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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: Wordsworth and Coleridge Lyrical Ballads 1798
Title: Wordsworth and Coleridge Lyrical Ballads 1798 Authors: William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge Editor: W. J. B. Owen, Professor of English McMaster University Published: Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1969. Pages-180. This was the first collection of poems that Wordsworth and Coleridge put out. It was released in 1798. I got this book from my local library because I am interested in finding out more about the Lake poets. Therefore, this was not a random pick out of the hat. I have some meaning for reading and discussing this work. This essay will cover a brief biographical sketch of the two poets and the editor, and next a discussion of the editor’s portion, and then finally my impression of the poems contained therein. William Wordsworth was born April 7, 1770 in Cockermouth, Cumberland, England and died April 23, 1850 in Grasmere, Westmorland, England.[1] His mother died when he was eight, and his father five years later.[2] Before the age of thirteen , his father had him memorize “large portions” of Spenser, Shakespeare, and Milton.[3] He attended St. John’s College, Cambridge, in which he exhibited mediocre academic progress, and instead of striving for honors and fellowship, he settled with a pass…
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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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Book Review: Essays and Essay Writing by William M. Tanner
Title: Essays and Essay Writing: Based on Atlantic Monthly Models Editor: William M. Tanner Published: Boston: The Atlantic Monthly Press, 1918. Pages-307. This is embarrassing. I just recently bought this book at a used book store. I put it in my stack to read, my current stack to read that is. There have been many stacks that went unread and then eventually became assimilated into the ever-growing collection that is my home library. I had just finished reading one of the books in my “new” stack when I looked at this book and the spine. It seemed very familiar to me. Had I purchased this book before? Did another copy lurk on my shelves somewhere? I went exploring. Not only did I find another copy, I found two. I now have three copies of this book and I have never read it. Well, time to fix that! I will have to read it, see if it is any good, and then give a couple copies away to someone whom I think will enjoy it. That, my friends, is how this book came to be next in my review list. What is an essay? Tanner explains it is difficult to understand…
