"American writing, before and after Dreiser's time, differedalmost as much as biology before and after Darwin," said H. L.Mencken. Sister Carrie, Dreiser's great first novel, transformedthe conventional "fallen woman" story into a bold and trulyinnovative piece of fiction when it appeared in 1900. Na?ve youngCaroline Meeber, a small-town girl seduced by the lure of themodern city, becomes the mistress of a traveling salesman and thenof a saloon manager, who elopes with her to New York. Both itssubject matter and Dreiser's unsparing, nonjudgmental approach madeSister Carrie a controversial book in its time, and the workretains the power to shock readers today.
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The debut of an American original. Here is the accomplished first novel that catapulted F. ScottFitzgerald to literary fame-at the age of 23. It follows theeducation-intellectual, spiritual, and sexual-of young AmoryBlaine.
The dramatic concluding months of The Wars of the Rosesprovide the setting for Shakespeare’s incomparable saga of powerand intrigue. Under the editorial supervision of Jonathan Bate and EricRasmussen, two of today’s most accomplished Shakespearean scholars,this Modern Library series incorporates definitive texts andauthoritative notes from William Shakespeare: CompleteWorks. Each play includes an Introduction as well as anoverview of Shakespeare’s theatrical career; commentary on past andcurrent productions based on interviews with leading directors,actors, and designers; scene-by-scene analysis; key facts about thework; a chronology of Shakespeare’s life and times; andblack-and-white illustrations. Ideal for students, theater professionals, and general readers,these modern and accessible editions set a new standard inShakespearean literature for the twenty-first century.
在线阅读本书 An immensely popular bestseller upon its publication in 1905, The House of Mirth was Edith Wharton’s first great novel.Set among the elegant brownstones of New York City and opulentcountry houses like gracious Bellomont on the Hudson, the novelcreates a satiric portrayal of what Wharton herself called “asociety of irresponsible pleasure-seekers” with a precisioncomparable to that of Proust. And her brilliant and complexcharacterization of the doomed Lily Bart, whose stunning beauty anddependence on marriage for economic survival reduce her to adecorative object, becomes an incisive commentary on the nature andstatus of women in that society. From her tragic attraction tobachelor lawyer Lawrence Selden to her desperate relationship withsocial-climbing Rosedale, Lily is all too much a product of theworld indicated by the title, a phrase taken from Ecclesiastes:“The heart of fools is in the house of mirth.” For it is Lily’svery specialness that threatens the elegance and f
Wrongfully imprisoned for fourteen years, Edmond Dantes escapesto the island of Monte Cristo. What awaits him there is a fortunein gold-and a new identity with which to persue his revenge andredemption.
Shakespeare became famous as a dazzling poet before most peopleeven knew that he wrote plays. His sonnets are the Englishlanguage's most extraordinary anatomy of love in all itsdimensions-desire and despair, longing and loss, adoration anddisgust. To read them is to confront morality and eternity in thesame breath. Produced under the editorial supervision of JonathanBate and Eric Rasmussen, two of today's most accomplishedShakespearean scholars, The Sonnets and Other Poems includes all ofShakespeare's sonnets, the long narrative poems "Venus and Adonis"and "The Rape of Lucrece," and several other shorter works.Incorporating definitive texts and authoritative notes from WilliamShakespeare: Complete Works, this unique volume also includes anexpanded Introduction by Jonathan Bate that places the poems inliterary and historical context and illuminates their relationshipto Shakespeare's dramatic writing. Also featured are key factsabout the individual selections; an index of the first lines of thesonnets; a chron
The translations, created through a fresh approach to theNorwegian original in tandem with a keen sense of Ibsen'stheatricallity and playability, have all been tested and refined inproductions at professional theaters. The translators have paid particular attention to threeaspects of Ibsen's technique: his wit and humor, his "supertext" -the web of rich allusions and references that he weaves in andaround his dialogue - and the bold theatricallity of the plays. Theresult is an Ibsen that sounds contemporary without being slangy orcolloquial - an Ibsen of strong ideas but also living characters -and surprisingly different from the image of the cold, forbidding"scold of the North" that we often associate with this giantwriter. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
The epic tale of Don Quixote and his faithful squire, SanchoPanza, and their picaresque adventures in the world of seventeenthcentury Spain, form the basis of one of the great treasures ofWestern literature - a book that is both a hilarious satire of thechivalric code and a biting portrayal of an age in which nobilitycan be a form of madness. This brand-new, thoroughly moderntranslation, and the extensive introduction and footnotes, makeCervantes' masterpiece more delightful and accessible to Englishreaders than ever before.
Here are Masters's dramatic monologues written in free verseabout a fictional Midwestern town called Spoon River. The dead,"sleeping on the hill" in their village cemetery, awaken to tellthe truth about their lives, toppling the myth of the moralsuperiority of small-town life.
"In Rouse's pages, Soctrates' strength of mind, his dedicationto the philosophical truth, are borne in on the modern reader withsomething of the power that impressed and disturbed the ancientGreeks."--Time "There has been no adequate translation of Plato sinceJowett...and I think Rouse has done it." --Dudley Fitts * Rouse is one of the world's most respected classical scholars--This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.
After King Shahryar had his wife killed for cheating, he beganto corrupt-then kill-one virgin a night, as revenge on womankind.Then he meets Scheherazade, who, night after night, saves her ownlife by telling him fantastical tales of genies, wishes, terror,and passion.
This 19th-century author created "some of the most colorful andhaunting fiction of his century" ( Kirkus Reviews ). And withhis special blend of comedy, social commentary, and fantasy, hepaved the way for Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky.
Though this great tragedy of unsurpassed intensity and emotionis played out against Renaissance splendor, its story of the doomedmarriage of a Venetian senator’s daughter, Desdemona, to a Moorishgeneral, Othello, is especially relevant to modern audiences. Thedifferences in race and background create an initial tension thatallows the horrifyingly envious villain Iago methodically topromote the “green-eyed monster” jealousy, until, in one of themost deeply moving scenes in theatrical history, the noble Moordestroys the woman he loves–only to discover too late that she wasinnocent. Each Edition Includes: · Comprehensive explanatory notes · Vivid introductions and the most up-to-date scholarship · Clear, modernized spelling and punctuation, enablingcontemporary readers to understand the Elizabethan English · Completely updated, detailed bibliographies and performancehistories · An interpretive essay on film adaptations of the play, alongwith an extensive fi
Troilus and Cressida is perhaps Shakespeare's mostphilosophical play, and its preoccupation with war, sex, and timehas seemed peculiarly relevant since the First World War. Fineproductions have demonstrated the play's theatrical power, andcritics have explored and illuminated its ideas and itsexceptionally complex language. Kenneth Muir, in his introduction,sets the play in its historical context, discusses its odd careerin the theatre, examines Shakespeare's handling of his multiplesources, and assesses the contribution of interpretative criticismto a deeper understanding of this sombre examination of a fallenworld. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailableedition of this title.
The series of which this title forms a part examines the wayin which all the major editions of Shakespeare's plays have beeninterpolated by a series of editors who have been systematicallychanging Shakespeare's texts from the 18th century onwards. Thistext looks at "Measure for Measure". --This text refers to anout of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Before the huge crowd that packed the cathedral square, LaEsmeralda stood between two executioners. Suddenly Quasimodo, thehunchback of Notre Dame, rushed at the executioners and felled themwith his enormous fists. He snatched the gypsy girl in one arm andran with her into the church. A moment later he appeared at the topof the bell tower. Holding the girl above his head, he showed hertriumphantly to all of Paris while his thunderous voice roaredsavagely to the sky: "Sanctuary Sanctuary Sanctuary " Set amid theriot, intrigue, and pageantry of medieval Paris, Victor Hugo'smasterful tale of heroism and adventure has been a perennialfavorite since its first publication in 1831 and remains one of themost thrilling stories of all time.
Spine-tingling and entertaining, "The Invisible Man" is ascience fiction classic-and a penetrating, unflinching look intothe heart of human nature. To its author, H. G. Wells, the novelwas as compelling as "a good gripping dream." But to generations ofreaders, the terrible and evil experiment of the dementedscientist, Griffin, has conveyed a chilling nightmare of believablehorror. An atmosphere of ever-increasing suspense begins with thearrival of a mysterious stranger at an English village inn andbuilds relentlessly to the stark terror of a victim pursued by amaniacal invisible man. The result is a masterwork: a dazzlingdisplay of the brilliant imagination, psychological insight, andliterary craftsmanship that made H. G. Wells one of the mostinfluential writers of his time.
Known as a "feast of language," this is one of the bard'searliest comedies, in which four bachelors who have dedicatedthemselves to chastity and scholarly pursuits soon encounter thewomen of their dreams.
This superb translation of Death in Venice and six otherstories by Thomas Mann is a tour de force, deserving to be thedefinitive text for English-speaking readers. These seven storiesrepresent Mann's early writing career and a level of literaryquality Mann himself despaired of ever again matching. In thesestories he began to grapple with themes that were to recurthroughout his work. In" Little Herr Friedemann, " a character'scarefully structured way of life is suddenly threatened by anunexpected sexual passion. In "Gladius Dei, " puritanical intellectclashes with beauty. In "Tristan, " Mann presents an ironic andcomic account of the tension between an artist and bourgeoissociety. All seven of these stories are accomplished and memorable,but it is Death in Venice that truly forms the centerpiece of thecollection. The themes that Mann weaves through the shorter piecescome to a climax in this stunning novella, one of the mosthauntingly magnificent tales of art and self-destruction everwritten.
A passionate young woman, her cowardly lover, and her aging,vengeful husband are the central characters in this stark drama ofthe conflict between passion and convention in the harsh world ofseventeenth-century Boston. Tremendously moving and rich inpsychological insight, this tragic novel of sin and redemptionaddresses our Puritan past. Depicting the struggle between mind andheart, Hawthorne fashioned a masterpiece of American fiction.
A continuation of the major series of individualShakespeare plays from the world renowned Royal ShakespeareCompany, edited by two brilliant, younger generation Shakespeareanscholars Jonathan Bate and EricRasmussen Incorporating definitive text andcutting-edge notes from William Shakespeare: CompleteWorks -the first authoritative, modernized edition ofShakespeare's First Folio in more than 300 years-this remarkableseries of individual plays combines Jonathan Bate's insightfulcritical analysis with Eric Rasmussen's textual expertise.
