Dirty Work

William Wymark JacobsProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.9

Word count: 24K words
Chapters: 3

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today. Dirty Work by W. W. Jacobs. Author: Jacobs, W. W. (William Wymark), 1863-1943. Language: English. Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature. Release Date: Mar 1, 2004

Editor's review

Dirty Work is a short work by the English writer W. W. Jacobs, available in the Project Gutenberg free eBook library. Jacobs is known for his humorous depictions of ordinary townspeople and life at sea, and this piece continues his light, satirical narrative style, creating humor through misunderstandings and coincidences in everyday situations. It is short and plain in language, suited to reading in spare moments. As a public-domain eBook, it is easy to open on a phone or e-reader at any time, and can serve as an introduction to English short humorous fiction of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Readers who want to experience irony and dialogue technique in English humor can start here, paying attention to puns and understatement in the characters' conversations. Note that this is the original English text; use notes or a dictionary for unfamiliar usage, and do not expect a complex plot or deep social criticism.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who want to read English short stories in spare moments
Readers interested in English humorous literature and everyday-life subjects
English learners who need light English reading to practice their sense of language
Short-fiction lovers who enjoy satirical dialogue and twist endings

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a full-length plot or complex character arcs
Beginners who need a Chinese translation or bilingual text
Readers who prefer serious social criticism or weighty themes

Reading tips

Read through once to grasp the plot, then go back to the puns and irony in the dialogue.
Keep an electronic dictionary ready for unfamiliar words so you do not lose the reading rhythm.
Read it alongside other Jacobs short stories to see what his humor has in common.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book in Chinese or English?

This is the original English edition, released by Project Gutenberg, and the language is English. It requires some English ability; use a dictionary or notes, and it is not suited to readers who rely entirely on a Chinese translation.

What are the stylistic features of Jacobs's work?

Jacobs often writes about ordinary townspeople and life at sea, using a light, satirical tone to depict everyday misunderstandings and coincidences, with lively dialogue and endings that often turn on a twist. This book is short, just right for experiencing that humor, but do not expect a grand narrative.

How is the quality of Project Gutenberg eBooks?

Project Gutenberg offers free public-domain eBooks, and the texts are proofread by volunteers, but different versions may vary in layout or notes. This is a public-domain work, suitable for free reading and excerpting; for academic citation, check other authoritative editions.

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About the author

William Wymark Jacobs Author · British · 1863–1943

William Wymark Jacobs (1863–1943) was a British short-story writer, born in London in 1863 and died there in 1943. In his early years he lived around the Thames docks and was familiar with the lives of sailors and dockworkers, which led him to write a great many humorous sea stories, often in a light and witty tone. His best-known work, The Monkey's Paw, is a classic horror short story included in The Lady of the Barge (1902); noted for its tight suspense and sudden twists, it is still widely anthologized in horror collections. The library holds 109 of his works, including The Lady of the Barge and Others, Ship's Company, A Tiger's Skin, Captains All, and Night Watches; his common category is inspirational growth. Public information is limited and details of his life are largely unavailable, yet his fiction is distinctive in subject, blending humor with horror, and has had a lasting influence on later short-story writing.