English Now
Selected Papers from the 20th IAUPE Conference in Lund 2007
In August 2007, about 200 senior researchers in the field of English, language and literature, spent a week in Lund taking the temperature of their subject. Nearly 150 papers were presented in 19 conference sections. This volume contains a lively selection, chosen by the 37 Section Chairs as saying something about where research in the discipline is heading. Also included are the two plenary lectures about the state and future of English in the academy by Elizabeth Traugott (language) and Helen Vendler (literature).
A common feature unites this diverse collection: English literature and language as a vital concern for real people, all over the world and in the past as well as the present. Here ‘English’ reaffirms its human credentials, moving forward with fresh confidence and enthusiasm. (Lund Studies in English 112, ISBN 978-91-976935-0-9)
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The Brontës and Religion, hardback
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The Brontës and Education (paperback)
All the seven Brontë novels are concerned with education in both senses, that of upbringing as well as that of learning. The Brontë sisters all worked as teachers before they became published novelists. In spite of the prevalence of education in the sisters' lives and fiction, however, this is the first full-length book on the subject. Marianne Thormählen explores how their representations of fictional teachers and schools engage with the intense debates on education in the nineteenth century, drawing on a wealth of documentary evidence about educational theory and practice in the lifetime of the Brontës. This study offers much new information both about the Brontës and their books and about the most urgent issue in early-nineteenth-century British social politics: the education of the people, of all classes and both sexes.
The Brontës and Education, hardback
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Reviews so far
'Compelling and unique ... This thoroughly researched volume looks at ... contemporaneous education controversies. Summing up: highly recommended.' Choice '... writes with considerable panache and vigor. In this reviewer's experience the book makes a very enjoyable read not only for a scholar public but for a general audience as well'. www.bronteblog.blogspot.com. Read the whole review at http://bronteblog.blogspot.com/2007/07/bronts-and-education-review.html '... crisp, objective and lively ... Thormählen triumphs in the light she shines on the educational world in which the family lived ... This book is an exciting helpmate in the struggle to secure a firm understanding of factors that fed the Brontë sisters' imaginative development ...' Brontë Studies ''Thormählen's prose is lucid yet sophisticated, each paragraph redolent with pithy thoughts and new twists on familiar truths ... Thormählen guides us sure-footedly ... [the notes constitute] a veritable textbook on early nineteenth-century education ... [The Brontës and Education is] a deeply satisfying work that enriches our appreciation of the Brontës and their world." Modern Philology
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T. S. Eliot is felt by many to have been the poet of the twentieth century, and his famous The Waste Land is the best known poem of that century in English. Many people have found it hard to come to grips with, though, and reading Eliot remains a challenge.
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The Brontës in Context (paperback)
Edited by: Marianne Thormählen, Lunds Universitet, Sweden
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The Brontës in Context, hardback
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Reviews so far
'General readers will enjoy it as much as Brontë students and fans, and its careful avoidance of anything too topical or controversial will keep it fresh for years. Thormählen's high-quality contributors, assembly of reliable facts and data, pertinent commentary, maps, illustrations, splendid chronology and further reading lists make it everything that one could wish for.' Times Literary Supplement 'The high quality of scholarship in combination with the clarity of the jargon-free writing make it a book accessible to all. Those new to the Brontës will receive a solid introduction; those familiar with the Brontë story will be surprised by new information and fresh insights. Much of the knowledge one gains over the years from reading many disparate books is gathered together into this one volume, helping the reader to develop a coherent and comprehensive understanding of this literary family's life and historical contexts. I would recommend The Brontës in Context not only to those interested in the Brontës, but to anyone studying literature in the Victorian age. /---/ [It] will serve current and future generations of Brontë readers, students and scholars admirably; it will also prompt new avenues of study as readers delve deeper into the variety of issues that this volume covers. The Brontës in Context exemplifies the best writing, communicating not only information but also pleasure to the reader who enters its pages, ensuring that it will have a lasting contribution to make to the world of Brontë studies.' Brontë Studies 'Readers of The Brontës in Context will gain fresh insights into the writings of the sisters, and also how those writings relate to the concerns of their time and contribute to our understanding of the nineteenth-century mindset. Already my copy is getting thumb-marked, and I'm sure the book will be a valued handbook for years to come.' Emerald Insight
Rethinking Modernism
Around 1979, scholars adopted the term "modernism" as a designation for the radical changes that took place in Anglo-American literature in the early twentieth century. The concept lent prestige to works and authors associated with it, encouraging the development of a vast body of criticism while blocking academic recognition of literature to which it does not readily apply. In Rethinking Modernism, published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2003 and edited by Marianne Thormählen, fifteen scholars of modernism subject the concept to sceptical scrutiny as they revisit their special areas of expertise. The general question they all face is not so much "what was modernism?" -- a familiar question -- as "was/is modernism?" Their results show that although "modernism" remains a useful concept under certain conditions, for them -- as for any reader of this book -- modernism will never be quite the same again.
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https://www.palgrave.com/page/detail/rethinking-modernism-marianne-thormählen/?sf1=barcode&st1=9781403911803
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