The Deceivers (Masters novel) - Revision history

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← Older revision		Revision as of 22:58, 22 March 2026
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	{{about\|\|other novels\|Deceiver (disambiguation)#Books}}		{{about\|\|other novels\|Deceiver (disambiguation)#Books}}
	{{Use dmy dates\|date=April 2022}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=April 2022}}
			[[File:TheDeceivers.jpg\|thumb\|First edition (publ. [[Michael Joseph (publisher)\|Michael Joseph]])]]
	'''''The Deceivers''''' is a 1952 novel by [[John Masters]] on the [[Thuggee]] movement in India during the period of [[British Raj\|British rule]] during the 19th-century.		'''''The Deceivers''''' is a 1952 novel by [[John Masters]] on the [[Thuggee]] movement in India during the period of [[British Raj\|British rule]] during the 19th century. It was his second novel, following ''[[Nightrunners of Bengal]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine\|title=How to Succeed at Writing by Trying Very Hard\|author=Masters, John\|magazine=Harper's Magazine\|location=New York\|volume=226\|issue=1354\|date=Mar 1, 1963\|page=54}}</ref>

	==Synopsis==		==Synopsis==
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	'''The Deceivers''' portrays the thuggee cult and corruption during [[Company rule in India]]. Historically, the [[East India Company]] was the world's first [[joint-stock company]] — chartered by Queen [[Elizabeth I of England]] in 1601.		'''The Deceivers''' portrays the thuggee cult and corruption during [[Company rule in India]]. Historically, the [[East India Company]] was the world's first [[joint-stock company]] — chartered by Queen [[Elizabeth I of England]] in 1601.

	The main character, William Savage, is an official of the East India Company and [[tax collector]] (or, as he would rather view himself, colonial administrator) of the fictional district of "Madhia". He is deeply committed to his duties, which he considers to lie with the people of his district, rather than tax extraction for the East India Company. He is fluent in four dialects and has a highly developed sense of honour. At the beginning of the story, he marries his fiancée ~~Sarah~~ Wilson, the daughter of Colonel Wilson and twenty years his junior. In the course of the story, he discovers a [[mass grave]], filled with the remains of travellers, all of whom were evidently strangled to death in ritualistic fashion, among them a recently killed British officer. This leads him to begin an investigation, in the course of which he arrests Hussein, who confesses to being a ''thug'', or deceiver. Colonel Wilson arrives and is furious at the measures that Savage has taken to find those responsible for the mass murders. He refuses to believe Savage's story of the thuggee cult, blaming the murders on [[dacoit]]s (bandits) instead. Savage then decides to become a thug and infiltrates their society with Hussein's help. His character is loosely based on [[William Henry Sleeman\|William Sleeman]], who historically started an extensive campaign involving profiling, intelligence, and executions.		The main character, William Savage, is an official of the East India Company and [[tax collector]] (or, as he would rather view himself, colonial administrator) of the fictional district of "Madhia". He is deeply committed to his duties, which he considers to lie with the people of his district, rather than tax extraction for the East India Company. He is fluent in four dialects and has a highly developed sense of honour. At the beginning of the story, he marries his fiancée Mary Wilson, the daughter of Colonel Wilson and twenty years his junior. In the course of the story, he discovers a [[mass grave]], filled with the remains of travellers, all of whom were evidently strangled to death in ritualistic fashion, among them a recently killed British officer. This leads him to begin an investigation, in the course of which he arrests Hussein, who confesses to being a ''thug'', or deceiver. Colonel Wilson arrives and is furious at the measures that Savage has taken to find those responsible for the mass murders. He refuses to believe Savage's story of the thuggee cult, blaming the murders on [[dacoit]]s (bandits) instead. Savage then decides to become a thug and infiltrates their society with Hussein's help. His character is loosely based on [[William Henry Sleeman\|William Sleeman]], who historically started an extensive campaign involving profiling, intelligence, and executions.

	== Relations with other books in the series ==		== Relations with other books in the series ==
	William is the father of Rodney Savage, the protagonist in ''[[Nightrunners of Bengal]]'', set during the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857]].		William is the father of Rodney Savage, the protagonist in ''[[Nightrunners of Bengal]]'', set during the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857]].

	==~~Film version~~==		==Reception==
			"It offers color and violence in large gobs" said the ''Washington Post''.<ref>{{cite news\|title=New York Slums, Other Vistas of Life: DOWN ALL YOUR STREETS. By Leonard Bishop. Dial Press. 688 pp. $3.95.\|author=John Barkham\|newspaper=The Washington Post\|date=Apr 6, 1952\|page=B7}}</ref> The ''New York Times'' called it "an unfocused work that never comes to grips with its material".<ref>{{cite news\|title=The Reign of the Thugs: THE DECEIVERS. By John Masters. 237 pp. New York: The Viking Press. $3.\|author=PARONE, EDWARD\|work=New York Times\|date=Apr 27, 1952\|page=BR24}}</ref>

			==Adaptations==
	{{Main article\|The Deceivers (film)}}		{{Main article\|The Deceivers (film)}}
	~~Film rights were bought~~ by ~~[[John Davis (British businessman)\|John Davis]] of [[The Rank Organisation]]~~ in ~~the late 1950s~~.<ref ~~name="rank"~~>[https://books.google.com.au/books?id=UyYTDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA386&lpg=PA386&dq=vincent+porter+sue+harper&source=bl&ots=978Q3rMq7B&sig=R2UhMp6T53KbfjIFniBqZYP0amw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjLzJmegsPMAhUB_2MKHZcZDfEQ6AEIQzAI#v=onepage&q&f=~~false ''British Cinema~~ of the ~~1950s~~: The ~~Decline of Deference'' by Sue Harper~~, ~~Vincent Porter Oxford University Press, 2003 p 43]~~</ref>		The novel was adapted for radio by the BBC in 1984.<ref>{{cite news\|title=Highlights of the coming week on television and radio: Monday\|work=The Guardian\|location=London (UK)\|date=Sep 29, 1984\|page=10}}</ref>

	It was adapted in 1988 as the [[Merchant Ivory Productions]] [[The Deceivers (film)\|film]] starring [[Shashi Kapoor]], [[Pierce Brosnan]], [[Bijaya Jena]], [[Saeed Jaffrey]], [[Rajesh Vivek]], and [[Dalip Tahil]].		Film rights were bought by [[John Davis (British businessman)\|John Davis]] of [[The Rank Organisation]] in the late 1950s.<ref name="rank">[https://books.google.com/books?id=UyYTDAAAQBAJ&dq=vincent+porter+sue+harper&pg=PA386 ''British Cinema of the 1950s: The Decline of Deference'' by Sue Harper, Vincent Porter Oxford University Press, 2003 p 43]</ref> It was adapted in 1988 as the [[Merchant Ivory Productions]] [[The Deceivers (film)\|film]] starring [[Shashi Kapoor]], [[Pierce Brosnan]], [[Bijaya Jena]], [[Saeed Jaffrey]], [[Rajesh Vivek]], and [[Dalip Tahil]].

	==References==		==References==
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	[[Category:1952 British novels]]		[[Category:1952 British novels]]
	[[Category:Novels by John Masters]]		[[Category:Novels by John Masters]]
	[[Category:~~Historical~~ novels]]		[[Category:British historical novels]]
			[[Category:British English-language novels]]
	[[Category:Novels set in India]]		[[Category:Novels set in India]]
	[[Category:British novels adapted into films]]		[[Category:British novels adapted into films]]

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← Older revision		Revision as of 19:12, 31 July 2023
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	{{about\|\|other novels\|Deceiver (disambiguation)#Books}}		{{about\|\|other novels\|Deceiver (disambiguation)#Books}}
	{{Use dmy dates\|date=April 2022}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=April 2022}}
	~~[[File:TheDeceivers.jpg\|thumb\|First edition (publ. [[Michael Joseph (publisher)\|Michael Joseph]])]]~~
	'''''The Deceivers''''' is a 1952 novel by [[John Masters]] on the [[Thuggee]] movement in India during the period of [[British Raj\|British rule]] during the 19th-century.		'''''The Deceivers''''' is a 1952 novel by [[John Masters]] on the [[Thuggee]] movement in India during the period of [[British Raj\|British rule]] during the 19th-century.

UpdateBot at 22:43, 5 May 2022

2022-05-05T22:43:10Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:13, 6 May 2022
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	{{short description\|John Masters book}}		{{short description\|John Masters book}}
	{{about\|\|other novels\|Deceiver (disambiguation)#Books}}		{{about\|\|other novels\|Deceiver (disambiguation)#Books}}
			{{Use dmy dates\|date=April 2022}}
	[[File:TheDeceivers.jpg\|thumb\|First edition (publ. [[Michael Joseph (publisher)\|Michael Joseph]])]]		[[File:TheDeceivers.jpg\|thumb\|First edition (publ. [[Michael Joseph (publisher)\|Michael Joseph]])]]
	'''''The Deceivers''''' is a 1952 novel by [[John Masters]] on the [[Thuggee]] movement in India during the period of [[British Raj\|British rule]] during the 19th-century.		'''''The Deceivers''''' is a 1952 novel by [[John Masters]] on the [[Thuggee]] movement in India during the period of [[British Raj\|British rule]] during the 19th-century.

	==Synopsis==		==Synopsis==
	The story shows how British officer and colonial administrator William Savage ~~comes to know about~~ the [[thuggee]] cult, infiltrates their society, learns their ways and code of communication, and destroys them by capturing or killing their key leaders. During his travels with the thuggee, he almost falls prey to the cult's ways as he comes to experience the ecstasy of [[human sacrifice\|ritual killings]]. The story shows how complex the web was in terms of type and stature of people involved with the thuggee cult.		The story shows how British officer and colonial administrator William Savage learns of the [[thuggee]] cult, infiltrates their society, learns their ways and code of communication, and destroys them by capturing or killing their key leaders. During his travels with the thuggee, he almost falls prey to the cult's ways as he comes to experience the ecstasy of [[human sacrifice\|ritual killings]]. The story shows how complex the web was in terms of type and stature of people involved with the thuggee cult.

	==Analysis==		==Analysis==
	'''The Deceivers''' portrays the thuggee cult and corruption during [[Company rule in India]]. Historically, the [[East India Company]] was the world's first [[joint-stock company]] — chartered by Queen [[Elizabeth I of England]] in 1601.		'''The Deceivers''' portrays the thuggee cult and corruption during [[Company rule in India]]. Historically, the [[East India Company]] was the world's first [[joint-stock company]] — chartered by Queen [[Elizabeth I of England]] in 1601.

	The main character, William Savage, is an official of the East India Company and [[tax collector]] (or, as he would rather view himself, colonial administrator) of the fictional district of "Madhia". He is deeply committed to his duties, which he considers to lie with the people of his district, rather than tax extraction for the East India Company.		The main character, William Savage, is an official of the East India Company and [[tax collector]] (or, as he would rather view himself, colonial administrator) of the fictional district of "Madhia". He is deeply committed to his duties, which he considers to lie with the people of his district, rather than tax extraction for the East India Company. He is fluent in four dialects and has a highly developed sense of honour. At the beginning of the story, he marries his fiancée Sarah Wilson, the daughter of Colonel Wilson and twenty years his junior. In the course of the story, he discovers a [[mass grave]], filled with the remains of travellers, all of whom were evidently strangled to death in ritualistic fashion, among them a recently killed British officer. This leads him to begin an investigation, in the course of which he arrests Hussein, who confesses to being a ''thug'', or deceiver. Colonel Wilson arrives and is furious at the measures that Savage has taken to find those responsible for the mass murders. He refuses to believe Savage's story of the thuggee cult, blaming the murders on [[dacoit]]s (bandits) instead. Savage then decides to become a thug and infiltrates their society with Hussein's help. His character is loosely based on [[William Henry Sleeman\|William Sleeman]], who historically started an extensive campaign involving profiling, intelligence, and executions.
	He is fluent in four dialects and has a highly developed sense of honour. At the beginning of the story, he marries his fiancée Sarah Wilson, the daughter of Colonel Wilson and 20 years his junior. In the course of the story, he discovers a [[mass grave]], filled with the remains of travellers, all of whom were evidently strangled to death in ritualistic fashion, among them a recently killed British officer. This leads him to begin an investigation, in the course of which he arrests Hussein, who confesses to being a ''thug'', or deceiver. Colonel Wilson arrives and is furious at the measures that Savage has taken to find ~~the ones~~ responsible for the mass murders. He refuses to believe Savage's story of the thuggee cult, blaming the murders on [[dacoit]]s (bandits) instead. Savage then decides to become a thug and infiltrates their society with Hussein's help. His character is loosely based on [[William Henry Sleeman\|William Sleeman]], who historically started an extensive campaign involving profiling, intelligence, and executions.

	== Relations with other books in the series ==		== Relations with other books in the series ==

imported>GrahamHardy: about

2021-06-06T05:03:35Z

about

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{{short description|John Masters book}}
{{about||other novels|Deceiver (disambiguation)#Books}}
[[File:TheDeceivers.jpg|thumb|First edition (publ. [[Michael Joseph (publisher)|Michael Joseph]])]]
'''''The Deceivers''''' is a 1952 novel by [[John Masters]] on the [[Thuggee]] movement in India during the period of [[British Raj|British rule]] during the 19th-century.

==Synopsis==
The story shows how British officer and colonial administrator William Savage comes to know about the [[thuggee]] cult, infiltrates their society, learns their ways and code of communication, and destroys them by capturing or killing their key leaders. During his travels with the thuggee, he almost falls prey to the cult's ways as he comes to experience the ecstasy of [[human sacrifice|ritual killings]]. The story shows how complex the web was in terms of type and stature of people involved with the thuggee cult.

==Analysis==
'''The Deceivers''' portrays the thuggee cult and corruption during [[Company rule in India]]. Historically, the [[East India Company]] was the world's first [[joint-stock company]] — chartered by Queen [[Elizabeth I of England]] in 1601.

The main character, William Savage, is an official of the East India Company and [[tax collector]] (or, as he would rather view himself, colonial administrator) of the fictional district of "Madhia". He is deeply committed to his duties, which he considers to lie with the people of his district, rather than tax extraction for the East India Company.
He is fluent in four dialects and has a highly developed sense of honour. At the beginning of the story, he marries his fiancée Sarah Wilson, the daughter of Colonel Wilson and 20 years his junior. In the course of the story, he discovers a [[mass grave]], filled with the remains of travellers, all of whom were evidently strangled to death in ritualistic fashion, among them a recently killed British officer. This leads him to begin an investigation, in the course of which he arrests Hussein, who confesses to being a ''thug'', or deceiver. Colonel Wilson arrives and is furious at the measures that Savage has taken to find the ones responsible for the mass murders. He refuses to believe Savage's story of the thuggee cult, blaming the murders on [[dacoit]]s (bandits) instead. Savage then decides to become a thug and infiltrates their society with Hussein's help. His character is loosely based on [[William Henry Sleeman|William Sleeman]], who historically started an extensive campaign involving profiling, intelligence, and executions.

== Relations with other books in the series ==
William is the father of Rodney Savage, the protagonist in ''[[Nightrunners of Bengal]]'', set during the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857]].

==Film version==
{{Main article|The Deceivers (film)}}
Film rights were bought by [[John Davis (British businessman)|John Davis]] of [[The Rank Organisation]] in the late 1950s.<ref name="rank">[https://books.google.com.au/books?id=UyYTDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA386&lpg=PA386&dq=vincent+porter+sue+harper&source=bl&ots=978Q3rMq7B&sig=R2UhMp6T53KbfjIFniBqZYP0amw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjLzJmegsPMAhUB_2MKHZcZDfEQ6AEIQzAI#v=onepage&q&f=false ''British Cinema of the 1950s: The Decline of Deference'' by Sue Harper, Vincent Porter Oxford University Press, 2003 p 43]</ref>

It was adapted in 1988 as the [[Merchant Ivory Productions]] [[The Deceivers (film)|film]] starring [[Shashi Kapoor]], [[Pierce Brosnan]], [[Bijaya Jena]], [[Saeed Jaffrey]], [[Rajesh Vivek]], and [[Dalip Tahil]].

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [[iarchive:in.ernet.dli.2015.351129|Full text available]] at [[Internet Archive]]
* Waters, Tony. [http://www.ethnography.com/2010/01/i-hope-that-the-human-terrain-teams-read-the-deceivers-by-john-masters-an-anthropological-novel/ Review of ''The Deceivers'' by John Masters.] (January 2010)

{{italic title}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deceivers, The}}
[[Category:1952 British novels]]
[[Category:Novels by John Masters]]
[[Category:Historical novels]]
[[Category:Novels set in India]]
[[Category:British novels adapted into films]]
[[Category:Novels set in British India]]
[[Category:Michael Joseph books]]

[[ru:Душители (фильм, 1988)]]