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Book Review, English 20th Century, Europe 18th Century, Europe 19th Century, History, My Ramblings, Social Commentary
Book Review: The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Eliot
The cornerstone of Kirk’s essay is that Edmund Burke (1729-1797) was the founder of Modern Conservatism. I have read two of Burke’s works, Speech on Conciliation with America (1775) and Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790). I found them both to be profound. Kirk takes up the conservative conversation starting with Burke and expounds upon it. He goes into depth explaining what he feels are the key points that Burke stressed and how these were continued in both the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
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Book Review: Justice by John Galsworthy
Title: Justice: A Tragedy in Four Acts Author: John Galsworthy Published: New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1910. Pages-109. Vice is a monster of so frightful mien, As, to be hated, needs but to be seen; Yet seen too oft, familiar with her face, We first endure, then pity, then embrace. Alexander Pope (1688 – 1744) An Essay on Man: Epistle II, Lines 217-220[1] John Galsworthy (1867-1933) was an English novelist and playwright. He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1932.[2] He studied law and was called to the bar in 1890.[3] Shortly afterwards, with a goal to specialize in marine law, he took a voyage around the world in which he met and befriended Joseph Conrad.[4] The Encyclopedia Britannica calls Galsworthy “A passionate partisan of liberal humanitarianism, he had little sympathy with the modern movement in the arts taking place around him. … He had, in short, no profound understanding of human nature, only a keen emotional feeling for the society in which he had himself been brought up and a sentimental esteem for the underdog.”[5] The article gave most of its attention to Galsworthy’s Forsyth Saga, but did have a short comment on this particular work; “Justice (1910),…
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Anatomy of a Boys’ Life Magazine from December 1966
I came across one of my uncle’s old Boys’ Life magazine in a box of old mementos. I took a gander through it and found some interesting points that I thought I should share with you all. The advertising is what struck me as most significant. In it there was an abundance of gun ads. Mind you, this magazine is targeted for boys from age 11-18. The physical size of the magazine is almost as big as our modern newspaper, being 10.375 inches wide and 13.25 inches tall compared to our Cincinnati Enquirer, which is 10.5 inches wide by 14.5 inches long. It was a monthly publication and sold for $0.25 a copy individually or $3.00 a year by subscription. The magazine consists of one hundred pages, including front and back cover. Inside the front cover is a Coca-Cola full-page ad with Santa Claus sitting at a small bureau with a glass bottle of Coke in his hands. In the small print above the ad is a notice, “America pauses to see “A Charlie Brown Christmas” on CBS-TV, December 11, 7:00-7:30 EST.” The magazine consists of: several articles by guest writers; regular features, such as Hitchin’ Rack, Hobby News, Gifts…
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Book Review: “Christopher North” A Memoir of John Wilson
Title: “Christopher North” A Memoir of John Wilson, Late Professor of Moral Philosophy in the University of Edinburgh, compiled from family papers and other sources by his daughter, Mrs. Gordon Author: Mrs. Gordon, Mary Wilson Gordon Published: New York: W. J. Widdleton, 1863. 484-pages. This book is a biography about a Man of Letters, John Wilson. The term is not really used much anymore. My Encyclopedia Britannica only has a few lines dedicated to him. Wikipedia has just a few paragraphs. However, after reading this book, and thinking about the man, his career, his family, and friends, perhaps it is not Wilson that has lost something by being lost to obscurity, but rather, our loss, a sign of our own decadence and self-centeredness. We, being society in general, tend to think and act like we are the end in itself. I believe we have a lot to learn by studying history and people of importance. How were they able to find and acknowledge the truths they encountered? What were the reasons why they became who they were? Who did they influence? What does this tell us about the human condition in general? In particular? How can we learn from past…
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Book Review: Life and Letters of Thomas Henry Huxley
Huxley, like many other great people, uses many literary references and was very well read. In all his education reform he stresses the need for men of science to have a good background in literature. He states, “Science and literature are not two things, but two sides of one thing.”
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Book Review: John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera and Other Eighteenth-Century Plays
Title: John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera and Other Eighteenth-Century Plays (Everyman’s Library 818 Poetry & Drama) Editor: John Hampden Published: London: J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1962. Hardcover 408-pages. This book is a natural segue from the last book I read, Garrick and His Circle. Hampden has selected seven plays that he says were “chosen as representative of the most important forms of eighteenth- century drama.” In his introduction, he states there are better plays that were left out of this selection, but these were chosen to help the reader understand the transition and development of the stage during this period. The plays are presented in chronological order as they were released on the stage. The Prologue written by Dr. Samuel Johnson and spoken by David Garrick at the reopening of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in 1747, is an excellent choice to open the presentation of the seven plays. I particularly love the line: “Ah! Let not Censure term our fate our choice; The stage but echoes back the publick voice; The drama’s laws, the drama’s patrons give, For we that live to please, must please to live.” In other words, we should not blame the actors and…
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Book Review: Garrick and His Circle
I would recommend it to someone who was already familiar with the time period and some of the major characters. I do not recommend it as a starting point to learn about Garrick or his circle, however, it is an excellent addendum to someone who has already started to learn about this period.
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Book Review: Thirty More Famous Stories Retold
Title: Thirty More Famous Stories Retold Author: James Baldwin (1841-1925) American editor and author Published: New York: American Book Company, 1905; Hardcover 235-pages. “Nearly all the stories are true, and there are not more than three or four that might not have happened. In every one there is something worth learning and remembering.” Preface by James Baldwin I enjoyed reading this book. It was refreshing and nostalgic. Didactic stories written for young readers with a moralistic bent. Baldwin covers the breadth of history with memorable stories that will instill in the reader a sense of virtue and a passion for history. I wish I had instilled upon my children to read more books like this and less of Goosebumps and what not. It makes me wonder if “as long as they’re reading it’s a good thing” is not really a true statement. What are they reading and how is it shaping them into the future man or woman they will become. Don’t get me wrong, I think my children have turned out great, despite my lack of good judgement as a parent. Baldwin tells us stories of Columbus, Balboa, Ponce de Leon, and Sir Francis Drake. Little anecdotes that make you…
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The Collapse of Superman by William Roscoe Thayer
Review of a political satire debunking the myth of the German Superman in 1918.
