Vathek or Vathek, an Arabian Tale or The History of the Caliph Vathek is another Gothic story, which mixes mystery and terror with Orientalism, a new trend (=tendenza) starting at the end of the 18th century. The author was William Beckford who claimed (= sosteneva) he had translated them directly from Arabian stories.
Vathek shows the 18th and early 19th century passion for Oriental things and customs. Antonine Galland’s translation of The Arabian Nights (1708) and maybe also the translation of Marco Polo’s Il Milione (1298) influenced European writers, in particular the ones who loved (= amanti) to the Gothic genre. Vathek is considered an Arabian tale because of the setting (= ambiente) where the story takes place and because its title derives by the name of the Abissianian Califf Al-Wathiq ibn Mutasim. This man reigned in 824-847 and loved culture and art becoming a great patron to scholars and artists
Vathek was first composed in French in 1782, then translated into English by Reverend Samuel Henley in 1786 as An Arabian Tale, From an Unpublished Manuscript. In the twentieth century some editions include The Episodes of Vathek, and three other tales previously omitted (= omessi) and published separately long after Beckford’s death.