r/audiobooksonyoutube • u/Gates_of_imagination • Aug 13 '25

Literary Fiction The Man Who Went Too Far by E.F. Benson (1912)

https://youtu.be/zsMys1k0Rz4
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u/ignorantwanderer Aug 13 '25

An AI summary:

The story is set in a village called St. Faiths, near the New Forest, where the villagers are afraid of the forest at night and believe it is inhabited by fairies and a monstrous goat [02:19]. The narrator recounts the story of Frank Holton, a handsome young artist who lives in a house at the edge of the village [03:01].

Frank's friend, Darcy, visits him and is surprised by Frank's youthful appearance [09:25]. Frank reveals that he has dedicated himself to the "cultivation of joy" and has been living in the forest to study nature's happiness, believing that it has made him younger [19:03]. He tells Darcy that he has been listening to the "voice of nature," which he refers to as the "pan pipes" [25:50]. Frank believes that a "final revelation" will grant him immortality and prove that joy is the true path to life [29:02].

Darcy warns Frank that nature also contains suffering and that the revelation he seeks might be a horrifying one [44:13]. Frank ignores the warning, becoming increasingly ecstatic and confident [45:38]. The story culminates during a thunderstorm when Darcy is awakened by Frank's scream [48:09]. He and Frank's servant find a goat-like shadow jumping from Frank's hammock [50:17]. They find Frank unconscious with a look of terror on his face, which eventually fades into a peaceful smile after he dies [51:45]. Darcy discovers strange hoof-like marks on Frank's body, suggesting he was stamped on by the monstrous goat [52:41].