45 Great Sourced Quotes about Books | Interesting Literature The best quotes about books, from some of the most famous writers in the world Here is a list of our favourite quotes about books from various writers, some famous, some not so famous. We’ve only included those quotations for which we’ve managed to track down a source, whether in print or online, so you know these are authentic quotes about books, rather than of the amusing-but-apocryphal kind. When I was a child I read books far too old for me and sometimes far too young for me. Give me books, French wine, fruit, fine weather and a little music played out of doors by somebody I do not know. – John Keats, letter of August 28, 1819 to his sister Fanny Keats If you want to read a perfect book there is only one way: write it. – Ambrose Bierce, A Cynic Looks at Life The pleasure of all reading is doubled when one lives with another who shares the same books. – Katherine Mansfield, letter to Ottoline Morrell, January 1922 Like money, books must be kept in constant circulation. Like this: Related
Classics of British Literature British writers who have made a lasting impact on literature is remarkable. More importantly, Britain's writers have long challenged readers with new ways of understanding an ever-changing world. The 48 fascinating lectures in Classics of British Literature provide you with a rare opportunity to step beyond the surface of Britain's grand literary masterpieces and experience the times and conditions they came from and the diverse issues with which their writers grappled. British-born Professor John Sutherland, the Lord Northcliffe Professor Emeritus of Modern English at University College London and Visiting Professor of Literature at the California Institute of Technology, has spent a lifetime exploring these rich works. The unique insights he shares into how and why these works succeed as both literature and documents of Britain's social and political history can forever alter the way you experience a novel, poem, or play. Explore the Soul of Great Britain Britain's Literary Mosaic
Writers History - Neoclassicism Neoclassicism Neoclassicism developed as a reaction to the Renaissance. Neo-classicists drew inspiration from the ancients. They saw humans rather as imperfect beings with limited potential than as a creative and innovative force, as depicted in the previous period. This literary movement can be divided in three parts: The Restoration Age (1660-1700) introducing the comedy of manner (a play about the manners and conventions of a highly sophisticated aristocratic society.) Main Characteristics: Imitation of classical form Artificial and aristocratic society Sophisticated sexual behaviour Honour comes from reputation, not integrity Style is polite, urbane, and witty Instructive and entertaining Distrust in innovation and invention Restraint in passion and personal expression Value of communication, not self-expression Ideals: order, logic, accuracy, "correctness," decorum
How to Analyse Movies #2: Signs, Codes & Conventions | Film Inquiry In this chapter, we’ll cover the signs, codes and conventions in a film that can tell you a lot about the messages that the creators are trying to convey. Some filmmakers are aware of the use of signs, codes and conventions in their work, though some are not. In that case the symbolism may be there, but not on the surface, which makes it a little harder to interpret. The study of these signs, codes and conventions in film is called semiotics, or semiotic analysis. However, what’s important to realise is that the decoded meaning wasn’t created by the person decoding it, in a vacuum; instead, the meaning already existed. Semiotic analysis is used to “read” (and better understand) a film and its text. Semiotic Analysis The study of these signs, codes and conventions in movies is called semiotics. However, what we should realize is that the decoded meaning is not our own idea, but somebody else’s. Signs and Codes In semiotic analysis, the smallest units of meaning are signs. Filmic Code
96 Incredibly Useful Links for Teaching and Studying Shakespeare The idea of tackling Shakespeare in school has sometimes sent chills down both students’ and teachers’ spines, but the truth is that studying Shakespeare doesn’t have to be so daunting. His plays and sonnets are filled with themes that are relevant even today, are humorous, lyrical, and provide important historical content. Most importantly, Shakespeare knew how to tell a good story. Comprehensive Resources These resources offer a wealth of information about Shakespeare and his works. Shakespeare Online. Reading Shakespeare Use these links to find full online texts, modern translations, searchable text, and more. No Fear Shakespeare. Articles These articles take a closer look at specific topics relevant to Shakespeare’s work such as his use of the female character, words coined by Shakespeare, and the flowers and herbs mentioned in Shakespeare’s works. Types of Female Characters in Shakespeare. Quizzes Find out how much you know about Shakespeare with these quizzes. How to Study Shakespeare.
Writers History - Romanticism Romanticism 1770 - 1865 Romanticism, among other things, stands for a literary renaissance. Three generations of Romanticists dominated the intellectual scene from 1770 to 1865 in Western Europe and in North America, bringing a different approach to writing in terms of style and topic. It was a rebellion against the formalism of the Enlightenment or, rather, revised its views. Romanticism was named after a medieval romance, a tale or ballad of chivalric adventure and individual heroism. In this first phase of Romanticism, Germans dealt with the mystical, the subconscious, and the supernatural. At the beginning of the 19th century topics shifted more to cultural nationalism and national origins. By the 1820s Romanticism, already widespread throughout Europe, started to spread in North America, where it was marked by strengthening of an American identity.
Short history of English literature Introduction This study guide is intended for GCE Advanced and Advanced Supplementary (A2 and AS) level students in the UK, who are taking exams or modules in English literature. It should be most useful right at the start of the course, or later as a resource for exercises in revision, and to help you reflect on value judgements in literary criticism. It may also be suitable for university students and the general reader who is interested in the history of literature. This guide reflects a view of literature which is sometimes described as canonical, and sometimes as a Dead White European Male view. That is, I have not especially sought to express my own value judgements but to reflect those which are commonly found in printed guides by judges whose views command more respect than mine. I hope that students who visit this page will take issue with the summary comments here, or discuss them with their peers. Back to top Please use the hyperlinks in the table above to navigate this page.
Ian McKellen Reads a Passionate Speech by William Shakespeare, Written in Defense of Immigrants The identity of William Shakespeare has been a literary mystery for four hundred years, inspiring theory after theory, book after book. There has been, indeed, little biographical evidence to work with, though paleographer and “literary detective” Heather Wolfe has very recently filled in some critical gaps. It was long thought that Shakespeare’s will, in which he bequeaths to his wife his “second best bed,” was the only document in his hand, aside from a few signatures here and there. Since around the turn of the 20th century, however, scholars have come to agree that three pages of a manuscript in an Elizabethan play called Sir Thomas More contain Shakespeare’s handwriting. The play, writes the British Library—who house the physical pages and have digital scans at their site—tells the story of “the Tudor lawyer and polymath who was sentenced to death for refusing to recognise Henry VIII as Supreme Head of the Church in England.” via Quartz Related Content:
Writers History - Realism Realism Realism is a literary movement that attempts to describe life without idealization or romantic subjectivity. Although realism cannot be precisely timed or limited to any period, it is most often associated with a movement in 19th-century France (approximately 1840-1890). The term "realism," which was originally used by the thirteenth-century scholastics to describe a belief in the reality of ideas, in the 19th century became associated with a group of writers who claimed it as a slogan for the movement. Honoré de Balzac, the author of "La comédie humaineis" is considered to be a precursor of the movement, but the first work that belonged to the Realism were the novels of Gustave Flaubert and the short stories of Guy de Maupassant in France, Anton Chekhov in Russia, George Eliot in England, and Mark Twain and William Dean Howells in the USA. Main characteristics:
Guide to Core Studies 6 A Companion Text for Core Studies 6 Genres § I. The Theory of Genres Literary Genres Classification by Types How Literary Critics Have Used Genres § II. Tragedy Greek Tragedy: Aristotle's Poetics Medieval Tragedy and the Wheel of Fortune Elizabethan or Shakespearean Tragedy The Problem Play or Drama of Ideas Selections from Aristotle's Poetics The Tragic Vision § III. Reading Lyric Poetry Lyric Poetry and Familiar Popular "Texts" Lyric Poetry: The Conventions We Already Know The Lyric Stanza: A Convention Lyric Epiphanies and Speakers The Meditative Romantic Ode § IV. The Novel Introduction Development of the Novel Reasons for the Novel's Popularity Experimentation: The Developing Role of the Naarrator Proliferaiton of Types Historical Background Literary Periods The Period Concept Cautions and Qualifications Usefulness of the Concept Period Descriptors Medieval View of Love The Chain of Being and Caritas Caritas vs. Syllabus || Core Studies 6 Page || Melani Home Page
George Orwell Explains How "Newspeak" Works, the Official Language of His Totalitarian Dystopia in 1984 As we noted yesterday, and you likely noticed elsewhere, George Orwell’s classic dystopian novel 1984 shot to the top of the charts—or the Amazon bestseller list—in the wake of “alternative facts,” the latest Orwellian coinage for bald-faced lying. The ridiculous phrase immediately produced a barrage of parodies, hashtags, and memes; healthy ways of venting rage and disbelief. But maybe there is a danger there too, letting such words sink into the discourse, lest they become what Orwell called "Newspeak." It’s easy to hear “Newspeak,” the “official language of Oceania,” as “news speak.” This is perfectly reasonable, but it gives us the impression that it relates strictly to its appearance in mass media. In other words, Newspeak isn’t just a set of buzzwords, but the deliberate replacement of one set of words in the language for another. The C class of words may be the most insidious of all. Orwell then goes on to discuss the difficulty of translating the work of the past into Newspeak.
Writers History - Postmodernism Postmodernism Postmodernism is a literary movement of post-1950s, a time marked by the cold war and the excesses of consumption. It differs from Modernism by blurring the conventional boundary between "high" and "low" culture, by a completely loosened structure in both time and space, and by multiple openings rather than a closure. It rejects to conform to popular taste and combines heterogeneous elements, making it cater to a more sophisticated readership. Characterized by an attempt to establish transhistorical or transcultural validity, it claims that search for reality is pointless, as the "real" is conditioned by time, place, race, class, gender, and sexuality. There is no knowledge or experience that is superior or inferior to another. Developed in the second half of the twentieth century, it is largely influenced by a number of events that marked this period. Main characteristics: