This fascinating new study by Mark Asquith offers an original approach to Hardy's art as a novelist and entirely new readings of certain musical scenes in Hardy's works. Asquith utilizes a rich seam of original archival research (both scientific and musicological), which will be of use to all Hardy scholars, and discusses a range of Hardy's major works in relation to musical metaphors - from early fiction The Poor Man and the Lady to later major works Jude the Obscure, Far From the Madding Crowd, the Mayor of Casterbridge .
This guide to Annie Proulx's novel Postcards and her short story Brokeback Mountain features a biography of the author, a full-length analysis of the texts, a summary of the their popular and critical reception, a discussion of the recent film adaptation of Brokeback Mountain and its reception and a great deal more. If you are studying either text, reading them for your book club, or if you simply want to know more, you'll find this guide informative, intelligent, and helpful.
Annie Proulx is one of the most provocative and stylistically innovative writers in America today. She is at her best in the short story format, and the best of these are to be found in her Wyoming trilogy, in which she turns her eye on America's West-both past and present. Yet despite the vast amount of print expended reviewing her books, there has been nothing published on the Wyoming Stories. The Lost Frontier fills this critical void by offering a detailed examination of the key stories in the trilogy: Close Range (1999), Bad Dirt (2004), Fine Just the Way it Is (2008). The chapters are arranged according to western archetypes-the Pioneer, Rancher, Cowboy, Indian, and, arguably, the most important character of them all in Proulx's fiction: Landscape. The Lost Frontier offers students a clear sense of the novelist's early life and work, her stylistic influences and the characteristics of her fiction and an understanding of where the Wyoming Stories, and Annie Proulx's work as a whole, fits into traditional and contemporary writing about the American West.
Succint coverage of all the key aspects of the set text, including contexts, interpretations and controversies. This guide includes an outline of the exam board specifications and their assessment objectives, with a Q&A section with various types of questions, plans, mark schemes and answers.
Lost in the New West investigates a group of writers John Williams, Cormac McCarthy, Annie Proulx and Thomas McGuane who have sought to explore the tensions inherent to the Western, where the distinctions between old and new, myth and reality, authenticity and sentimentality are frequently blurred. Collectively these authors demonstrate a deep-seated attachment to the landscape, people and values of the West and offer a critical appraisal of the dialogue between the contemporary West and its legacy. Mark Asquith draws attention to the idealistic young men at the center of such works as Williams's Butcher's Crossing (1960), McCarthy's Blood Meridian (1985) and Border Trilogy, Proulx's Wyoming stories and McGuane's Deadrock novels. For each writer, these characters struggle to come to terms with the difference between the suspect mythology of the West that shapes their identity and the reality that surrounds them. They are, in short, lost in the new West.
Enable students to achieve their best grade in AS/A-level English Literature with this year-round course companion; designed to instil in-depth textual understanding as students read, analyse and revise Tess of the D'Urbervilles throughout the course. This Study and Revise guide: - Increases students' knowledge of Tess of the D'Urbervilles as they progress through the detailed commentary and contextual information written by experienced teachers and examiners - Develops understanding of characterisation, themes, form, structure and language, equipping students with a rich bank of textual examples to enhance their coursework and exam responses - Builds critical and analytical skills through challenging, thought-provoking questions and tasks that encourage students to form their own personal responses to the text - Extends learning and prepares students for higher-level study by introducing critical viewpoints, comparative references to other literary works and suggestions for independent research - Helps students maximise their exam potential using clear explanations of the Assessment Objectives, sample student answers and examiner insights - Improves students' extended writing techniques through targeted advice on planning and structuring a successful essay
John Williams, as the New Yorker noted recently, was author of ‘the greatest American novel you’ve have never heard of.’ He died in obscurity, but has enjoyed a literary renaissance due to the worldwide critical acclaim greeting recent reissues of his major novel Butcher’s Crossing, Augustus and particularly Stoner. With films of both Butcher’s Crossing and Stoner already in pre-production it is clear that Williams’ star is in the ascendant. This book is designed to offer a critical introduction to his writing. It is developed through solid scholarly research but is structured and written in a clear and direct style that makes it accessible for academics, students and general readers alike. It offers a clear sense of the novelist’s early life and work, which includes an evaluation of his academic life (he was a professor at the University of Denver) and neglected poetry. The bulk of the book is given over to readings of the three major novels: they offer an appreciation of Williams’ literary craft combined with an assessment of literary and cultural influences and an overview of contemporary critical reactions. Few authors have written such disparate works in terms of subject matter, genre and style, however they are all united in their effort to grapple with deeper existential questions. For whether his characters are riding the Western plains, speaking in the Roman Forum or reading in a dusty library, they all demonstrate Williams’ preoccupation with the ways in which youthful hopes and a strong sense of who we are shaped by life’s accidents. How we make the life meaningful, learn to love another human being, confront failure – these are the well points of Williams’ understated tragedies. Unfortunately, such meditations are rarely fashionable; but neither are they ever unfashionable. George Orwell observed that the only true critic is time: this study makes clear that Williams’ time has come.
Exam Board: AQA A, AQA B, OCR Level: AS/A-level Subject: English literature First teaching: September 2015 First exams: Summer 2016 Enable students to achieve their best grade in AS/A-level English Literature with this year-round course companion; designed to instil in-depth textual understanding as students read, analyse and revise Tess of the D'Urbervilles throughout the course. This Study and Revise guide: - Increases students' knowledge of Tess of the D'Urbervilles as they progress through the detailed commentary and contextual information written by experienced teachers and examiners - Develops understanding of characterisation, themes, form, structure and language, equipping students with a rich bank of textual examples to enhance their coursework and exam responses - Builds critical and analytical skills through challenging, thought-provoking questions and tasks that encourage students to form their own personal responses to the text - Extends learning and prepares students for higher-level study by introducing critical viewpoints, comparative references to other literary works and suggestions for independent research - Helps students maximise their exam potential using clear explanations of the Assessment Objectives, sample student answers and examiner insights - Improves students' extended writing techniques through targeted advice on planning and structuring a successful essay
Mark Vickers has given us a wonderful new reference book of the beliefs (and non-beliefs) of 20th-century PMs - a meaty volume that can also be consumed as a social history of British religion.' THE TELEGRAPH 'This carefully researched and well-written study reveals the religious faith of our Prime Ministers, or lack of it, in vivid colours. Prepare to be shocked and surprised as the author lays bare their souls.' SIR ANTHONY SELDON Mark Vickers' acclaimed volume on the faith of the twentieth-century Prime Ministers casts a new perspective on these holders of the highest political office in the realm. While there are biographies aplenty on the 18 men and 1 woman who took up residence behind the famous black door, it is notable that that many of these works fail to reflect an important - sometimes the most important - aspect of the life of their subject. God in Number 10 rectifies this omission, offering intriguing insights into Margaret Thatcher's legendary 'Sermon on the Mound', Tony Blair's perception of Jesus as a modernizer, Arthur Balfour's recourse to spiritualism, Stanley Baldwin's mystical experiences, and Winston Churchill's involvement with astrology. The book considers the role of religion generally in the political classes of the period, the reasons for the declining influence of faith in the public forum, and the relationship between Church and State. The families of H. H. Asquith, Bonar Law, Ramsay MacDonald, Neville Chamberlain, Harold Macmillan, Alec Douglas-Home and Harold Wilson have all expressed their support for God in Number 10 and, where able, helped in the research, while John Major has assisted fully.
Protecting the Arctic explores some of the ways in which indigenous peoples have taken political action regarding Arctic environmental and sustainable development issues, and investigates the involvement of indigenous peoples in international environmental policy- making. Nuttall illustrates how indigenous peoples make claims that their own forms of resource management not only have relevance in an Arctic regional context, but provide models for the inclusion of indigenous values and environmental knowledge in the design, negotiation and implementation of global environmental policy.
This is a major new history of the British army during the Great War written by three leading military historians. Ian Beckett, Timothy Bowman and Mark Connelly survey operations on the Western Front and throughout the rest of the world as well as the army's social history, pre-war and wartime planning and strategy, the maintenance of discipline and morale and the lasting legacy of the First World War on the army's development. They assess the strengths and weaknesses of the army between 1914 and 1918, engaging with key debates around the adequacy of British generalship and whether or not there was a significant 'learning curve' in terms of the development of operational art during the course of the war. Their findings show how, despite limitations of initiative and innovation amongst the high command, the British army did succeed in developing the effective combined arms warfare necessary for victory in 1918.
The Fateful Year is the story of England in 1914. War with Germany, so often imagined and predicted, finally broke out when people were least prepared for it. Here, among a crowded cast of unforgettable characters, are suffragettes, armed with axes, and celebrity aviators thrilling spectators by looping the loop. With the coming of war, England is beset by spy hysteria and fears of invasion. Patriotic women hand out white feathers to men who have failed to rush to their country's defence. And as 1914 fades out, England prepares itself for the prospect of a war of long duration.
This second volume of the acclaimed Cambridge Biography of D. H. Lawrence covers the years 1912–22, the period in which Lawrence forged his reputation as one of the greatest and most controversial writers of the twentieth century. During this period Lawrence produced the trio of novels with which he was to revolutionise English fiction over the next decade. It was a painful process: Sons and Lovers was crudely cut by its publisher; The Rainbow was destroyed by court order; and Women in Love took almost three years to find a publisher. This 1996 biography tells the writing life too, tracing the illuminating relations between man and manuscript, without confusing life and art. Drawing on previously unseen information from the Cambridge Editions of the Letters and Works, and original research, fresh light is shed on questions of Lawrence's sexuality, health, quarrels and friendships, which have been more often gossiped or theorised about than scrupulously examined.
As the prospect of a hung Parliament looms large, ourpolitical protagonists can learn much from the politicsand personalities of the past. Mark Oaten's story ofcoalition government begins in the 1850s, with Disraelifighting for his political life and Queen Victoria'sbattle to find a Prime Minister from the Whigs andPeelites driving her ......
A concise history of each of the UK’s twentieth-century Prime Ministers, from Robert Gascoyne-Cecil to Tony Blair, featuring archival images and documents. This book gives an overview of each of the British Prime Ministers of the twentieth century, summarising their premierships, their policies, and the key events. It is lavishly illustrated with images of documents from The National Archives which give a fresh dimension to the study of the Prime Minister’s role, providing insights into their personalities and the pressures that Prime Ministers are subject to. Handwritten comments by Prime Ministers enable the reader to connect with the individual and how they felt at the time. There are dramatic episodes and examples of forthright reactions, but flashes of humour too.
FASCINATING' Daily Mail 'FULL OF AMAZING FACTS' The QI Elves Each of the United Kingdom's 124 postcode areas has a story to tell, an unexpected nugget to dust off and treasure. Mark Mason has embarked on a tour of the country, immersing himself in Britain's history on a roundabout journey from AB to ZE. On the lookout for interesting place names and unusual monuments, along the way he discovers what the Queen keeps in her handbag, why the Jack Russell has a white coat and how Jimi Hendrix got confused by the M1. At the same time Mason paints an affectionate portrait of Britain in the 21st century, from aggressive seagulls in Blackpool to 'seasoned' drinkers in Surrey. And his travels offer the perfect opportunity to delve into the history of the Royal Mail, complete with pillar boxes, posties and Penny Reds - plus Oscar Wilde's unconventional method of posting a letter. A playful mix of fact, anecdote and overheard conversation, MAIL OBSESSION pays homage to Britain's wonderful past and its curious present.
Amusing, charming, stimulating, urbane' - THE TIMES 'Revelatory' - GUARDIAN 'Restores Clive Bell vividly to life' - Lucasta Miller ______________ Clive Bell is perhaps better known today for being a Bloomsbury socialite and the husband of artist Vanessa Bell, sister to Virginia Woolf. Yet Bell was a highly important figure in his own right: an internationally renowned art critic who defended daring new forms of expression at a time when Britain was closed off to all things foreign. His groundbreaking book Art brazenly subverted the narratives of art history and cemented his status as the great interpreter of modern art. Bell was also an ardent pacifist and a touchstone for the Wildean values of individual freedoms, and his is a story that leads us into an extraordinary world of intertwined lives, loves and sexualities. For decades, Bell has been an obscure figure, refracted through the wealth of writing on Bloomsbury, but here Mark Hussey brings him to the fore, drawing on personal letters, archives and Bell's own extensive writing. Complete with a cast of famous characters, including Lytton Strachey, T. S. Eliot, Katherine Mansfield, Pablo Picasso and Jean Cocteau, Clive Bell and the Making of Modernism is a fascinating portrait of a man who became one of the pioneering voices in art of his era. Reclaiming Bell's stature among the makers of modernism, Hussey has given us a biography to muse and marvel over – a snapshot of a time and of a man who revelled in and encouraged the shock of the new. 'A book of real substance written with style and panache, copious fresh information and many insights' - Julian Bell
The common soldier’s savior, the standard-bearer of modern nursing, a pioneering social reformer: Florence Nightingale belongs to that select band of historical characters who are instantly recognizable. Home-schooled, bound for the life of an educated Victorian lady, Nightingale scandalized her family when she found her calling as a nurse, a thoroughly unsuitable profession for a woman of her class. As the “Lady with the Lamp,” ministering to the wounded and dying of the Crimean War, she offers an enduring image of sentimental appeal. Few individuals in their own lifetime have reached the level of fame and adulation attained by Nightingale as a result of her efforts. Fewer still have the power of continuing to inspire controversy in the way she does almost a century after her death. In this remarkable book, the first major biography of Florence Nightingale in more than fifty years, Mark Bostridge draws on a wealth of unpublished material, including previously unseen family papers, to throw new light on this extraordinary woman’s life and character. Disentangling elements of myth from the reality, Bostridge has written a vivid and immensely readable account of one of the most iconic figures in modern history.
With acquisition activity running into the trillions of dollars, it continues to be a favorite for corporate growth strategy, but creating shareholder value remains the most elusive outcome of these corporate strategies—after decades of research and billions of dollars paid in advisory fees, why do these major decisions continue to destroy value? Building on his groundbreaking research first cited in Business Week, Mark L. Sirower explains how companies often pay too much—and predictably never realize the promises of increased performance and competitiveness—in their quest to acquire other companies. Armed with extensive evidence, Sirower destroys the popular notion that the acquisition premium represents potential value. He provides the first formal and functional definition for synergy -- the specific increases in performance beyond those already expected for companies to achieve independently. Sirower's refreshing nuts-and-bolts analysis of the fundamentals behind acquisition performance cuts sharply through the existing folklore surrounding failed acquisitions, such as lack of "strategic fit" or corporate culture problems, and gives managers the tools to avoid predictable losses in acquisition decisions. Using several detailed examples of recent major acquisitions and through his masterful integration and extension of techniques from finance and business strategy, Sirower reveals: -The unique business gamble that acquisitions represent -The managerial challenges already embedded in current stock prices -The competitive conditions that must be met and the organizational cornerstones that must be in place for any possibility of synergy -The precise Required Performance Improvements (RPIs) implicitly embedded in acquisition premiums and the reasons why these RPIs normally dwarf realistic performance gains -The seductiveness and danger of sophisticated valuation models so often used by advisers The Synergy Trap is the first exposé of its kind to prove that the tendency of managers to succumb to the "up the ante" philosophy in acquisitions often leads to disastrous ends for their shareholders. Sirower shows that companies must meticulously plan—and account for huge uncertainties—before deciding to enter the acquisition game. To date, Sirower's work is the most comprehensive and rigorous, yet practical, analysis of the drivers of acquisition performance. This definitive book will become required reading for managers, corporate directors, consultants, investors, bankers, and academics involved in the mergers and acquisitions arena.
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