- Table View
- List View
Charles Darwin: Victorian Mythmaker
by A.N. WilsonA radical reappraisal of Charles Darwin from the bestselling author of Victoria: A Life.With the publication of On the Origin of Species, Charles Darwin—hailed as the man who "discovered evolution"—was propelled into the pantheon of great scientific thinkers, alongside Galileo, Copernicus, and Newton. Eminent writer A. N. Wilson challenges this long-held assumption. Contextualizing Darwin and his ideas, he offers a groundbreaking critical look at this revered figure in modern science.In this beautifully written, deeply erudite portrait, Wilson argues that Darwin was not an original scientific thinker, but a ruthless and determined self-promoter who did not credit the many great sages whose ideas he advanced in his book. Furthermore, Wilson contends that religion and Darwinism have much more in common than it would seem, for the acceptance of Darwin's theory involves a pretty significant leap of faith.Armed with an extraordinary breadth of knowledge, Wilson explores how Darwin and his theory were very much a product of their place and time. The "Survival of the Fittest" was really the Survival of Middle Class families like the Darwins—members of a relatively new economic strata who benefited from the rising Industrial Revolution at the expense of the working classes. Following Darwin’s theory, the wretched state of the poor was an outcome of nature, not the greed and neglect of the moneyed classes. In a paradigm-shifting conclusion, Wilson suggests that it remains to be seen, as this class dies out, whether the Darwinian idea will survive, or whether it, like other Victorian fads, will become a footnote in our intellectual history.Brilliant, daring, and ambitious, Charles Darwin explores this legendary man as never before, and challenges us to reconsider our understanding of both Darwin and modern science itself.
Charles Darwin and the Voyage of the Beagle
by Ruth AshbyIn 1831, young adventurer and nature enthusiast Charles Darwin set sail on a remarkable five-year voyage that changed the study of biology forever.Award-winning author Ruth Ashby shares the story of Darwin's famous journey aboard the British navy ship, the Beagle, which led to the development of his theories of evolution and natural selection.This lively account follows the naturalist's exciting trip around the world—through seasickness, a life-threatening illness, and even an earthquake—as he explores South America, the Cape Verde Islands, Tahiti, and the Galapagos Islands. During his travels, Darwin meets Indigenous peoples and carefully collects and catalogs plants, fossils, birds, mammals, and insects. Darwin's observations of the distribution and diversity of plant and animal life ultimately leads to the development of his theories on evolution.Readers will be inspired by Darwin's transformation from talented but mediocre schoolboy into a remarkable scientist as they read about the revolutionary voyage that forever changed the world of biology.
Charles Darwin's Around The World Adventure
by Jennifer ThermesIn 1831, Charles Darwin embarked on his first voyage. Though he was a scientist by profession, he was an explorer at heart. While journeying around South America for the first time aboard a ninety-foot-long ship named the Beagle, Charles collected insets, dug up bones, galloped with gauchos, encountered volcanoes and earthquakes, and even ate armadillo for breakfast! The discoveries he made during this adventure would later inspire ideas that changed how we see the world. <p><p> Complete with mesmerizing map work that charts Darwin's thrilling five-year voyage, as well as "Fun Facts" and more, Charles Darwin's Around-the-World Adventure captures the beauty and mystery of nature with wide-eyed wonder.
Charles de Gaulle: A Biography
by Don CookFrom one of America&’s longest-serving foreign correspondents, a biography of France&’s controversial politician and statesman. The first major biography of Charles de Gaulle written from an American perspective, this book offers a compelling assessment of the French army officer, politician, and statesman. Author Don Cook, former bureau chief for the Los Angeles Times, delineates de Gaulle&’s obsession with power and how the military man rose to leadership in the years following the fall of France during the Second World War. Recounting de Gaulle&’s triumphant quest to find dignity and independence for France, Cook masterfully brings to life one of Europe&’s most influential leaders of the twentieth century.
Charles De Gaulle and the Media: Leadership, TV and the Birth of the Fifth Republic (French Politics, Society and Culture)
by Riccardo BrizziThis book explores Charles De Gaulle's use and strict control of television between 1958 and 1969, highlighting the association between charismatic power and television with regards to legitimizing the Gaullist leadership and determining an evolution towards presidentialism during the Fifth Republic. A protagonist of European political history of the twentieth century, Charles de Gaulle was a pioneer in the use of mass media: in the Second World War he had earned the nickname of G#65533;n#65533;ral-micro due to his reliance on radio communication; in 1958 he then started an substantive and fruitful use of television, which some of his opponents labelled as 'telecracy'. From difficult beginnings, where he followed the advice of publicity and communication experts, through his masterful TV appearances during the dramatic moments of the Algerian War, to the presidential campaign of 1965 and the crisis of May 1968, the author paints a compelling fresco of de Gaulle as the first TV leader in contemporary European history. The book will appeal to students and scholars interested in the fields of French politics, political communication and political leadership.
Charles de Salaberry: Soldier of the Empire, Defender of Quebec
by J. Patrick WohlerCharles de Salaberry (1778-1829) was a brilliant military figure who played a vital role in the War of 1812. A French-Canadian, he attained both rank and honour in the British army. He was a hero of Chateauguay and instrumental in the formation of the Canadian Voltigeurs and a respected advocate of French-Canadian rights. This book paints a vivid picture of a man whose pride and honour were part of an ancient family tradition, whose accomplishments were unique in the history of Lower Canada.
Charles Dickens: Part One
by G. K. ChestertonA critical study of Dickens, intended "as a general justification of that author, and of the whole of the gigantesque English humour of which he was the last and not the least gigantic survival."
Charles Dickens: Part Two
by G. K. ChestertonA critical study of Dickens, intended "as a general justification of that author, and of the whole of the gigantesque English humour of which he was the last and not the least gigantic survival."
Charles Dickens: Places & Objects of Interest
by Paul KendallFew writers have had a greater impact upon British society than Charles Dickens. His stories, and, in particular, his many memorable characters, highlighted the life of the forgotten poor and disadvantaged within society at a time when Britain was the leading economic and political power in the world. Dickens’ portrayal of the poor, such as Oliver Twist daring to ask for more food in the parish workhouse, and Bob Cratchit struggling to provide for his family at Christmas, roused much sympathy and an understanding of the poor and the conditions in which they lived. This led to many people founding orphanages, establishing schools to educate the underprivileged, or to set up hospitals for those who could not afford medical treatment – one such was Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital where one of its wards was named after the great writer. Little wonder, then, that his legacy can be found across the UK. From the buildings where he lived, the inns and hotels he frequented, the streets and towns which formed the backdrop to his novels and short stories, to the places where he gave readings or performed his own amateur dramatic productions to raise funds for his philanthropic causes. Dickensian memorabilia also abound, including his original manuscripts to his famous works and letters to his wife. Many of these have been woven in a single volume which transports the reader magically through stories and images into the Dickensian world of Victorian Britain.
Charles Dickens (LIVES #4)
by Jane SmileySuperb, highly accessible biography of one of the giants of English literature by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A THOUSAND ACRES'Engaging and stimulating' Simon Callow'Jane Smiley, in her admirable contribution to Weidenfeld's series of short biographies, deals briskly with Dickens's career and works, and treats with sympathy and sense his relations with the women in his life' LITERARY REVIEWFrom a bitter and poverty-stricken childhood to a career as the most acclaimed and best loved writer in the English-speaking world, Charles Dickens had a life as full of incident as any of those he created in his novels of life in Victorian England. The enormous quantity of work, his public readings and his difficult relationships has made him a figure of enduring fascination. In this biography Jane Smiley reveals Charles Dickens as his contemporaries would have done, getting to know him more intimately than ever before. At the same time Smiley offers interpretations of almost all of Dickens' major works, showing how 'his novels shaped his life as much as his life shaped his novels'.
Charles Dickens: A Life
by Jane SmileyWith the delectable wit, unforgettable characters, and challenging themes that have won her a Pulitzer Prize and national bestseller status, Jane Smiley naturally finds a kindred spirit in the author of classics such as Great Expectations and A Christmas Carol. As ""his novels shaped his life as much as his life shaped his novels,"" Smiley's Charles Dickens is at once a sensitive profile of the great master and a fascinating meditation on the writing life. Smiley evokes Dickens as he might have seemed to his contemporaries: convivial, astute, boundlessly energetic-and lionized. As she makes clear, Dickens not only led the action-packed life of a prolific writer, editor, and family man but, balancing the artistic and the commercial in his work, he also consciously sustained his status as one of the first modern ""celebrities. "" Charles Dickens offers brilliant interpretations of almost all the major works, an exploration of his narrative techniques and his innovative voice and themes, and a reflection on how his richly varied lower-class cameos sprang from an experience and passion more personal than his public knew. Smiley's own ""dem
Charles Dickens: La vida del mejor escritor inglés, doscientos años después de su nacimiento, se
by Claire TomalinLa tumultuosa vida del mejor novelista inglés, maravillosamente escrita por la gran biógrafa Claire Tomalin. Con grabados, tres cuadernillos de fotos y mapas de la época. Como cualquiera de sus héroes de novela Charles Dickens sufrió hasta la saciedad. Nacido en una modesta familia de clase media, su vida dio un vuelco cuando encarcelaron a su padre y tuvo que ponerse a trabajar en una fábrica. Este hecho le sirvió para agudizar su visión de lo absurdo, de lo trágico de la vida en Londres. Periodista incisivo, padre de diez hijos, incansable paseante y viajero, defensor de las libertades sociales y por encima de todo... novelista, Charles Dickens fue un genio. . La prosa novelística de la biógrafa Claire Tomalin, profusamente documentada, nos ofrece en Charles Dickens el retrato de un escritor heroico y virtuoso, un hombre al mismo tiempo contradictorio y ruin en el bicentenario de su nacimiento. Reseñas:«Este libro es una biografía magnífica sobre un gran escritor...»William Boyd, The Observer «Perfecta en cada uno de los detalles históricos y perspicaz en las novelas, la magistral biografía de Claire Tomalin es enormemente valiosa por la visión que nos da del hombre más que del escritor.»The Guardian «Magistral.»The Telegraph «La cantidad de premios que tiene dan fe de su habilidad no sólo para retratar vidas sino también para hacer que los autores sobre los que habla cobren vida.»The Literary Review «Monumental.»The Times «Claire Tomalin tiene la rara habilidad de entretejer la capacidad de contar con la rigurosidad. Como biógrafa es inimitable.»The Independent «Compré este libro porque soy una seguidora incondicional de Dickens y este libro ofrece todo lo que una buena biografía debe contener.»Julia L. Simpsonurrutia, Amazon «Si nunca has leído nada sobre Dickens esta obra es la mejor manera de empezar.»Curtcon, Amazon «Desde el primer momento pensé que éste iba a ser un buen libro, bien documentado. No quería que terminase el libro porque me sentía muy unida a él, a su familia y a su historia. ¡Qué hombre tan extraordinario!»C. M. Mills, Amazon ***Mejor biografía según The Galaxy Awards 2011
Charles Dickens
by Claire TomalinCharles Dickens was a phenomenon: a hardworking journalist, the father of ten children, a tireless walker and traveller, a supporter of liberal social causes, but most of all a great novelist - the creator of characters who live immortally in the English imagination. From unpromising beginnings, he rose to scale all the social and literary heights, when he died, the world mourned, and he was buried - against his wishes - in Westminster Abbey. Yet the brilliance concealed a divided character: a republican, he disliked America; sentimental about the family in his writings, he took up passionately with a young actress; usually generous, he cut off his impoverished children. Claire Tomalin paints an unforgettable portrait of Dickens, capturing brilliantly the complex character of this great genius.
Charles Dickens and the Great Theatre of the World
by Simon CallowAcclaimed actor and writer Simon Callow offers a fresh perspective on one of the greatest novelists in the English language, Charles Dickens, in this lively, colorful biography. Dickens was one of the first true celebrity authors. Thousands of fans in Britain and America eagerly awaited each new installment of his stories and flocked to see him on his legendary speaking tours. Not only did he create an incredible cast of characters on the page, but he was also a dazzling mimic and storyteller, and he wrote, stage-managed, and acted in plays for the public. Throughout his life, from his childhood performances in pubs to his legendarily powerful reading tours, Dickens was fanatical about the stage. Callow reveals Dickens's genius on and off the page and offers a compelling insight into a life that was driven as much by performance and showmanship as by literature.
Charles Dickens and the House of Fallen Women
by Jenny HartleyAn account of Charles Dickens's work with destitute girls and young women in mid-nineteenth century London. With support from the millionairess Angela Burdett Coutts, he established a "safe" house for young women in Shepherd's Bush where they were taken from lives of prostitution, crime and poverty and trained for useful employment and after one year they would be sent to such places as Australia, South Africa and other British colonies. Jenny Hartley is Professor of Literature at Roehampton University. She is the author of The Reading Groups Book (2002) and two books on women's writing from the Second World War.
Charles Dickens and the Street Children of London
by Andrea Warren Andrea WarrenProvoked by the horrors he saw every day, Charles Dickens wrote novels that were originally intended as instruments for social change—to save his country&’s children.Charles Dickens is best known for his contributions to the world of literature, but during his young life, Dickens witnessed terrible things that stayed with him: families starving in doorways, babies being &“dropped&” on streets by mothers too poor to care for them, and a stunning lack of compassion from the upper class. After his family went into debt and he found himself working at a shoe-polish factory, Dickens soon realized that the members of the lower class were no different than he, and, even worse, they were given no chance to better themselves. It was then that he decided to use his greatest talent, his writing ability, to tell the stories of those who had no voice.In this book, award-winning author Andrea Warren takes readers on a journey into the workhouses, slums, factories, and schools of Victorian England, and into the world of a beloved writer who used his pen to do battle on behalf of the poor, becoming one of the greatest reformers of his or any age.
Charles Dickens as an Agent of Change
Sixteen scholars from across the globe come together in Charles Dickens as an Agent of Change to show how Dickens was (and still is) the consummate change agent. His works, bursting with restless energy in the Inimitable's protean style, registered and commented on the ongoing changes in the Victorian world while the Victorians' fictional and factional worlds kept (and keep) changing. The essays from notable Dickens scholars—Malcolm Andrews, Matthias Bauer, Joel J. Brattin, Doris Feldmann, Herbert Foltinek, Robert Heaman, Michael Hollington, Bert Hornback, Norbert Lennartz, Chris Louttit, Jerome Meckier, Nancy Aycock Metz, David Paroissien, Christopher Pittard, and Robert Tracy—suggest the many ways in which the notion of change has found entry into and is negotiated in Dickens' works through four aspects: social change, political and ideological change, literary change, and cultural change. An afterword by the late Edgar Rosenberg adds a personal account of how Dickens changed the life of one eminent Dickensian.
Charles Dickens in Love: A Biography
by Robert GarnettIn celebration of the bicentennial of Charles Dickens's birth, here is Dickens as you have never seen him before: an intimate and engaging portrait of the great author and the women he loved."To conceal anything from those to whom I am attached, is not in my nature. I can never close my lips whereI have opened my heart." --Charles DickensWhen Charles Dickens died in 1870 he was the best-known man in the English-speaking world--the preeminent Victorian celebrity, universally mourned as both a noble spirit and the greatest of novelists. Yet when the first person named in his will turned out to be an unknown woman named Ellen Ternan, only a handful of people had any idea who she was. Of his romance with Ellen, Dickens had written, "it belongs to my life and probably will only die out of the same with the proprietor," and so it was--until his death she remained the most important person in his life.She was not the first woman who had fired his imagination. As a young man he had fallen deeply in love with a woman who "pervaded every chink and crevice" of his mind for three years, Maria Beadnell, and when she eventually jilted him he vowed that "I never can love any human creature but yourself." A few years later he was stunned by the sudden death of his young sister-in-law, Mary Scott Hogarth, and worshiped her memory for the rest of his life. "I solemnly believe that so perfect a creature never breathed," he declared, and when he died over thirty years later he was still wearing her ring.Charles Dickens has no rival as the most fertile creative imagination since William Shakespeare, and no one influenced his imagination more powerfully than these three women, his muses and teachers in the school of love. Using hundreds of primary sources, Charles Dickens in Love narrates the story of the most intense romances of Dickens's life and shows how his novels both testify to his own strongest affections and serve as memorials to the young women he loved all too well, if not always wisely.
Charles Dickens in Love
by Robert GarnettUsing hundreds of primary sources, Charles Dickens in Love narrates the story of the most intense romances of Charles Dickens' life and shows how his novels both testify to his own strongest affections and serve as memorials to the young women he loved all too well, if not always wisely. When Charles Dickens died in 1870, he was the best-known man in the English-speaking world - the preeminent Victorian celebrity, universally mourned as both a noble spirit and the greatest of novelists. Yet, the first person named in his will was an unknown woman named Ellen Ternan - only a handful of people had any idea who she was. Of his romance with Ellen, Dickens had written, "it belongs to my life and probably will only die out of the same with the proprietor," and so it was. She remained the most important person in his life until his death. She was not the first woman who had fired his imagination. As a young man he had fallen deeply in love with a woman who "pervaded every chink and crevice" of his mind for three years, Maria Beadnell. When she eventually jilted him he vowed that "I never can love any human creature but yourself." A few years later he was stunned by the sudden death of his young sister-in-law, Mary Scott Hogarth, and worshiped her memory for the rest of his life. "I solemnly believe that so perfect a creature never breathed," he declared, and he died over thirty years later still wearing her ring. Charles Dickens has no rival as the most fertile creative imagination since William Shakespeare, and no one influenced his imagination more powerfully than these three women, his muses and teachers in the school of love.
Charles Drew: The Innovator Of The Blood Bank (Bright Minds)
by Aaron TalleyMeet the inventors and scientists of color who changed the world!Born in Washington, D.C., in 1904, Charles R. Drew was a Black surgeon and medical researcher. Known as the “Father of The Blood Bank,” he researched in the field of blood transfusions, and developed improved techniques for blood storage. Among his many accomplishments, he developed America’s first large-scale blood bank during World War II. It is time to remember how Charles R. Drew's inventions and his contributions changed our society… and our world!ABOUT THE SERIES:Many inventors and scientists of color have made incredible contributions to our modern life. Each volume in this much-needed new series will be devoted to the life and work of one of these inventors and scientists. With a vivid writing style that will use humor as one of its primary ingredients, and illustrated with a combination of real photos and pictures featuring graphic art, each title in this series will describe how these heroes of diverse backgrounds faced the challenges of their times, and how their inventions and contributions changed our society.
Charles-Edouard Brown-Séquard: The Biography of a Tormented Genius
by Louis-Cyril CelestinGenius and dilettantism often go hand in hand. Nowhere is this truer than in the life of Charles-Edouard Brown-Séquard, the bilingual physician and neurologist who succeeded Claude Bernard as the Chair of Experimental Medicine at the College de France in Paris after having practiced in Paris, London and in the USA, especially in Harvard. For most men, making one discovery of global importance would have sufficed to satisfy their curiosity and self-image. Not so Brown-Séquard. His explanation of the neurological disparity following the hemi-section of the spinal cord was a unique achievement that added his name to the syndrome and made him immortal. Yet, the demons of his mind tormented him in his endless search for medical truths and drove him to explore other phenomena, seeking to explain and remedy them. This unique biography shows for the first time the conflict between his professional and personal life, and should appeal to all students of medical history and psychology.
Charles Fort: Prophet of the Unexplained
by Damon KnightFrom the book: Charles Fort was convinced that there is a great deal going on in our universe which man has not as yet been able to explain. He was, of course, right. Fort amassed reports of events allegedly observed by humans around the world. Fort's books are full of reports of strange phenomena-such as those similar in every way to today's reports of flying saucers but centuries before they were called flying saucers. Boole gave scientists a powerful tool for attacking problems when the obvious approaches refused to yield informative results. Boole employed reductio ad absurdum. He exhausted all the impossibles and thereby isolated a "very probable" answer. Charles Fort, failing to gain the publishers'-and thereby society's-consideration of his positive theories, left world society with a Boolean-like confrontation of illogical events. Charles Fort as a man of true vision purposefully inverted the equations. By getting the publishers to publish the absurd, he proved his point that the publishers published only the absurd.
Charles Francis Adam 1807-1885
by Martin DubermanThis is Martin Duberman's biography of Charles Francis Adams (1807-1886), grandson of John Adams, son of John Quincy Adams and Louise Johnson. Charles Francis Adams served in the U.S. House of Representatives on behalf of Massachusetts from 1859 to 1861, just prior to the Civil War and was an envoy to the United Kingdom during and after that war. He was noted for his upright character, his participation along with Secretary Seward in treaty negotiations with England regarding financial damages to the North, and compiled the papers and wrote a biography of his grandfather. Duberman's book was first published in 1961 and then reissued by Stanford University in 1968. MARTIN DUBERMAN is Distinguished Professor of History, Emeritus, at City University of New York, where he founded and directed the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies. He is the author of numerous histories, biographies, memoirs, essays, plays, and novels, which include Cures: A Gay Man's Odyssey, Paul Robeson; Stonewall; Midlife Queer: Autobiography of a Decade, 1971-1981; Black Mountain: An Exploration in Community; The Worlds of Lincoln Kirstein; Jews/Queers/Germans; and more than a dozen others. His biography of Charles Francis Adams won the Bancroft Prize, and his coedited anthology Hidden from History: Reclaiming the Gay and Lesbian Past won two Lambda Literary Awards. He won a third Lambda Award for Hold Tight Gently: Michael Callen, Essex Hemphill, and the Battlefield of aids. Duberman received the 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Historical Association, as well as two honorary degrees: Doctor of Humane Letters from Amherst College, and Doctor of Letters from Columbia University. He was also a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award.
Charles: The Heart of a King
by Catherine MayerThe Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller'Breathtaking' The Times'[The book that] made headlines around the world.' IndependentThe former Prince of Wales has lived his whole life in the public eye, yet he remains an enigma. He was born to be king, but he aims much higher. A landmark publication, Charles: The Heart of a King reveals Charles in all his complexity: the passionate views that mean he will never be as remote and impartial as his mother; the compulsion to make a difference and the many and startling ways in which the Prince and now King of the United Kingdom and fifteen other realms has already made his mark.The book offers fresh and fascinating insights into the first marriage that did so much to define him and an assessment of his relationship with the woman he calls, with unintended accuracy, his 'dearest wife': Camilla, now Queen Consort. We see Charles as a father and a friend, a serious figure and a joker. Life at court turns out to be full of hidden dangers and unexpected comedy.Now, updated and revised with a new preface and two new chapters - covering details of Harry and Meghan's exit and its implications, the cash-for-honours scandal, Prince Andrew, and more - this significant study reveals a monarchy threatened and a man in sight of happiness yet still driven by anguish and a remarkable belief system, a charitable entrepreneur, activist, agitator and avatar of the Establishment who just as often tilts against it.Based on multiple interviews with his friends and courtiers, palace insiders and critics, and rare access to Charles himself, before his kingship, this biography explores his philanthropy and his compulsive interventionism, his faith, his significant impact on politics and the philosophy that means when he seeks harmony he sometimes creates controversy.Gripping, at times astonishing, often laugh-out-loud, this is a royal biography unlike any other.'A must-read ... this important book is nothing short of a manual to our future King's world-view' GQ'A sustained piece of higher journalism' Independent
Charles I: A Life of Religion, War and Treason
by Christopher HibbertWhen Charles Stuart was a young child, it seemed unlikely that he would survive, let alone become ruler of England and Scotland. Once shy and retiring, an awkward stutterer, he grew in stature and confidence under the guidance of the Duke of Buckingham; his marriage to Henrietta of Spain, originally planned to end the conflict between the two nations, became, after rocky beginnings, a true love match. Charles I is best remembered for having started the English Civil War in 1642 which led to his execution for treason, the end of the monarchy, and the establishment of a commonwealth until monarchy was restored in 1660. Hibbert's masterful biography re-creates the world of Charles I, his court, artistic patronage, and family life, while tracing the course of events that led to his execution for treason in 1649.