Историческая литература
Различные книги в жанре Историческая литератураChina
This highly readable history of the world's most populous country dates from the late nineteenth century, when its author, John Henry Gray, served as the Archdeacon of Hong Kong. His two-volume study, here bound into a single volume, begins with the earliest known legends of China as the «Middle Kingdom,» around which all lesser states gathered like satellites, and ranges forward to an intriguing series of portraits of the author's Chinese contemporaries.Subjects include the functions and powers of government; prisons and forms of punishment; religion, gods, and goddesses, and Confucian philosophy; marriage and divorce; the roles of servants and slaves; festivals, amusements, and sports; funerals; astrology and fortune-telling; and benevolent institutions. Commercial activities — agricultural techniques, tea and silk production, and maritime pursuits — also receive detailed and informative treatments.Evocative illustrations include images of fireworks and flying kits, opium smokers and Buddhist nuns, traditional fishing techniques, and numerous other scenes from daily life. Of immense value to Sinologists and historians, this insightful volume will appeal to anyone interested in China and Far Eastern cultures.
Concepts of Space
Although the concept of space is of fundamental importance in both physics and philosophy, until the publication of this book, the idea of space had never been treated in terms of its historical development. It remained for Dr. Jammer, noted scholar and historian of science, to trace the evolution of the idea of space in this comprehensive, thought-provoking study. The focus of the book is on physical, rather than metaphysical, ideas of space; however, philosophical or theological speculations are discussed when relevant. The author has also given special attention to the cultural settings in which the theories developed. Following a Foreword by Albert Einstein and an introductory chapter on the concept of space in antiquity, subsequent chapters consider Judaeo-Christian ideas about space, the emancipation of the space concept from Aristotelianism, Newton's concept of absolute space and the concept of space from the eighteenth century to the present. For this third edition, Dr. Jammer has contributed an extensive new chapter six, reviewing the numerous and profound changes in the philosophy of space since the publication of the second edition. An abundance of meticulously documented quotations from original sources and numerous bibliographic references make this an exceptionally well-documented book. It is essential reading for philosophers, physicists, and mathematicians, but even nonprofessional readers will find it accessible.
The King of Schnorrers
Author Israel Zangwill best typifed the comic spirit of London's Jewish ghetto by immortalizing the <I>schnorrer </I>(beggar) — in particular, the character of Manasseh Bueno Barzillai Azevedo da Costa, a Sephardic panhandler who developed begging into a fine art. The robust and often hilarious tale tells how Manasseh combines insolence with resourcefulness to reduce London's best-known philanthropist to a fish handler; how he reacts to his daughter's love for a socially inferior beggar; and how he manages to parlay her marriage into a life-time pension for himself from his synagogue. Brimming with wit and wisdom and widely regarded as one of the author's most enduring works, <I>The King of Schnorrers</I> is a literary gem offering hours of entertaining humor and satire.
Exploring the Colorado River
When geologist Powell and his party of explorers first assayed the Colorado in 1869, it was North America's longest stretch of uncharted river. This is the story of that three-month, thousand-mile excursion, told in the words of the men who negotiated and mapped the river, through their journals, accounts, and letters. Black-and-white illustrations.
Confederate Lives
The distinguished historian Gamaliel Bradford, Jr.–author of Lee, the American and other acclaimed Civil War biographies–offers portraits of eight key leaders of the Confederacy. Bradford's skills at compiling concise profiles are at their finest in these compelling sketches of prominent figures in the Southern Cause.Commanding officers include Joseph E. Johnston, the highest-ranking U.S. Army officer to resign and join the Confederacy; the war's most famous cavalryman, J. E. B. Stuart; Lee's «Old War Horse,» James Longstreet, who served from Manassas to Appomattox; P. G. T. Beauregard, winner of the nearly bloodless victory at Fort Sumter; and Rear Admiral Raphael Semmes, so successful in battle that he was charged at the war's end with treason and piracy. Confederate statesmen include U.S. Senator Judah P. Benjamin, appointed by Jefferson Davis as Confederate attorney general, secretary of war, and secretary of state; Vice-President of the Confederate States, Alexander H. Stephens; and Senator Robert Toombs, who evolved from conservative Unionist to ardent secessionist.The book concludes with the «high water mark» of the Confederacy at Gettysburg and examines the effects of that momentous battle. Previously available only in expensive, hard-to-find editions, this volume is a rare find for Civil War buffs.
The Wit and Wisdom of Gandhi
Assembled with skill and sensitivity by social activist Homer A. Jack, this selection of brief and incisive quotations range from religion and theology, personal and social ethics, service, and international and political affairs, to the family, education, culture, Indian problems, and Gandhi's most original concept, satyagraha — group nonviolent direct action.
The Wit and Humor of Oscar Wilde
More than 1000 ripostes, paradoxes, and epigrams on sin, society, genius, wealth, men, women, religion, America, education, and smoking: «Work is the curse of the drinking classes,» «I can resist everything except temptation,» etcetera. Also excerpts from his trial testimony, where the tragedy implicit in Wilde's humor is nowhere more vivid.
Yekl and the Imported Bridegroom and Other Stories of the New York Ghetto
"No American fiction of the year merits recognition more than this Russian's stories of Yiddish life. … [Mr. Cahan] is a humorist, and his humor does not spare the sordid and uncouth aspects of the character whose pathos he so tenderly reveals." — William Dean HowellsYekl (1896), the novel upon which the highly successful film Hester Street was based, was written by Abraham Cahan, editor of the prestigious Jewish Daily Forward for half a century. It is probably the first novel in English that had a New York East Side immigrant as its hero; reviewing it, Howells hailed Cahan as «a new star of realism.» The Imported Bridegroom and Other Stories came two years later.The Jews that Sholem Aleichem described in their little old-world shtetl had emigrated; other tale-tellers were needed to describe the Jewish experience in the tenements and garment factories of New York. Cahan was one of the first to write about them in English. His book gives a better picture than most works of non-fiction of what immigrant life was like at the turn of the century. Cahan clearly delineates the clash of cultures and shows the innumerable problems, crises and dilemmas of acculturations.In Yekl, the central problem derives from a social condition: the urgent desire of the hero to become a real American, to be less a «greenhorn»; but the play of events is around an emotional crisis; Yekl no longer loves the wife he left behind, who has now rejoined him in the new land, and who seems to him shockingly European.In The Imported Bridegroom, the issue is apparently religious, a clash between traditional faith and secularism; but we are left wondering whether philosophy has not become commingled with sociology. Other stories deal with sweatshop life, romance in the slums, a wedding in the ghetto.
Sir Nigel
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a prolific writer born in Scotland, who started out as a medical doctor and took an occupational detour that made him world-famous. While studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh, he augmented his income by writing stories — a pursuit that led to the creation of Sherlock Holmes, one of literature's best-loved detectives. Doyle also wrote many works of history and science fiction, plus plays and poetry. Set against the fourteenth-century war between England and France, Sir Nigel is an action-packed adventure classic, filled to the brim with history, conflict, chivalry, and a dash of romance.This illustrated epic, which the author calls «the most complete, satisfying, and ambitious thing I have ever done,» introduces young squire Nigel Loring as he leaves home to serve King Edward at the start of the Hundred Years' War. Though small of stature, Nigel possesses a «lion heart and the blood of a hundred soldiers thrilling in his veins» that propel him to accomplish heroic acts in his quest for knighthood. The star upon his path is his beloved Lady Mary, who waits for him to complete three courageous acts so he can win her hand in marriage. Faced with fierce combat, a desperate battle at sea, and a terrifying encounter with the Red Ferret that leaves him close to death, can Nigel fulfill his promise?
The River War
"Churchill's first major historical work is still considered one of his most riveting." — Library Journal"It's a great read." — The Washington ExaminerA story of heroism and glory that rivals any work of fiction, this instructive treatise on a Middle Eastern conflict was written by one of history's greatest figures. In The River War, Winston Churchill recounts a critical but often overlooked episode from the days when the British Empire was at the height of its power: the operations directed by Lord Kitchener of Khartoum on the Upper Nile from 1896 to 1899, which led to England's reconquest of the Egyptian Sudan.After the 1881 rebellion of the Mahdi had plunged the Sudan into chaos, British attempts to withdraw from the region climaxed in General Gordon's ill-fated attempt to rescue officials, soldiers, and Egyptian subjects from Khartoum. A decade later, the British government began its efforts in the pacification and restoration of the Sudan–a mission that succeeded within two years, at the final battle of Omdurman.Churchill was present at this decisive battle, and he wrote this book while he was still a young cavalry officer. In addition to the future statesman's views of the conflicts and the politics behind them, it shows how the River War altered the fates of England, Egypt, and the Arabian people of northeast Africa. Illustrated by 22 maps and plans, this treatise offers valuable insights into a historic clash of Western and Arabic cultures.