Dickens by
Detailed and definitive, this profile of the Victorian writer explores the private life of the complicated, insecure, and wildly ambitious man who became the best-known author of his day. By the author of Hawksmoor and T. S. Eliot. Reprint.
An Ecological and Postcolonial Study of Literature by
This book argues that humanity's relationship to the land has undergone a fundamental and calamitous change. Marzec reveals how the historical phenomenon known as the 'enclosure movement' has effected not only the ecosystems and the geopolitics of the Twenty-First century, but on how we relate to the earth and conceive of ourselves as human.
James Joyce by
Harold Bloom was awarded the 1999 Gold Medal for Belles Lettres and Criticism by the American Academy of Arts and Letters
John Donne: man of flesh and spirit by
Though best known as a poet of love, John Donne was also a peerless writer of the spiritual journey, a stalwart churchman, and a great preacher. Yet behind this famed public face there also lived a lesser known and contradictory figure. Donne fascinates because he was a man battered by sex -- and by God.
A compelling new portrait of John Donne emerges in this extraordinary biography. David Edwards ranges across all of Donne's writings, including critically neglected sermons, using them to illuminate Donne's life and vice versa. Itself a masterpiece of writing, this book challenges common views with wit and a critical compassion that does not fail to let Donne speak to readers in his own words. Edwards is not sentimental about Donne's faults and limitations, and he does not try to sound superior to either the poet or the preacher. His aim is to give a living and accurate account of a man who both suffered and gloried in his experience of flesh and spirit.
Later Auden by
This book is the history of W. H. Auden's poems, & of the events that went into them, from the time he moved to the United States until his death, completing the story begun in this authors acclaimed Early Auden. Later Auden links the changes in Auden's intellectual, emotional, religious, & erotic life with his shifting public roles - as representative of political causes, as researcher working with the U.S. Army in postwar Germany, as public moralist, as lecturer & teacher, & above all as poet. The author deftly reveals how Auden converted the success & later wreckage of his relationship with Chester Kallman into the seemingly impersonal meditations of some of his long poems, & explores the ways his later poetry celebrates the human body & represents it in verse. Throughout, he reveals the depth of Auden's struggles with himself & with the temptations of his growing fame, showing how these struggles gave shape to his imperishable art. This inner biography of a great poet & thinker has unusual breadth & intensity. An absorbing narrative of a varied, productive life, it will interest everyone who cares about literature.
Lord Byron by
- A biographical and critical review of the world's most important writers- Expert analysis by Harold Bloom- A wealth of information on the writers that are most commonly read in high schools, colleges, and universities
The Measure of Life: Virginia Woolf's last years by
This elegantly written and richly detailed biography tells the story of Virginia Woolf's last ten years, from the creation of her great visionary novel, The Waves, to her suicide in 1941. Herbert Marder looks closely at Woolf's views on totalitarianism and her depictions of Britain under siege to create a remarkable portrait of a mature and renowned writer during a time of rising fascist violence. An awareness of personal danger, Marder says, colored Woolf's actions and consciousness in the years leading up to World War II. She practiced her art with intense dedication and was much admired for her wit and vivacity. But she had previously tried to kill herself, and she asserted her right to die if her manic-depressive illness became intolerable. Waves and water haunted her imagination; visions of drowning recurred in her work. The Measure of Life suggests that Woolf anticipated her suicide, and indeed enacted it symbolically many times before the event. Marder's account of her death emphasizes the importance of her relationship with her doctor and distant cousin, Octavia Wilberforce. Wilberforce's letters about Woolf's last months, including some previously unpublished passages, appear in the appendix. Staying close to the spirit of Woolf's own writing, Marder traces her evolving social consciousness in the 1930s, connecting her growing concern with politics and social history with the facts of her daily life. He stresses her endurance as a working writer, and explores her friendships, her complex relations with servants, and her activities at the Hogarth Press. The Measure of Life illuminates the unspoken quarrels and obscure acts of courage that provide a key, as Woolf herself believed, to the hidden roots of our existence. By letting the reader see events as Virginia Woolf saw them, Marder's compelling narrative captures both her unique comic spirit and her profound seriousness.
Poets of WWI: Wilfred Owen & Isaac Rosenberg by
This volume offers biographies and examines the works of two of the best poets of the World War I era: Wilfred Owen and Isaac Rosenberg. The poems "Strange Meeting," "Anthem for Doomed Youth," "The Dead Heroes," and "Break of Day in the Trenches" are among those reviewed here.
Postcolonial Green by
Postcolonial Green brings together scholarship bridging ecocriticism and postcolonialism. Since its inception, ecocriticism has been accused of being inattentive to the complexities that colonialism poses for ideas of nature and environmentalism. Postcolonial discourse, on the other hand, has been so immersed in theoretical questions of nationalism and identity that it has been seen as ignoring environmental or ecological concerns. This collection demonstrates that ecocriticism and postcolonialism must be understood as parallel projects if not facets of the very same project--a struggle for global justice and sustainability.
The essays in this collection span the globe, and cover such issues as international environmental policy, land and water rights, food production, poverty, women's rights, indigenous activism, and ecotourism. They consider all manner of texts, from oral tradition to literary fiction to web discourse. Contributors bring postcolonial theory to literary traditions, such as that of the United States, not typically seen in this light, and, conversely, bring ecocriticism to literary traditions, such as those of India and China, that have seen little ecological analysis. Postcolonial Green boasts a global geographical breadth, diversity of critical approach, and increasing relevance to the issues we face on a world stage.
The Shakespeare Book by
Whether you are new to the poetry and prose of Shakespeare, and in need of a guide through the complex plots and unfamiliar language, or looking for a fresh perspective on his much-loved plays and sonnets, this book will shed light on the work of one of world literature's greatest figures.
The Sherlock Holmes Book by
Chronicles every case of the world's greatest detective and his assistant Dr Watson. The game is afoot and now you can discover every detail of Sherlock Holmes' world!
The War Against Cliché: essays and reviews, 1971-2000 by
Is there anything that Martin Amis can't write about? In this virtuosic, career-spanning collection he takes on James Joyce and Elvis Presley, Nabokov and English football, Jane Austen and Penthouse Forum, William Burroughs and Hillary Clinton. But above all, Amis is concerned with literature, and with the deadly cliches-not only of the pen, but of the mind and the heart.
In The War Against Cliche, Amis serves up fresh assessments of the classics and plucks neglected masterpieces off their dusty shelves. He tilts with Cervantes, Dickens and Milton, celebrates Bellow, Updike and Elmore Leonard, and deflates some of the most bloated reputations of the past three decades. On every page Amis writes with jaw-dropping felicity, wit, and a subversive brilliance that sheds new light on everything he touches.
What a Piece of Work is Man: the seven great tragedies of Shakespeare by
Shakespeare's tragedies are among the most famous and influential works of literature in the world, and in them literature's most complex and memorable characters-Hamlet, Juliet, King Lear, Iago, Cleopatra-develop before our eyes. In this inspiring and enthusiastic course, eminent literary critic and Shakespeare scholar Harold Bloom explores in depth seven of the Bard's greatest tragedies, illuminating the works with his characteristic wit and passion, and sharing unique insights gained during a lifetime of reading, teaching, and writing about Shakespeare.
What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knewfrom fox hunting to whist : the facts of daily life in nineteenth-century England by
If you have ever wondered what food, occupations, money, travel, education, or even underwear was like in nineteenth-century England, here are some answers. Pool explains the peerage system, class distinctions, acceptable behavior, attire, popular recreation and mandatory performances, government and business operations, menus, and much more. A glossary, more than 100 pages long, follows the essay portion to answer any further questions about hulks, or withies. It would be nice if Pool further sorted the many rooms of the house (withdrawing room, sitting room, etc.) as readily as he does the gradations of maids and manners. Certainly, fans of Dickens, Trollope, and Austen will be fascinated, and the many quotes should inspire readers to return to the classics. But even more likely, readers of suspense tales and light historical romances will enjoy the opportunity to unravel the complications of fashion and history that are often blithely tossed into historical fiction. The fine bibliography could have been improved with a list of the novels cited throughout. ~--Denise Perry Donavin
What Matters in Jane Austen?: twenty crucial puzzles solved by
Which important Austen characters never speak? Is there any sex in Austen? What do the characters call one another, and why? What are the right and wrong ways to propose marriage? In What Matters in Jane Austen? , John Mullan shows that we can best appreciate Austen's brilliance by looking at the intriguing quirks and intricacies of her fiction. Asking and answering some very specific questions about what goes on in her novels, he reveals the inner workings of their greatness.
In twenty short chapters, each of which explores a question prompted by Austens novels, Mullan illuminates the themes that matter most in her beloved fiction. Readers will discover when Austen's characters had their meals and what shops they went to; how vicars got good livings; and how wealth was inherited. What Matters in Jane Austen? illuminates the rituals and conventions of her fictional world in order to reveal her technical virtuosity and daring as a novelist. It uses telling passages from Austen's letters and details from her own life to explain episodes in her novels: readers will find out, for example, what novels she read, how much money she had to live on, and what she saw at the theater.
Written with flair and based on a lifetime's study, What Matters in Jane Austen? will allow readers to appreciate Jane Austen's work in greater depth than ever before.
Charles Dickens in Cyberspace: The Afterlife of the Nineteenth Century in Postmodern Culture by
Charles Dickens in Cyberspace opens a window on a startling set of literary and scientific links between contemporary American culture and the nineteenth-century heritage it often repudiates. Surveying a wide range of novelists, scientists, filmmakers, and theorists from the past two centuries, Jay Clayton traces the concealed circuits that connect the telegraph with the Internet, Charles Babbage's Difference Engine with the digital computer, Frankenstein's monster with cyborgs and clones, and Dickens'life and fiction with all manner of contemporary popular culture--from comic books and advertising to recent novels and films. In the process, Clayton argues for two important principles: that postmodernism has a hidden or repressed connection with the nineteenth-century and that revealing those connections can aid in the development of a historical cultural studies. In Charles Dickens in Cyberspace nineteenth-century figures--Jane Austen, Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens, Thomas Hardy, Henry James, Ada Lovelace, Joseph Paxton, Mary Shelley, and Mary Somerville--meet a lively group of counterparts from today: Andrea Barrett, Greg Bear, Peter Carey, H?l?ne Cixous, Alfonso Cuar?n, William Gibson, Donna Haraway, David Lean, Richard Powers, Salman Rushdie, Ridley Scott, Susan Sontag, Neal Stephenson, Bruce Sterling, and Tom Stoppard. The juxtaposition of such a diverse cast of characters leads to a new way of understanding the'undisciplined culture'the two eras share, an understanding that can suggest ways to heal the gap that has long separated literature from science. Combining storytelling and scholarship, this engaging study demonstrates in its own practice the value of a self-reflective stance toward cultural history. Its personal voice, narrative strategies, multiple points of view, recursive loops, and irony emphasize the improvisational nature of the methods it employs. Yet its argument is serious and urgent: that the afterlife of the nineteenth century continues to shape the present in diverse and sometimes conflicting ways.
The Romantic Age by
A Concise Companion to the Romantic Age provides new perspectives on the relationships between literature and culture in Britain from 1780 to 1830 Provides original essays from a variety of multi-disciplinary scholars on the Romantic era Includes fresh insights into such topics as religious controversy and politics, empire and nationalism, and the relationship of Romanticism to modernist aesthetics Ranges across the Romantic era's literary, visual, and non-fictional genres
Modern English War Poetry by
Tim Kendall's study offers the fullest account to date of a tradition of modern English war poetry. Stretching from the Boer War to the present day, it focuses on many of the twentieth-century's finest poets - combatants and non-combatants alike - and considers how they address the ethical challenges of making art out of violence. Poetry, we are often told, makes nothing happen. But war makes poetry happen: the war poet cannot regret, and must exalt at, even the most appalling experiences. Modern English War Poetry not only assesses the problematic relationship between war and its poets, it also encourages an urgent reconsideration of the modern poetry canon and the (too often marginalised) position of war poetry within it. The aesthetic and ethical values on which canonical judgements have been based are carefully scrutinized via a detailed analysis of individual poets. The poets discussed include Thomas Hardy, Rudyard Kipling, Wilfred Owen, Charlotte Mew, Edward Thomas, Ivor Gurney, W. H. Auden, Keith Douglas, Ted Hughes, and Geoffrey Hill.
Post-War British Women Novelists and the Canon by
With the increasing number of books on contemporary fiction, there is a need for a work that examines whom we value, and why. These questions lie at the heart of this book which, by focusing on four novelists, literary and popular, interrogates the canon over the last fifty years. The argument unfolds to demonstrate that academic trends increasingly control canonicity, as do the demands of genre, the increasing commercialisation of literature, and the power of the literary prize. Turner argues that literary excellence, demonstrated by style and imaginative power, is often missing in many works that have become modern classics and makes a case for the value of the 'universal' in literature. Written in a jargon-free style, with reference to many supporting writers, the book raises a number of significant cultural questions about the arts, fashions and literary reputations, of interest to readers in contemporary literary studies.
A Victorian Muse: The Afterlife of Dante's Beatrice in Nineteenth-Century Literature by
The figure of Dante's Beatrice can be seen as a cultural phenomenon or myth during the nineteenth century, inspiring a wide variety of representations in literature and the visual arts. This study looks at the cultural afterlife of Beatrice in the Victorian period in remarkably different contexts. Focusing on literary representations and selected examples from the visual arts, this book examines works by Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Christina Rossetti, George Eliot, Alfred Lord Tennyson and Walter Pater as well as by John Ruskin, Maria Rossetti and Arthur Henry Hallam. Julia Straub's analysis shows how the various representations of Beatrice in literature and in the visual arts reflect in meaningful ways some of the central social and aesthetic concerns of the Victorian period, most importantly its discourse on gender. This study offers fascinating insights into the Victorian reception of Dante by exploring the powerful appeal of his muse.
Why Victorian Literature Still Matters by
Why Victorian Literature Still Matters is a passionate defense of the enduring impact of Victorian realism today. With a nod to the popularity of phrenology within that era, noted literary scholar Philip Davis points to a corner of the human mind where all Victorian literature resides. This "Victorian bump," he argues, is an area concerned with human purpose, morality, secularization and belief, human stories, and living in time.Rather than emphasizing Victorian literature as an historical and reassuring body of knowledge, Davis explains its centrality for contemporary readers as an important mode of thinking and feeling, and provides a gateway of analysis into the popular prose and poetry of the Victorian Age. Why Victorian Literature Still Matters is a positive manifesto, inviting readers to discover what they really like about a book. The author offers an insightful window for readers to formulate a sense of what Victorian literature means for them and how it relates to our wider human existence.
The New Annotated Frankenstein by
Remarkably, a nineteen-year-old, writing her first novel, penned a tale that combines tragedy, morality, social commentary, and a thoughtful examination of the very nature of knowledge,' writes ... author Leslie S. Klinger in his foreword to The New Annotated Frankenstein. Despite its undeniable status as one of the most influential works of fiction ever written, Mary Shelley's novel is often reductively dismissed as the wellspring for tacky monster films or as a cautionary tale about experimental science gone haywire. Now, two centuries after the first publication of Frankenstein, Klinger revives Shelley's gothic masterpiece by reproducing her original text with the most lavishly illustrated and comprehensively annotated edition to date. Featuring over 200 illustrations and nearly 1,000 annotations, this sumptuous volume recaptures Shelley's early nineteenth-century world with historical precision and imaginative breadth, tracing the social and political roots of the author's revolutionary brand of Romanticism. Braiding together decades of scholarship with his own keen insights, Klinger recounts Frankenstein's indelible contributions to the realms of science fiction, feminist theory, and modern intellectual history--not to mention film history and popular culture. The result of Klinger's exhaustive research is a multifaceted portrait of one of Western literature's most divinely gifted prodigies, a young novelist who defied her era's restrictions on female ambitions by independently supporting herself and her children as a writer and editor. Born in a world of men in the midst of a political and an emerging industrial revolution, Shelley crafted a horror story that, beyond its incisive commentary on her own milieu, is widely recognized as the first work of science fiction. The daughter of a pioneering feminist and an Enlightenment philosopher, Shelley lived and wrote at the center of British Romanticism, the 'exuberant, young movement' that rebelled against tradition and reason and 'with a rebellious scream gave birth to a world of gods and monsters' (Guillermo del Toro). Following his best-selling The New Annotated H. P. Lovecraft and The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes, Klinger not only considers Shelley's original 1818 text but, for the first time in any annotated volume, traces the effects of her significant revisions in the 1823 and 1831 editions. With an afterword by renowned literary scholar Anne K. Mellor, The New Annotated Frankenstein celebrates the prescient genius and undying legacy of the world's 'first truly modern myth.'