薩克來(1811~1863)是英國維多利亞時期的一位重要小說家，在當時，和狄更斯合稱「小說雙傑」，兩人的代表作分別為《浮華世界》和《塊肉餘生錄》。1847年，《浮華世界》以連載方式問市，子標題為「一部沒有英雄的小說」。書中，神龍活現地凸顯出一位折衝於十九世紀社交界的名花，藉由她透露了滑鐵盧戰役前後英國中上階層社會腐敗、偽善以及敗德的情狀，深刻的表現出犀利的嘲諷與深透的厭世觀。除了描述溫馨的感情外，作者尤其擅長用戲謔活潑的筆法，諷刺人事，使書中的角色彩躍然紙上。

馬克思在評論薩克雷、狄更斯時曾說：「他們用逼真而動人的文筆，揭露出政治和社會上的真相；一切政治家、政論家、道德家所揭露的加在一起，還不如他們揭露的多。」《浮華世界》即為一明顯的例子。《浮華世界》為英國名小說家，人稱「小說天才」的薩克雷的傳世鉅著，在這本書中你將看到，投機發財而又破產的股票商，為了爭奪家產、親骨肉勾心鬥角的小貴族地主…更可看到一位出身寒微的女人為躋身上流社會而不擇手段的過程。一段平凡的故事在戲謔、幽默的筆觸下，發人省思。這本書清晰地反映出每個時代人類社會的景象，同時也暗示：名與利皆為浮雲，惟有擺脫它們，真心捨己為人，才能擁有暢快無比的歡樂。

The story opens at Miss Pinkerton's Academy for Young Ladies, where the principal protagonists Becky Sharp and Amelia Sedley have just completed their studies and are preparing to depart for Amelia's house in Russell Square. Becky is portrayed as a strong-willed and cunning young woman determined to make her way in society, and Amelia Sedley is a good natured though simple-minded young girl. However, by the end of the novel, the reader will realize that neither character is unblemished.

At Russell Square, Miss Sharp is introduced to Captain George Osborne and to Amelia's brother Joseph Sedley, a clumsy and vainglorious but rich civil-servant fresh from India. Becky entices him and hopes to marry him, though eventually fails as a result of warnings from Captain Osbourne and his own native shyness and embarrassment that Becky had witnessed his foolish behavior at Vauxhall.

With this Becky Sharp says farewell to Sedley's family and enters the service of the baronet Sir Pitt Crawley who has engaged her as a governess to his daughters. Her behaviour at Sir Pitt's house gains the favour of Sir Pitt, who after the premature death of his second wife, eventually proposes to her. Unfortunately for Becky (who would have gladly consented to becoming the next Lady Crawley) she is already secretly married to his son Rawdon Crawley.

Sir Pitt's half sister, the spinster Miss Crawley, is very rich having inherited her mother's fortune of £70,000. Where she will leave her great wealth is a source of constant conflict between the branches of the Crawley family who vie shamelessly for her affections; initially her favourite is Sir Pitt's younger son, Captain Rawdon Crawley. Miss Sharp elopes with him; but this mesalliance so enrages Miss Crawley, that she eventually disinherits her nephew in favour of his elder brother.

While Becky Sharp is rising in the world, Amelia's father goes bankrupt. Captain George Osborne, persuaded by his friend Dobbin, marries Amelia despite her poverty and his ambitious father's fierce objections. His father wishes him to marry Miss Schwartz, a sugar plantation heiress from the West Indies and a contemporary of Amelia's at Miss Pinkerton's.

When all these personal incidents are going on, the Napoleonic Wars have been gearing up, and George Osborne and William Dobbin are suddenly deployed to Brussels, but not before an encounter with Becky and Captain Crawley at Brighton. The holiday is interrupted with orders to march to Brussels. Already, the newly wedded Osborne is growing tired of Amelia, and he becomes increasingly attracted to Becky.

At a ball in Brussels (based on the Duchess of Richmond's ball the night before Waterloo), George gives Becky a note inviting her to run away with him. The morning after, he is sent to Waterloo and dies in the battle. Amelia bears him a posthumous son, who is also named George. With the death of Osborne, Dobbin, who is young George's godfather, gradually begins to express his love for the widowed Amelia, but she is too much in love with George's memory to return his affections. Saddened, he goes to India for many years.

Meanwhile, Becky continues her ascent first in post-war Paris and then in London where she is patronised by the great Marquess of Steyne who covertly subsidises her and introduces to London society. Her success is unstoppable despite her iniquitous origins and she eventually meets the Prince Regent himself.

At the summit of her success, Becky's unsuitable relationship with the rich and omnipotent Marquess of Steyne is discovered by Rawdon, who leaves his wife and through the offices of Lord Steyne is made Governor of Coventry Island to get him out of England. Mrs Crawley, having lost both husband and credibility, is warned by Steyne to quit England and she becomes a wanderer on the continent. Wherever she goes, she is stalked by the shadow of Lord Steyne. No sooner has she established herself in some respectable company then one of Steyne's men somehow finds her and spreads rumours of her disreputable history - destroying her.

As Amelia's adored son George grows up, his grandfather becomes fond of him and takes him from poor Amelia who knows the rich and bitter old man will give him a much better start in life materially than she or her family could ever manage. Meanwhile both Joseph Sedley and William Dobbin return to England. Dobbin professes his unchanged love to Amelia, but although Amelia is also affectionate to Dobbin, she tells him she cannot forget the memory of her dead husband.

While in England, Dobbin manages a reconciliation between Amelia and her father-in-law. The death of George's grandfather gives Amelia and young George a large fortune.

After the death of old Mr Osborne, Amelia, Joseph, George and Dobbin go on a trip to Germany, where they encounter the destitute Becky. Dobbin quarrels with Amelia, and finally realizes that he is wasting his love on a woman too shallow to return it.

However, Becky, in a moment of conscience, shows Amelia the note that George (Amelia's dead husband) had given her, asking her to run away with him. This breaks George's idealised image in Amelia's mind, thus eventually bringing Dobbin and Amelia together.

Becky resumes her seduction of Joseph Sedley and gains control over him. He eventually dies of a suspicious ailment after signing a portion of his money to Becky as life insurance. In the original illustrations, which were done by Thackeray, Becky is shown behind a curtain with a phial (presumably of poison) in her hand; the picture is labelled 'Becky's second appearance in the character of Clytemnestra.' (She had played Clytemnestra during charades at a party earlier in the book.) His death appears to have made her fortune.

By a twist of fate Rawdon Crawley dies weeks before his elder brother whose son has already died. Thus the baronetcy descends to Rawdon's son. Had he outlived his brother by even a day he would have become Sir Rawdon Crawley and Becky would have become Lady Crawley - the title she uses regardless in later life.

The reader is informed at the end that although Dobbin married Amelia, and although he always treated her with great kindness, he never fully regained the love that he had once had for her.