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Conscience and Authority in the Medieval Church
by Alexander MurrayAlexander Murray has long had an intellectual interest in the history of religion - struggling between his inbuilt anti-clericism and his pronounced monastic leanings. The five essays in Conscience and Authority in the Medieval Church take on this dialectic, addressing the difficult relationship between private conscience and public authority in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. In any organization, political, military, commercial, or religious, the relationship of conscience and authority is always potentially fraught, and can create dilemmas both for those in authority and those without. This volume records how our European predecessors approached and dealt with the same dilemmas as we face in the modern world.
Catherine the Great: Selected Letters (Oxford World's Classics)
by Catherine The Great'Your Majesty may find it extraordinary that I should answer with a shipment of fruit your letter of 6 August, in which you inform me that you are sending the plan for a treaty, and that of the 8 September, in which you are so good as to share with me equally important intelligence. Things big and small often come from the same source: my watermelons derive from the same principles as our planned alliance...' (To Frederick the Great) Catherine the Great's letters present a vivid picture of Russia in a momentous age. They also offer a unique account of her personal development and intimate life, her strategic acumen as a diplomat and military commander, and her political skills at the Russian court and in handling foreign monarchs. Born a German princess, Catherine married into the Russian royal family and came to the throne after a coup. As absolute ruler for 34 years she presided over the expansion of the Russian empire, legislated actively to reform the country in keeping with the principles of the Enlightenment, actively promoted the arts and sciences, and in her correspondence engaged with the most renowned minds in Europe, among them Diderot and Voltaire. Her letters are her literary masterpiece, written to a wide circle of associates and friends, not least her most celebrated lover and ally, Potemkin. Combining her wit, charm, and quick eye for detail, they entertain and tell the griping story of a self-made woman and legendary ruler. This edition of the letters offers a taste of Catherine's entire writing career, with biographies of Catherine's addressees, a thorough overview of her reign and an analysis of Catherine's literary skill as a letter-writer. Organized chronologically and thematically into six periods, each section also features an introduction to the domestic, personal and foreign policy contexts out of which her letters emerge.
Catherine the Great: Selected Letters (Oxford World's Classics)
by Catherine The Great'Your Majesty may find it extraordinary that I should answer with a shipment of fruit your letter of 6 August, in which you inform me that you are sending the plan for a treaty, and that of the 8 September, in which you are so good as to share with me equally important intelligence. Things big and small often come from the same source: my watermelons derive from the same principles as our planned alliance...' (To Frederick the Great) Catherine the Great's letters present a vivid picture of Russia in a momentous age. They also offer a unique account of her personal development and intimate life, her strategic acumen as a diplomat and military commander, and her political skills at the Russian court and in handling foreign monarchs. Born a German princess, Catherine married into the Russian royal family and came to the throne after a coup. As absolute ruler for 34 years she presided over the expansion of the Russian empire, legislated actively to reform the country in keeping with the principles of the Enlightenment, actively promoted the arts and sciences, and in her correspondence engaged with the most renowned minds in Europe, among them Diderot and Voltaire. Her letters are her literary masterpiece, written to a wide circle of associates and friends, not least her most celebrated lover and ally, Potemkin. Combining her wit, charm, and quick eye for detail, they entertain and tell the griping story of a self-made woman and legendary ruler. This edition of the letters offers a taste of Catherine's entire writing career, with biographies of Catherine's addressees, a thorough overview of her reign and an analysis of Catherine's literary skill as a letter-writer. Organized chronologically and thematically into six periods, each section also features an introduction to the domestic, personal and foreign policy contexts out of which her letters emerge.
Verb Movement and Clause Structure in Old Romanian (Oxford Studies in Diachronic and Historical Linguistics #18)
by Virginia Hill Gabriela AlboiuThe book provides a formal analysis of root and complement clauses in Old Romanian. Virginia Hill and Gabriela Alboiu examine the combination of Balkan syntactic patterns such as generalized subjunctive complementation on the one hand, and the Romance morphology that supplies complementizers and grammatical mood forms on the other. The consequences of this mixed typology range from root clauses with non-finite verbs to split heads and repeated recycling in clausal complements. The book argues that discourse triggers at the left periphery are responsible for fluctuations in verb movement in finite clauses, while with gerunds and imperatives verb movement follows from functional constraints. It further argues that clausal complements to control and raising verbs systematically display the pattern of the Balkan subjunctive, and that the spell out of these clausal complements has been repeatedly recycled during the development of Romanian. Verb Movement and Clause Structure in Old Romanian presents a new perspective on the manifestation of Balkan Sprachbund properties in the language, and on the nature of parametric differences in relation to other Romance languages. It provides a unified explanation for a range of constructions that have previously been treated as separate phenomena, and places diachronic changes in Romanian in a wider context.
Guardians of Language: Twenty Voices Through History
by Florian CoulmasThis book provides an accessible account of the origins and conceptual foundations of language policy. Florian Coulmas discusses the influence of twenty intellectuals from medieval to modern times, and from a variety of cultures, who have taken issue with language, its use, development, and political potential. These 'guardians of language' range from renowned figures such as Dante, Noah Webster, and Gandhi, to less well-known individuals such as the Spanish grammarian Antonio de Nebrija and Senegalese politician and poet Léopold Sédar Senghor. Each chapter begins by providing background information on the scholar whose work is being reviewed and ends with a summary of his key thoughts on language in the form of an imaginary interview.
Evolutionary Syntax (Oxford Studies in the Evolution of Language #20)
by Ljiljana ProgovacIn this book, Ljiljana Progovac proposes a gradualist, adaptationist approach to the evolution of syntax, subject to natural selection. She provides a specific framework for its study, combining the fields of evolutionary biology, theoretical syntax, typology, neuroscience, and genetics. The author pursues an internal reconstruction of the stages of grammar based on the syntactic theory associated with Chomskyan Minimalism and arrives at specific, testable hypotheses, which are then corroborated by an abundance of theoretically analysed 'living fossils' drawn from a variety of languages. Her approach demonstrates that these fossil structures do not just coexist alongside more modern structures, but are in fact built into the very foundation of more complex structures, leading to quirks and complexities that are suggestive of a gradualist evolutionary scenario. By reconstructing a particular path along which syntax evolved, Evolutionary Syntax sheds light on the crucial properties of language design itself, as well as on the major parameters of crosslinguistic variation. As a result, this reconstruction can be meaningfully correlated with both the hominin timeline and the ever-growing body of genetic evidence that is available.
The Oxford Handbook of Lying
This handbook brings together past and current research on all aspects of lying and deception, with chapters contributed by leading international experts in the field. We are confronted daily with cases of lying, deception, bullshitting, and 'fake news', making it imperative to understand how lying works, how it can be defined, and whether it can be detected. A further important issue is whether lying should always be considered a bad thing or if, in some cases, it is simply a useful instrument of human cognition. This volume is the first to offer a comprehensive and up-to-date exploration of these and other issues from the combined perspectives of linguistics, philosophy, and psychology. Chapters offer precise definitions of lying and its subtypes, and outline the range of fields in which lying and deception play a role, from empirical lie detection and the acquisition of lying to its role in fiction, metaphor, and humour. They also describe the tools and approaches that are used by scholars researching lying and deception, such as questionnaire studies, EEG, neuroimaging, and the polygraph. The volume will be an essential reference for students and researchers in a range of fields who are looking to deepen their understanding of all aspects of lying and deception, and will contribute to establishing the vibrant new field of interdisciplinary lying research.
The Oxford Handbook of Lying (Oxford Handbooks)
by Jörg MeibauerThis handbook brings together past and current research on all aspects of lying and deception, with chapters contributed by leading international experts in the field. We are confronted daily with cases of lying, deception, bullshitting, and 'fake news', making it imperative to understand how lying works, how it can be defined, and whether it can be detected. A further important issue is whether lying should always be considered a bad thing or if, in some cases, it is simply a useful instrument of human cognition. This volume is the first to offer a comprehensive and up-to-date exploration of these and other issues from the combined perspectives of linguistics, philosophy, and psychology. Chapters offer precise definitions of lying and its subtypes, and outline the range of fields in which lying and deception play a role, from empirical lie detection and the acquisition of lying to its role in fiction, metaphor, and humour. They also describe the tools and approaches that are used by scholars researching lying and deception, such as questionnaire studies, EEG, neuroimaging, and the polygraph. The volume will be an essential reference for students and researchers in a range of fields who are looking to deepen their understanding of all aspects of lying and deception, and will contribute to establishing the vibrant new field of interdisciplinary lying research.
The Sin of Abbé Mouret (Oxford World's Classics)
by Émile Zola'I really don't understand how people can blame a priest so much, when he strays from the path.' The Sin of Abbé Mouret tells the compelling story of the young priest Serge Mouret. Striving after spiritual purity and sanctity, he lives a life of constant prayer, but his neglect of all physical needs leads to serious illness, followed by amnesia. No longer knowing he is a priest, he falls in love with his nurse Albine. Together, like a latter-day Adam and Eve, they roam through an Eden-like garden called the 'Paradou', seeking a forbidden tree in whose shade they will make love. Zola memorably shows their gradual awakening to sexuality, and his poetic descriptions of the luxuriant and beautiful Paradou create a lyrical celebration of Nature. When Serge regains his memory and recalls his priestly vows, anguish inevitably follows. The whole story, with its numerous biblical parallels, becomes a poetic reworking of the Fall of Man and a questioning of the very meaning of innocence and sin. Zola explores the conflict between Church and Nature, the sterility of the Church and the fertility of Nature. This new translation includes a wide-ranging and helpful introduction and explanatory notes.
The Sin of Abbé Mouret (Oxford World's Classics)
by Émile Zola'I really don't understand how people can blame a priest so much, when he strays from the path.' The Sin of Abbé Mouret tells the compelling story of the young priest Serge Mouret. Striving after spiritual purity and sanctity, he lives a life of constant prayer, but his neglect of all physical needs leads to serious illness, followed by amnesia. No longer knowing he is a priest, he falls in love with his nurse Albine. Together, like a latter-day Adam and Eve, they roam through an Eden-like garden called the 'Paradou', seeking a forbidden tree in whose shade they will make love. Zola memorably shows their gradual awakening to sexuality, and his poetic descriptions of the luxuriant and beautiful Paradou create a lyrical celebration of Nature. When Serge regains his memory and recalls his priestly vows, anguish inevitably follows. The whole story, with its numerous biblical parallels, becomes a poetic reworking of the Fall of Man and a questioning of the very meaning of innocence and sin. Zola explores the conflict between Church and Nature, the sterility of the Church and the fertility of Nature. This new translation includes a wide-ranging and helpful introduction and explanatory notes.
Environmental Law Dimensions of Human Rights (Collected Courses of the Academy of European Law)
How can we guarantee a right to life or a right to health without also guaranteeing a decent environment in which to exercise these rights? It is becoming increasingly obvious that a high quality environment is key to the fundamental human rights of life and health, and associated rights such as the right to clean water, adequate housing, and food. This book canvasses a range of law and policy issues concerning human rights and the environment. Each chapter examines an aspect of the links between environmental law and human rights in substantive and/or procedural terms, loosely falling into four themes: human rights and the environment in the context of the private sector; analysis of decisions of the European and Inter-American courts in respect of substantive and procedural aspects; human rights and the environment in the Asian region, including the issue of human displacement; and the future direction of human rights and environment law.
Environmental Law Dimensions of Human Rights (Collected Courses of the Academy of European Law)
by Ben BoerHow can we guarantee a right to life or a right to health without also guaranteeing a decent environment in which to exercise these rights? It is becoming increasingly obvious that a high quality environment is key to the fundamental human rights of life and health, and associated rights such as the right to clean water, adequate housing, and food. This book canvasses a range of law and policy issues concerning human rights and the environment. Each chapter examines an aspect of the links between environmental law and human rights in substantive and/or procedural terms, loosely falling into four themes: human rights and the environment in the context of the private sector; analysis of decisions of the European and Inter-American courts in respect of substantive and procedural aspects; human rights and the environment in the Asian region, including the issue of human displacement; and the future direction of human rights and environment law.
Grammaticalization and the Rise of Configurationality in Indo-Aryan (Oxford Studies in Diachronic and Historical Linguistics)
by Uta ReinöhlThis book examines historical changes in the grammar of the Indo-Aryan languages from the period of their earliest attestations in Vedic Sanskrit (around 1000 bc) to contemporary Hindi. Uta Reinöhl focuses specifically on the rise of configurational structure as a by-product of the grammaticalization of postpositions: while Vedic Sanskrit lacks function words that constrain nominal expressions into phrasal units - one of the characteristics of a non-configurational language - New Indo-Aryan languages have postpositions which organize nominal expressions into postpositional phrases. The grammaticalization of postpositions and the concomitant syntactic changes are traced through the three millennia of Indo-Aryan attested history with a focus on Vedic Sanskrit, Middle Indic Pali and Apabhramsha, Early New Indic Old Awadhi, and finally Hindi. Among the topics discussed are the constructions in which the postpositions grammaticalize, the origins of the postpositional template, and the paradigmatization of the various elements involved into a single functional class of postpositions. The book outlines how it is semantic and pragmatic changes that induce changes on the expression side, ultimately resulting in the establishment of phrasal, and thus low-level configurational, syntax.
The Semantics of Nouns
This volume brings together the latest research on the semantics of nouns in both familiar and less well-documented languages, including English, Mandarin Chinese, Russian, the Papuan language Koromu, the Dravidian language Solega, and Pitjantjatjara/Yankunytjatjara from Australia. Chapters offer systematic and detailed analyses of scores of individual nouns across a range of conceptual domains, including 'people', 'places', and 'living things', with each analysis fully grounded in a unified methodological framework. They not only cover central theoretical issues specific to the analysis of the domain in question, but also empirically investigate the different types of meaning relations that hold between nouns, such as meronymy, hyponymy, taxonomy, and antonymy. The collection of studies show how in-depth meaning analysis anchored in a cross-linguistic and cross-domain perspective can lead to unexpected insights into the common and particular ways in which speakers of different languages conceptualize, categorize, and order the world around them. This unique volume brings together a new generation of semanticists from across the globe, and will be of interest to researchers in linguistics, psychology, anthropology, biology, and philosophy.
The Romance Verb: Morphomic Structure and Diachrony
by Martin MaidenThis book is the first comprehensive comparative-historical survey of patterns of alternation in the Romance verb which appear to be 'autonomously morphological': although they can be shown to be persistent through time, they have long ceased to be conditioned by any phonological or functional determinant. Some of these patterns are well known in Romance linguistics, while others have scarcely been noticed. The sheer range of phenomena which participate in these patterns in any case far surpasses what Romance linguists had previously realized. The patterns constitute a kind of abstract 'leitmotiv', running through the history of the Romance languages and conferring on them a distinctive morphological physiognomy. Although intended primarily as a novel contribution to comparative-historical Romance linguistics, the book considers in detail the status of these patterns which appear to be a matter of 'morphology by itself', unsupported by determining factors external to the morphological system. Particular attention is paid to the problem of their persistence, self-replication, and reinforcement over time. Why do abstract morphological patterns that quite literally 'do not make sense' display such diachronic robustness? The evidence suggests that speakers, faced with different ways of expressing semantically identical material, seek out distributional templates into which those differences can be deployed. In Romance the only available templates happen to be 'morphomic', morphologically accidental, effects of old sound changes or defunct functional conditionings. Those patterns are accordingly exploited, and indeed reinforced, by being made maximally predictable.
Dictating to the Mob: The History of the BBC Advisory Committee on Spoken English
by Jürg R. SchwyterThe BBC's Advisory Committee on Spoken English was set up to provide an authoritative guide to pronunciation and the use of language for BBC announcers. The results of its deliberations were published for general consumption in a series of pamphlets called Broadcast English. Based on primary sources, the compelling story of the Advisory Board during its crucial first 13 years is told here for the first time. It reveals how board members, including George Bernard Shaw and A. Lloyd James, soon discovered that standardization and regulation of spoken language is extremely challenging and highly controversial. The first two chapters describe the linguistic aspects of its work, particularly after it had taken on the role of standardizing spoken English, a task well beyond its mandate and the BBC Charter. The third and fourth chapters look at the challenges the Committee encountered in assuming their prescriptive role, the structural crisis which ensued, and the changes to linguistic policies which then followed. Chapter 5 and 6 document the final years of the Committee, explore the reasons for its failure in its role as guardian of 'properly' spoken English, and consider the legacy of the Committee in today's broadcasting. The book will appeal to linguists and historians generally, especially those interested in the English language and language policy.
The Oxford Handbook of Persian Linguistics (Oxford Handbooks)
This handbook offers a comprehensive overview of the field of Persian linguistics, discusses its development, and captures critical accounts of cutting edge research within its major subfields, as well as outlining current debates and suggesting productive lines of future research. Leading scholars in the major subfields of Persian linguistics examine a range of topics split into six thematic parts. Following a detailed introduction from the editors, the volume begins by placing Persian in its historical and typological context in Part I. Chapters in Part II examine topics relating to phonetics and phonology, while Part III looks at approaches to and features of Persian syntax. The fourth part of the volume explores morphology and lexicography, as well as the work of the Academy of Persian Language and Literature. Part V, language and people, covers topics such as language contact and teaching Persian as a foreign language, while the final part examines psycho- neuro-, and computational linguistics. The volume will be an essential resource for all scholars with an interest in Persian language and linguistics.
The Oxford Handbook of Persian Linguistics (Oxford Handbooks)
by Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi Anousha SedighiThis handbook offers a comprehensive overview of the field of Persian linguistics, discusses its development, and captures critical accounts of cutting edge research within its major subfields, as well as outlining current debates and suggesting productive lines of future research. Leading scholars in the major subfields of Persian linguistics examine a range of topics split into six thematic parts. Following a detailed introduction from the editors, the volume begins by placing Persian in its historical and typological context in Part I. Chapters in Part II examine topics relating to phonetics and phonology, while Part III looks at approaches to and features of Persian syntax. The fourth part of the volume explores morphology and lexicography, as well as the work of the Academy of Persian Language and Literature. Part V, language and people, covers topics such as language contact and teaching Persian as a foreign language, while the final part examines psycho- neuro-, and computational linguistics. The volume will be an essential resource for all scholars with an interest in Persian language and linguistics.
The Senecan Aesthetic: A Performance History (Classical Presences)
by Helen SlaneyAlongside the works of the better-known classical Greek dramatists, the tragedies of Lucius Annaeus Seneca have exerted a profound influence over the dramaturgical development of European theatre. The Senecan Aesthetic surveys the multifarious ways in which Senecan tragedy has been staged, from the Renaissance up to the present day: plundered for neo-Latin declamation and seeping into the blood-soaked revenge tragedies of Shakespeare's contemporaries, seasoned with French neoclassical rigour, and inflated by Restoration flamboyance. In the mid-eighteenth century, the pincer movement of naturalism and philhellenism began to squeeze Seneca off the stage until August Wilhelm Schlegel's shrill denunciation silenced what he called its 'frigid bombast'. The Senecan aesthetic, repressed but still present, staged its return in the twentieth century in the work of Antonin Artaud, who regarded Seneca as 'the greatest tragedian of history'. This volume restores Seneca to a canonical position among the playwrights of antiquity, recognizing him as one of the most important, most revered, and most reviled, and in doing so reveals how theory, practice, and scholarship have always been interdependent and inseparable.
The Astronomer and the Witch: Johannes Kepler's Fight for his Mother
by Ulinka RublackJohannes Kepler (1571-1630) was one of the most admired astronomers who ever lived and a key figure in the scientific revolution. A defender of Copernicus´s sun-centred universe, he famously discovered that planets move in ellipses, and defined the three laws of planetary motion. Perhaps less well known is that in 1615, when Kepler was at the height of his career, his widowed mother Katharina was accused of witchcraft. The proceedings led to a criminal trial that lasted six years, with Kepler conducting his mother's defence. In The Astronomer and the Witch, Ulinka Rublack pieces together the tale of this extraordinary episode in Kepler's life, one which takes us to the heart of his changing world. First and foremost an intense family drama, the story brings to life the world of a small Lutheran community in the centre of Europe at a time of deep religious and political turmoil - a century after the Reformation, and on the threshold of the Thirty Years' War. Kepler's defence of his mother also offers us a fascinating glimpse into the great astronomer's world view, on the cusp between Reformation and scientific revolution. While advancing rational explanations for the phenomena which his mother's accusers attributed to witchcraft, Kepler nevertheless did not call into question the existence of magic and witches. On the contrary, he clearly believed in them. And, as the story unfolds, it appears that there were moments when even Katharina's children struggled to understand what their mother had done...
The Astronomer and the Witch: Johannes Kepler's Fight for his Mother
by Ulinka RublackJohannes Kepler (1571-1630) was one of the most admired astronomers who ever lived and a key figure in the scientific revolution. A defender of Copernicus´s sun-centred universe, he famously discovered that planets move in ellipses, and defined the three laws of planetary motion. Perhaps less well known is that in 1615, when Kepler was at the height of his career, his widowed mother Katharina was accused of witchcraft. The proceedings led to a criminal trial that lasted six years, with Kepler conducting his mother's defence. In The Astronomer and the Witch, Ulinka Rublack pieces together the tale of this extraordinary episode in Kepler's life, one which takes us to the heart of his changing world. First and foremost an intense family drama, the story brings to life the world of a small Lutheran community in the centre of Europe at a time of deep religious and political turmoil - a century after the Reformation, and on the threshold of the Thirty Years' War. Kepler's defence of his mother also offers us a fascinating glimpse into the great astronomer's world view, on the cusp between Reformation and scientific revolution. While advancing rational explanations for the phenomena which his mother's accusers attributed to witchcraft, Kepler nevertheless did not call into question the existence of magic and witches. On the contrary, he clearly believed in them. And, as the story unfolds, it appears that there were moments when even Katharina's children struggled to understand what their mother had done...
A History of the Spanish Novel
The origins of the Spanish novel date back to the early picaresque novels and Don Quixote, in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and the history of the genre in Spain presents the reader with such iconic works as Galdós's Fortunata and Jacinta, Clarín's La Regenta, or Unamuno's Mist. A History of the Spanish Novel traces the developments of Spanish prose fiction in order to offer a comprehensive and detailed account of this important literary tradition. It opens with an introductory chapter that examines the evolution of the novel in Spain, with particular attention to the rise and emergence of the novel as a genre, during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and the bearing of Golden-Age fiction in later novelists of all periods. The introduction contextualises the Spanish novel in the circumstances and milestones of Spain's history, and in the wider setting of European literature. The volume is comprised of chapters presented diachronically, from the sixteenth to the twenty-first century and others concerned with specific traditions (the chivalric romance, the picaresque, the modernist novel, the avant-gardist novel) and with some of the most salient authors (Cervantes, Zayas, Galdós, and Baroja). A History of the Spanish Novel takes the reader across the centuries to reveal the captivating life of the Spanish novel tradition, in all its splendour, and its phenomenal contribution to Western literature.
Paris Street Tales (City Tales)
by Helen ConstantineParis Street Tales is the third volume of a trilogy of translated stories set in Paris. The previous two are Paris Tales, in which each story is associated with one of the twenty arrondissements, and Paris Metro Tales, in which the twenty-two stories are related to a trip round the Paris Metro. This new volume contains eighteen newly translated stories related to particular streets in Paris, and one newly written tale of the city. The stories range from the nineteenth century to the present day, and include tales by well-known writers such as Colette, Maupassant, Didier Daeninckx, and Simenon, and less familiar names such as Francis Carco, Aurélie Filipetti, and Arnaud Baignot. They present a vivid picture of Paris streets in a variety of literary styles and tones. Simenon's Maigret is called upon to solve a mystery on the Boulevard Beaumarchais; a flâneur learns some French history through second-hand objects retrieved from the Seine; a nineteenth-century affair in the Rue de Miromesnil goes badly wrong; a body is discovered on the steps of the smallest street in Paris. Through these stories we see how the city has changed over the last two centuries and what has survived. All the tales in the book are translated apart from the last, a new story by David Constantine, based on the last days of the poet Gérard de Nerval.
Paris Street Tales (City Tales)
by Helen ConstantineParis Street Tales is the third volume of a trilogy of translated stories set in Paris. The previous two are Paris Tales, in which each story is associated with one of the twenty arrondissements, and Paris Metro Tales, in which the twenty-two stories are related to a trip round the Paris Metro. This new volume contains eighteen newly translated stories related to particular streets in Paris, and one newly written tale of the city. The stories range from the nineteenth century to the present day, and include tales by well-known writers such as Colette, Maupassant, Didier Daeninckx, and Simenon, and less familiar names such as Francis Carco, Aurélie Filipetti, and Arnaud Baignot. They present a vivid picture of Paris streets in a variety of literary styles and tones. Simenon's Maigret is called upon to solve a mystery on the Boulevard Beaumarchais; a flâneur learns some French history through second-hand objects retrieved from the Seine; a nineteenth-century affair in the Rue de Miromesnil goes badly wrong; a body is discovered on the steps of the smallest street in Paris. Through these stories we see how the city has changed over the last two centuries and what has survived. All the tales in the book are translated apart from the last, a new story by David Constantine, based on the last days of the poet Gérard de Nerval.
The Poetry of Antonio Machado: Changing the Landscape
by Xon De RosThis study offers a reappraisal of the contribution of the poet Antonio Machado to Modernism, seeking to open up new perspectives for the interpretation of his poetry, and includes for the first time a comparative analysis of Machado's translators into English. While the book is attentive to areas of recent critical debate, the argument keeps Machado's poems to the fore, with new detailed readings of many of his most significant poems. The reader will find that the structure of this book also allows for a separate exploration of each of Machado's main poetic tendencies. One associated with the Symbolist poetics is considered in Chapter I dealing with those early poems where the sound of water acquires a rich symbolic meaning. An emphasis on the visual imagination is more prevalent in the material studied in chapters II and III with a focus on the natural landscape, while the more conceptual and intellectual strand occupies Chapter IV. Every individual chapter begins with a brief introduction to the theoretical ground related to the specific discussion (on gender, space-place, the sublime, and translation, respectively), and a survey of the cultural discourses which situate the material under analysis in the original historical contexts.