thoroughly despicable actions: after the events described in the interpolated chapter 2, "Cil", Cugel awakes in the northern wasteland with Derwe Coreme, whom he sells into slavery to the Busiacos in exchange for their redundantly guiding him across a stretch of forest measuring a hundred paces.
301:; though he fancies himself an aesthete and a superior being to those around him, in his actions he is a liar, a cheat, an inveterate thief, a charlatan, selfish, greedy, vicious, and so on. However, Cugel has always lived a life of poverty and often needed these attributes for survival. With less obloquy, Vance describes him as "a man of many capabilities, with a disposition at once flexible and pertinacious. He was long of leg, deft of hand, light of finger, soft of tongue ... His darting eye, long inquisitive nose and droll mouth gave his somewhat lean and bony face an expression of vivacity, candor, and affability. He had known many vicissitudes, gaining therefrom a suppleness, a fine discretion, a mastery of both bravado and stealth."
241:
violet glass, a magic "Eye of the
Overworld", to match one already in the wizard's possession. A small sentient alien entity of barbs and hooks, named Firx, is attached to Cugel's liver to encourage his "unremitting loyalty, zeal and singleness of purpose". Firx's only form of communication with its host is to cause pain to his liver if Firx senses that Cugel is lapsing in his mission and his return home. Iucounu then uses a spell to transport Cugel via flying demon to the isolated Land of Cutz, which is very far away.
309:
another he must leave to drown, in the face of the monster "Magnatz", and does nothing to avert the destruction of her village (after she had broken a promise of everlasting love engagement); he causes the village of a third to be abandoned in dread (after she lies to the local thug religious zealots to get them to use force upon him).
27:
265:
After many pitfalls, setbacks, and harrowing escapes, including a voyage back in time a million years, ending in the eviction of Firx from his system, and a grateful wizard speeding him by a spell back home, Cugel returns to
Iucounu's manse, where he finds the wizard's volition has been captured by a
261:
mindset, he survives by tricking or betraying the people he encounters. He joins a religious cult and tricks them into crossing a vast desert, which leads to many of his comrades dying. Cugel also falls victim to the trickery of others, such as when he is fooled into being locked in a watchtower in
304:
Cugel often finds himself in a situation of revenge, and tries to take advantage of those who used him, complaining when they trick him, curse him as he harms them, or expose his wiles. But almost always Cugel comes out on top, leaving a blazing trail of destruction and chaos behind him. He can be
213:
setting, where the Sun is dying and magic and technology coexist. It features the self-proclaimed Cugel the Clever in linked episodic stories. Cugel is an anti-hero character; while he is typically a crafty scoundrel who seeks to turn a profit from a situation, he retains some good values at times.
312:
It must be said that he treats men scarcely better. For example, he bribes a priest, with all of his very valuable magical items, into tricking fifty pilgrims into a futile pilgrimage, to guard his crossing of a perilous desert – only fifteen survive. On the other hand, Cugel displays a genuine
244:
There, Cugel finds two bizarre villages, one occupied by wearers of the magic violet lenses, the other by peasants who work on behalf of the lens-wearers, in hopes of being promoted to their ranks. The lenses cause their wearers to see, not their squalid surroundings, but the
Overworld, a vastly
240:
Cugel is easily persuaded by the merchant
Fianosther to attempt the burglary of the manse of Iucounu the Laughing Magician, which is filled with precious magical items. Caught by Iucounu's trap, Cugel agrees that in exchange for his freedom he will undertake the recovery of a small hemisphere of
308:
Cugel fancies himself a seducer of women, but his charms are apparent mainly to himself, and to certain types of women that wish to use him. His record is not good: he trades one, having lost her the rulership of a city (after she had manipulated him), to bandits in exchange for safe passage;
252:
The people are not willing to just give Cugel an Eye, but insist that he be on a many-years-long waiting list for one. Cugel gains an Eye by trickery, and makes a perilous escape from Cutz. He then undertakes an arduous trek back to
Iucounu, cursing the magician the entire way; this forms the
266:
twin to Firx. Cugel manages to extirpate the alien, subdue the magician, and enjoy the easy life in the manse, until he tries to banish
Iucounu and Fianosther (who himself has come to pilfer from Cugel) with the same spell that the magician had used on him. But Cugel's tongue slips in his
256:
Cugel voyages across mountains, wastelands, and water, encountering unusual characters with curious beliefs and customs. He faces many challenges, including bandits, ghosts, and ghoulish creatures. Using a
232:, based on the 1913 Frank Harris story "The Magic Glasses", also features magic spectacles which show the wearer beautiful illusions instead of reality, as the eponymous "Eyes of the Overworld" do.
409:, the episode involving the Busiacos narrated at the beginning of chapter 3, "The Mountains of Magnatz", differs substantially from the novelette published in the February 1966 issue of
341:
has seven chapters because the last in sequence of the separately published novelettes, "The Manse of
Iucounu", has two sections, which become two separate chapters in the book.
262:
a lakeside town or when he is lured into imprisonment in a cave by the devious Rat People. Finally, he gets a spell that magically returns him home.
331:
in 1966 without any prior magazine appearance. "Cil", the second chapter, was later published as a stand-alone novelette in 1969 in the collection
245:
superior version of reality where a hut is a palace, gruel is a magnificent feast, and peasant women are princesses — "seeing the world through
323:
219:
214:
In the novel, Cugel is caught stealing from a wizard, who forces Cugel to travel to a faraway realm to find a rare magical jewel.
313:
regard for the most selfless of the pilgrims, showing a trait of "do unto others..." which is essentially the basis of the book.
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attempt to utter the incantation, and the flying demon seizes him instead, delivering him to the same isolated spot as before.
754:
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766:
433:, was published in 1976 by Pabel Moewig Verlag, as no. 277 in its Terra Science Fiction series. The Spanish translation,
1401:
722:
429:, published by J'ai Lu, was first published in 1976, with further editions in 1984 and 2000. The German translation,
437:, was published in 1986 by Ultramar Editores in the collection Grandes Éxitos de Bolsillo. The Italian translation,
1544:
936:
1569:
677:
1549:
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1373:
1300:
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between
December 1965 and July 1966 and one, the second in sequence, published directly as part of the novel
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said to simultaneously have both the best and worst luck in all the Dying Earth.
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449:) in 1994, published by Editrice Nord. The book was also translated to Russian (
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392:"The Cave in the Forest" — originally the first part of "The Manse of Iucounu"
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http://www.dassein.de/mediawiki/index.php5?title=Das_Auge_der_%C3%9Cberwelt
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582:"Publication: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, February 1966"
546:"Publication: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, December 1965"
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600:"Publication: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, April 1966"
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1001:
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636:"Publication: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, July 1966"
618:"Publication: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, June 1966"
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283:(DAW Books, NY, 1974). Vance's own Cugel sequel was published as
217:
The components of the fix-up were five short works published in
1148:
425:, was published by Meulenhoff in 1974. The French translation,
321:
The components of the fix-up were five novelettes published in
267:
223:
from
December 1965 to July 1966, and one original to the book.
190:
1450:
1121:
138:
514:"The Magic Glasses, from Unpath'd Waters, by Frank Harris"
704:
197:, published by Ace in 1966, the second book in the
713:. New York: Taplinger Publishing Company. p.
706:
1526:
1165:
441:, appeared in an omnibus version together with
666:http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?1350021
800:
324:The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction
220:The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction
411:The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
807:
793:
690:http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?386512
688:Translators: M. T. Aquilano, R. Rambelli.
654:http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?368121
209:(2005), the story takes place in Vance's
201:that Vance inaugurated in 1950. Retitled
564:"Publication: The Eyes of the Overworld"
528:"Publication: Eight Fantasms and Magics"
814:
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488:
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482:
480:
1527:
869:
788:
743:Internet Speculative Fiction Database
705:Underwood, Tim; Chuck Miller (1980).
501:Internet Speculative Fiction Database
477:
292:
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13:
14:
1581:
732:
25:
682:
670:
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416:
235:
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1:
1301:Strange People, Queer Notions
470:
365:"The Mountains of Magnatz",
277:wrote an authorized sequel,
253:principal part of the book.
31:Front cover of first edition
7:
1560:1966 science fiction novels
664:Translator: Paul Alpérine.
652:Translator: Warner Flamen.
456:
10:
1586:
698:
676:Translator: Walter Brumm.
464:The Futurological Congress
20:The Eyes of the Overworld
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1324:
1158:
1131:
1097:
1061:
1025:
989:
946:
896:
846:The Eyes of the Overworld
826:
496:The Eyes of the Overworld
407:The Eyes of the Overworld
356:The Eyes of the Overworld
339:The Eyes of the Overworld
334:Eight Fantasms and Magics
329:The Eyes of the Overworld
316:
297:Cugel is a classic Vance
193:novel by American writer
180:The Eyes of the Overworld
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150:
136:
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74:
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56:
46:
36:
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1294:The House on Lily Street
883:Songs of the Dying Earth
761:The Mountains of Magnatz
395:"The Manse of Iucounu",
374:"The Sorcerer Pharesm",
16:1966 novel by Jack Vance
1545:American fantasy novels
1475:This Is Me, Jack Vance!
1395:Men of the Twelve Books
503:. Retrieved 2012-05-09.
435:Los ojos del sobremundo
1570:Science fantasy novels
1367:Gateway to Strangeness
1038:Trullion: Alastor 2262
860:Rhialto the Marvellous
423:Ogen van de Overwereld
207:Vance Integral Edition
966:Servants of the Wankh
499:title listing at the
431:Das Auge der Überwelt
421:A Dutch translation,
249:" on a grand scale.
1550:1966 American novels
1540:Novels by Jack Vance
1273:Galactic Effectuator
1217:The Languages of Pao
779:The Manse of Iucounu
767:The Sorcerer Pharesm
280:A Quest for Simbilis
247:rose-colored glasses
132:189 (first edition)
83:Dying Earth subgenre
1555:1966 fantasy novels
1402:The Miracle Workers
1346:Cholwell's Chickens
1339:The Brains of Earth
1332:Abercrombie Station
1203:Vandals of the Void
1196:The Five Gold Bands
1045:Marune: Alastor 933
949:Planet of Adventure
916:The Killing Machine
877:Dying Earth (genre)
229:The Spectacle Maker
21:
1381:The Houses of Iszm
1360:The Dragon Masters
1224:Slaves of the Klau
1115:Ecce and Old Earth
1052:Wyst: Alastor 1716
1009:The Brave Free Men
959:City of the Chasch
937:The Book of Dreams
923:The Palace of Love
199:Dying Earth series
19:
1522:
1521:
1458:Ullward's Retreat
1409:Monsters in Orbit
1190:
1189:
1166:Big Planet novels
1099:Cadwal Chronicles
892:
891:
451:Глаза чужого мира
427:Cugel l'Astucieux
345:"The Overworld",
293:Cugel's character
176:
175:
109:Publication place
47:Cover artist
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1308:The Deadly Isles
1163:
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1108:Araminta Station
1074:Suldrun's Garden
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763:(February, 1966)
757:(December, 1965)
749:Original stories
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383:"The Pilgrims",
203:Cugel the Clever
164:Followed by
151:Preceded by
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100:Publication date
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1565:Ace Books books
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1388:The Last Castle
1374:The Gift of Gab
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1210:To Live Forever
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769:(April, 1966)
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371:February 1966
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351:December 1965
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259:Machiavellian
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1507:Ellery Queen
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1353:Dodkin's Job
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853:Cugel's Saga
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781:(July, 1966)
775:(June, 1966)
773:The Pilgrims
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236:Plot summary
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169:Cugel's Saga
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51:Jack Gaughan
1535:Dying Earth
1497:Gaean Reach
1231:Space Opera
829:Dying Earth
211:Dying Earth
69:Dying Earth
1529:Categories
1513:Bad Ronald
1280:Night Lamp
1252:Bad Ronald
1174:Big Planet
1016:The Asutra
973:The Dirdir
820:Jack Vance
739:Jack Vance
709:Jack Vance
471:References
380:April 1966
195:Jack Vance
185:picaresque
41:Jack Vance
1437:Rumfuddle
1002:The Anome
980:The Pnume
909:Star King
640:isfdb.org
622:isfdb.org
604:isfdb.org
586:isfdb.org
568:isfdb.org
550:isfdb.org
532:isfdb.org
401:July 1966
389:June 1966
299:anti-hero
289:in 1983.
268:hubristic
122:paperback
93:Ace Books
89:Publisher
1485:See also
1245:Emphyrio
1064:Lyonesse
930:The Face
457:See also
398:F&SF
386:F&SF
377:F&SF
368:F&SF
348:F&SF
57:Language
1028:Alastor
992:Durdane
870:related
741:at the
699:Sources
354:"Cil",
273:Author
205:in its
188:fantasy
120:Print (
79:Fantasy
60:English
1149:Lurulu
1088:Madouc
721:
362:, 1966
317:Fix-up
191:fix-up
171:
158:
145:429122
65:Series
37:Author
1451:Telek
1430:Noise
1122:Throy
816:Works
183:is a
129:Pages
75:Genre
1492:Grue
719:ISBN
139:OCLC
104:1966
818:by
715:228
453:).
405:In
360:Ace
1531::
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