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An Idea Whose Time Has Come: Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964
by Todd S. PurdumThe story of the behind-the-scenes political battle to pass the 1964 Civil Rights Act: “Excellent . . . a highly readable play-by-play.” —The AtlanticIt was a turbulent time in America—a time of sit-ins, freedom rides, a March on Washington, and a governor standing in the schoolhouse door—when John F. Kennedy sent Congress a bill to bar racial discrimination in employment, education, and public accommodations. Countless civil rights measures had died on Capitol Hill in the past. But this one was different because, as one influential senator put it, it was “an idea whose time has come.”In this revealing book, Todd S. Purdum tells the story of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, recreating the legislative maneuvering and the larger-than-life characters who made its passage possible. From the Kennedy brothers to Lyndon Johnson, from Martin Luther King Jr. to Hubert Humphrey and Everett Dirksen, Purdum shows how these all-too-human figures managed, in just over a year, to create a bill that prompted the longest filibuster in the history of the US Senate—yet was ultimately adopted with overwhelming bipartisan support. He evokes the high purpose and low dealings that marked the creation of this monumental law, drawing on extensive archival research and dozens of new interviews that bring to life this signal achievement in American history—an example in our own troubled time of what is possible when bipartisanship, decency, and patience rule the day.“Brilliantly rendered and emotionally powerful—a riveting account of one of the most dramatic and significant moments in American history.” —Doris Kearns Goodwin“Today’s reader will be startled, if not astonished, by how the bill made its way through Congress.” —The Washington Post“Worthy, timely, and intelligent.” —The New Yorker“A first-rate narrative.” —The Wall Street Journal
An Ideal Companion: Scars Of Betrayal Surrender To The Viking An Ideal Companion
by Anne AshleyAfter her employer mysteriously dies, a young woman must team up with a dashing colonel to uncover the truth and clear her name.When an unseasonable snowstorm brings an assortment of stranded travelers to Lady Beatrice Lindley’s door, companion Miss Ruth Harrington welcomes them in, flustered though she is by the towering presence of Colonel Hugo Prentiss. But the next morning, Ruth’s quiet existence on the moor is shattered—Lady Beatrice is dead!Convinced there’s more to her employer’s demise than meets the eye, Ruth seeks the one man who can help her uncover the truth—the enigmatic Colonel. But in a world where nothing is what it seems, can Ruth and Hugo come to put their trust in each other?
An Ideal Husband?
by Michelle StylesTo marry a rakeWhen heiress Sophie Ravel finds herself in a compromising situation, notorious Richard Crawford, Viscount Bingfield, swoops in and saves her reputation. She might have escaped the attentions of one undesirable, but will Richard's protection expose her to even more scandal?Richard curses his impetuousness at offering a betrothal in the heat of the moment. He gladly accepts Sophie's terms that their engagement remain a pretense...until, quite by chance, he unlocks his shy fiancée's passionate nature. Now nothing will steer him from wedding-then bedding-his blushing bride....
An Ideal Theater
by Todd LondonAn Ideal Theater is a wide-ranging, inspiring documentary history of the American theatre movement as told by the visionaries who goaded it into being. This anthology collects over forty essays, manifestos, letters and speeches that are each introduced and placed in historical context by the noted writer and arts commentator, Todd London, who spent nearly a decade assembling this collection. This celebration of the artists who came before is an exhilarating look backward, as well as toward the future, and includes contributions from:Jane Addams William Ball Julian Beck Herbert Blau Angus Bowmer Bernard Bragg Maurice Browne Robert Brustein Alison Carey Joseph Chaikin Harold Clurman Dudley Cocke Alice Lewisohn Crowley Gordon Davidson R. G. Davis Doris Derby W. E. B. Du Bois Zelda Fichandler Hallie Flanagan Eva Le Gallienne Robert E. Gard Susan Glaspell André Gregory Tyrone Guthrie John Houseman Jules Irving Margo Jones Frederick H. Koch Lawrence Langner W. McNeil Lowry Charles Ludlam Judith Malina Theodore Mann Gilbert Moses Michaela O'Harra John O'Neal Joseph Papp Robert Porterfield José Quintero Bill Rauch Bernard Sahlins Richard Schechner Peter Schumann Maurice Schwartz Gary Sinise Ellen Stewart Lee Strasberg Luis Miguel Valdez Nina Vance Douglas Turner WardAs well as the founding visions of theatres from across the country:The Actors Studio The Actor's Workshop Alley Theatre American Conservatory Theater American Repetory Theater Arena Stage Barter Theatre Bread and Puppet Theater The Carolina Playmakers The Chicago Little Theater Circle in the Square Theatre The Civic Repertory Theatre Cornerstone Theater Company The Federal Theatre Project Ford Foundation Program in Humanities and the Arts The Free Southern Theater The Group Theatre The Hull-House Dramatic Association KRIGWA Players The Living Theatre La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club The Mark Taper Forum The Mercury Theatre Minnesota Theater Company (Guthrie Theater) The National Theatre of the Deaf The Negro Ensemble Company The Negro Theatre Project, Federal Theatre Project The Neighborhood Playhouse New Dramatists The New York Shakespeare Festival The Open Theater Oregon Shakespeare Festival The Performance Group The Provincetown Players The Repertory Theater of Lincoln Center The Ridiculous Theatrical Company Roadside Theater The San Francisco Mime Troupe The Second City Steppenwolf Theatre Company El Teatro Campesino Theater '47 The Theatre Guild The Theatre of the Living Arts The Washington Square Players The Wisconsin Idea Theater Yale Repertory Theatre The Yiddish Art TheatreTodd London is in his 18th season as artistic director of New Dramatists, the nation's oldest center for the creative and professional development of American playwrights. In 2009 Todd became the first recipient of Theatre Communications Group's (TCG) Visionary Leadership Award for "an individual who has gone above and beyond the call of duty to advance the theater field as a whole, nationally and/or internationally." He's the author of The Importance of Staying Earnest: Writings from Inside the American Theatre, 1988-2013 (NoPassport Press), Outrageous Fortune: The Life and Times of the New American Play (with Ben Pesner, Theatre Development Fund), The Artistic Home (TCG), and The World's Room, a novel (Steerforth Press), among others. His column, "A Lover's Guide to American Playwrights," tributes to contemporary
An Ideology in Power: Reflections on the Russian Revolution (Routledge Library Editions: The Russian Revolution)
by Bertram WolfeOriginally published in 1969 and representing a quarter of a century’s work of one of the USA’s most respected scholars in Soviet affairs, this volume discusses the question of what happens to an ideology in power, by focusing on the evolution and uses of Marxism in Soviet practice. As well as analyzing totalitarian behaviour, the author offers advice for Western policy from analysis of the past.
An Illicit Engagement: The Gentlemen Next Door (The\gentlemen Next Door Ser. #2)
by Cecilia GrayIn the spirit of Georgette Heyer, this delightful Regency romp offers a humorous and heartwarming tale... The whole series was freaking adorable and fun. --Shari, the Delighted ReaderLord Lucas Willoughby earned his moniker as the Matchmaking Baron after his six engagements ended with each lady happily wed--to someone else. He swears off marriage proposals, until his headstrong neighbor proposes something else entirely.Chastity Drummond has her sights set on a man who barely sees her as a woman, much less a potential wife. She can't seem to get him on bended knee, but knows an engagement to the Matchmaking Baron will turn his head.Lucas and Chastity's charade takes on a life of its own. As feigned attraction becomes real, they wonder if they might already be perfectly matched. Their illicit engagement will inevitably end in marriage--but to whom?* * *ABOUT THE GENTLEMEN NEXT DOOR SERIESThe complete series of novellas is available now! Don't miss The Gentlemen Next Door, because sometimes a lady in need of love need look no further than next door. Each of these shorter, sweet stories can be enjoyed as a standalone, but if you love one, then you'll probably love the entire series.Book 1: A Delightful ArrangementBook 2: An Illicit EngagementBook 3: A Dangerous ExpectationBook 4: A Flirtatious RendezvousCharacters you meet in The Gentlemen Next Door also appear in the Kiss A Belle series, which features longer novels. While each story can be enjoyed as a standalone, you may want to read them all. Books 1-3 occur concurrently and can be read in any order; Books 4 and 5 follow respectively.Book 1: Kiss Me AfterBook 2: Kiss Me DarklyBook 3: Kiss Me SweetlyBook 4: Kiss Me SoftlyBook 5: Kiss Me Again* * *MORE PRAISE FOR THE GENTLEMEN NEXT DOORI can't wait to read the next one. That is how addicting this series is. --Lady Armstrong, NetgalleyThese books are like a Snickers bar... a satisfying snack for the romantic's proverbial sweet tooth. --J. Yaggi, NetgalleyThis is a charming, sweet tale with vibrant, believable characters and witty, humorous dialogue. Ms. Gray has outdone herself with this poignant, character-driven novella. --Joyously Retired Teacher, Amazon.comCaptures your attention from the first page. --The Lady Reads @ AmazonA wonderful book and a great read. --Bunny's ReviewThis is a delightful story, well-written, historically accurate and intriguing. --B.S. Andrews @ Amazon
An Illicit Indiscretion (Undone!)
by Bronwyn ScottLondon, 1835Dashiell Steen, heir to the Earl of Heathridge, is tired of boring dinner parties and matchmaking mamas. He craves one final adventure before he's forced to settle down-and finds it with a vivacious beauty escaping from a manor window! Elisabeth Becket's intelligence and rebellious sprit excite both his mind and his body, stirring a mutual attraction that neither can resist. But will their illicit encounter last when she discovers Dashiell is the unwanted suitor she was trying to escape?
An Illicit Temptation (Chinese Tang Dynasty)
by Jeannie LinTang Dynasty China, 824 A.D.Dao was raised as a servant, but when her half-sister flees an arranged marriage to a chieftain, Dao is sent in her place as Princess An-Ming. Such a future is better than she could have hoped for, yet she dreads a passionless union with a stranger.Taken as a virtual hostage to the Imperial court, Kwan-Li is torn between his people and his duty to the emperor. He is bound by honor to escort the princess safely across the wild and untamed steppe, but the greatest danger they face on the long journey may be the forbidden temptation of each other...
An Illini Place: Building the University of Illinois Campus
by Incoronata Inserra John Franch Lex TateWhy does the University of Illinois campus at Urbana-Champaign look as it does today? Drawing on a wealth of research and featuring more than one hundred color photographs, An Illini Place provides an engrossing and beautiful answer to that question. Lex Tate and John Franch trace the story of the university's evolution through its buildings. Oral histories, official reports, dedication programs, and developmental plans both practical and quixotic inform the story. The authors also provide special chapters on campus icons and on the buildings, arenas and other spaces made possible by donors and friends of the university. Adding to the experience is a web companion that includes profiles of the planners, architects, and presidents instrumental in the campus's growth, plus an illustrated inventory of current and former campus plans and buildings.
An Illinois Sampler: Teaching and Research on the Prairie
by Antoinette Burton Mary-Ann Winkelmes Kyle MaysAn Illinois Sampler presents personal accounts from eighteen faculty members at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, about their research and how it enriches and energizes their teaching. Contributors from the humanities, engineering, social and natural sciences, and other disciplines explore how ideas, methods, and materials merge to lead their students down life-changing paths to creativity, discovery, and solutions. Faculty introduce their classes to work conducted from the Illinois prairie to the farms of Africa, from densely populated cities to dense computer coding, and in so doing generate an atmosphere where research, teaching, and learning thrive inside a feedback loop of education across disciplines. Aimed at alumni and prospective students interested in the university's ongoing mission, as well as current faculty and students wishing to stay up to date on the work being done around them, An Illinois Sampler showcases the best, the most ambitious, and the most effective teaching practices developed and nurtured at one of the world's premier research universities. Contributors are Nancy Abelmann, Flavia C. D. Andrade, Jayadev Athreya, Betty Jo Barrett, Thomas J. Bassett, Hugh Bishop, Antoinette Burton, Lauren A. Denofrio-Corrales, Lizanne DeStefano, Karen Flynn, Bruce W. Fouke, Rebecca Ginsburg, Julie Jordan Gunn, Geoffrey Herman, Laurie Johnson, Kyle T. Mays, Rebecca Nettl-Fiol, Audrey Petty, Anke Pinkert, Raymond Price, Luisa-Maria Rosu, D. Fairchild Ruggles, Carol Spindel, Mark D. Steinberg, William Sullivan, Richard I. Tapping, Bradley Tober, Agniezska Tuszynska, Bryan Wilcox, Kate Williams, Mary-Ann Winkelmes, and Yi Lu.
An Illness Caused by Youth: from The Father of All Things
by Tom BissellVeteran Jack Bissell only deepened the abyss between him and his son Tom when he talked about the Vietnam war. But, when a magazine editor sends the two back to Vietnam for a story, Tom reopens the conversation and confronts his father’s past and the man that had seemed impossibly remote. Part history, memoir, and travelogue, Tom Bissell’s is a haunting, riveting exploration of the war’s personal, political, and cultural impact from the perspective of the generation that grew up in the wake of the conflict and a wise reckoning of the bond forged between fathers and sons. A Vintage Shorts Vietnam Selection. An ebook short.
An Illustrated Brief History of Western Philosophy, 20th Anniversary Edition
by Anthony KennyIn 1998, the first edition of Anthony Kenny's comprehensive history of Western philosophy was published, to be met with immediate praise and critical acclaim. As the first book since Bertrand Russell's 1945 A History of Western Philosophy to offer a concise single-author review of the complete history of philosophy from the pre-Socratics to the modern masters of the 20th century, Kenny's work fills a critical gap in the modern philosophy reading list and offers valuable guidance for the general reader of philosophy—an ideal starting point for anyone with an interest in great thinkers and the family lines of philosophical evolution. Widely considered to be one of the most thorough and accessible historical reviews in philosophy, An Illustrated Brief History of Western Philosophy has earned an estimable and distinctive reputation, both for the compelling writing style of Anthony Kenny, one of the most respected and accomplished living philosophers, and for the rich collection of paintings, illustrations, maps, and photos included with every chapter to complement this review of 2,500 years of philosophical thought. Newly revised and expanded for a special 20th anniversary publication, the latest edition of An Illustrated Brief History of Western Philosophy contains all of Kenny's original writings on the history of Western philosophy from ancient to modern, along with new writings on the philosophy of the mid-20th century, covering important contributions from continental philosophers and philosophers of the post-Wittgenstein anglophone tradition, including the work of many women who have too often been neglected by the historical record.
An Illustrated Dictionary of British Steel Engravers (Routledge Revivals)
by Basil HunnisettFirst published in 1989, An Illustrated Dictionary of British Steel Engravers contains more than 600 entries and an extensive plate section, providing examples of work referenced in the text and adding a clear chronological dimension to the subject. The book makes use of an array of surviving accounts and correspondence of engravers and publishers and adopts a comprehensive and systematic approach to identifying different types and variants of steel engravings over time. Equipped with a detailed introduction to the history of steel engravings, An Illustrated Dictionary of British Steel Engravers will be of great use to those interested in illustration, graphic art, Victorian literature, and the history of printing.
An Illustrated Guide to Cocktails: 50 Classic Cocktail Recipes, Tips, and Tales
by Orr ShtuhlShaken or stirred, on the rocks or straight up, every cocktail has a unique history. Bringing this rich lore to life, An Illustrated Guide to Cocktails showcases the often romantic origin of classic and modern mixed drinks and the fascinating characters who made them famous. From the crooked gangster who inspired the Jack Rose (a drink often served in Manhattan's gilded Astor mansion during the Jazz Age) to the legendary Margarita (associated with the Tijuana dancer now known by her stage name, Rita Hayworth), the spirited blend of alcohol and alchemy is showcased on each beautifully illustrated page. The drink recipes include favorite classics (such as Old Fashion, White Russian, Sidecar) alongside forgotten standards such as the Blood and Sand. With guides to various spirits, suggestions for stocking your home bar, and mixing tips and techniques, An Illustrated Guide to Cocktails brings the marvels of mixology to every home bartender.
An Illustrated Guide to The Lost Symbol
by John WeberRich in world history and political power, veiled in secrecy, and rife with rituals and arcane symbols -- from art and architecture to the images that adorn our currency -- the Freemasons arose from ambiguous origins centuries ago to play a major role in drafting the initial documents of the United States, and even in constructing the intricate landscape of Washington, D.C., itself a virtual mystery by design. These puzzles lay the foundation for Dan Brown's serpentine thriller, The Lost Symbol, and also raise provocative questions. Why do some Masonic symbols remain obscured, while others are hidden in plain sight? Which presidents were the embodiments of Masonic ideals? What is the significance of the construction of the Library of Congress, Washington National Cathedral, the Washington Monument, the Capitol, and the physical layout of Washington, D.C.'s roadways and cul-de-sacs? And to what secretive end do they all lead? Now millions of curious fans can follow Robert Langdon step-by-step, and discover for themselves the answers to the absorbing conundrums posed by The Lost Symbol in this comprehensive, fully illustrated, and intricately detailed tour of the arcana of Washington, D.C. It takes readers through the enigmatic codes, captivating trivia, unfathomable riddles, intriguing records, historic maps, ciphers, and conspiracies of the phenomenal bestseller. What's more, it reveals the fascinating details of a world of unknown locales, mysticism, intrigue, and secret societies -- all of which lie in the shadow of The Lost Symbol.
An Illustrated Guide to the Holy Land for Tour Groups, Students, and Pilgrims
by Lamontte M. LukerAs the geographic heart and soul of Judaism, Islam, and Christianity, the Holy Land has immense significance for the millions of visitors each year. But since the fifth century BC, enthusiastic and curious people have needed a guide as they travel to see the sites for themselves.This book is different because it not only gives the historical, archaeological descriptions wedded to the biblical text, but it is an appropriate resource for spiritual formation and cross-cultural dialog.Packed with the latest information, this book locates and introduces the reader to popular and less-familiar sites such as Bethlehem, Shepherds’ Field, Church of the Nativity, Roman Catholic Church of St. Catherine, the Herodium, Mount of Olives, Old City of Jerusalem, Wadi Kelt, Mt. Sinai, Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the site of Church of St. Mary of the Latins, Temple Mount, El-Aksa Mosque, Dome of the Rock, Hezekiah's Tunnel, the traditional place of the Last Supper, Siloam Pool, the traditional tomb of King David, the house of Caiphas the High Priest, Shrine of the Book, Herod's Antonio Fortress, Golgotha, Bethany, Tomb of Lazarus, Bethphage, Pater Noster Church, Gethsemane, and many others. Each entry explains the history and topography of the site as well as its function and significance as it is linked to the relevant biblical passages.This book will not only inform you but help you better understand your faith. Journey to the Holy Land with indispensable archaeological information linked to the biblical story.
An Illustrated History of the Mandala: From Its Genesis to the Kalacakratantra
by Kimiaki TanakaEveryone’s heard of mandalas; now we have a uniquely rich history and explanation of their history and meaning.This book is a history of the genesis and development of the mandala from the fifth and sixth centuries, when the mandala first appeared in India, to the eleventh century, when the Kalacakratantra appeared just before the disappearance of Buddhism in India. The 600 years of Indian esoteric Buddhism that concluded the 1,700-year history of Indian Buddhism could be said to have been the history of the development of the mandala. (The Kalacakratantra integrated earlier mandala theories into a single system and established a monumental system unprecedented in the history of esoteric Buddhism. It was thus the culmination of the development of Indian Buddhism over a period of 1,700 years.) The analysis is at the micro level and includes numerous illustrations and charts. Particular attention is paid to proper names, mudras, and mantras that have been overlooked by scholars in philosophy and doctrine, and the author tackles issues that cannot be explained solely from a historical viewpoint, such as geometric patterns, the arrangement of deities, the colors, and their meaning in Buddhist doctrine.
An Illustrated Life of Christ Presented to the Chinese Emperor: The History of Jincheng shuxiang (1640) (Monumenta Serica Monograph Series)
by Nicolas StandaertA renewed attention to visual culture is one of the recent developments in the study of cultural contacts between China and Europe in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The subject of this book is the illustrated Life of Christ presented to the Chinese emperor in 1640 by the Jesuit missionary Johann Adam Schall von Bell S.J. (1592-1666). The origin of the work is a small parchment booklet with coloured miniature paintings based on a wide variety of prints by well-known European engravers (e.g., H. Goltzius, J. Stradanus). It was compiled in Munich in 1617 and a Chinese version with the title Jincheng shuxiang was published in Beijing more than twenty years later in a nicely illustrated edition. An Illustrated Life of Christ is a fascinating analysis of one of the earliest artistic encounters between Europe and China...Standaert has, once again, demonstrated his scholarly foresight, workmanship and authority. John T.P. Lai in Journal of the History of Christianity in Modern China This book is composed of two parts. Part I traces the complex history of production of Jincheng shuxiang, from its European origin to its Chinese reception. It also analyses the illustrations and the text. Part II contains the reproduction of the Chinese text and 48 illustrations, the reproduction of the identified original European prints and a translation of the Chinese text. It is hoped that the wider diffusion of this rare primary source, which is now reprinted for the first time since the seventeenth century, will further stimulate the study of visual culture in Sino-Western relations. The book will be of interest to a broad range of scholars, from art historians of China and Europe to scholars interested in print history, and theologians.
An Illustrated Manual of Sniper Skills
by Mark SpicerThis heavily illustrated manual offers an in-depth look at the art of sniping in war and anti-terrorist environments. Drawing on a vast, firsthand knowledge of sniper skills, former British Army sniper and sniper instructor Mark Spicer describes the role of the sniper in peace and in war, in reconnaissance and counter-surveillance, in cities, in vehicles, at night and by day. He presents crucial information about training and equipment, judgment and positioning, details of great relevance to professional marksmen, both military and law enforcement. This comprehensive manual will also be of interest to hunters, weapons enthusiasts, competition shooters, and paintball participants. The authoritative text is complimented by 280 full color illustrations, diagrams, and related information.
An Illustrated Outline of Buddhism: The Essentials of Buddhist Spirituality
by William StoddartAnIllustrated Outline of Buddhism is an ideal introduction to the vast and complex field of Buddhism, a world religion with more than a billion followers. In its short format and accessible style, it presents the essential features of the Buddhist religion with a clear yet concise style that is suitable for both the general reader and student of Buddhism. This fully color edition contains 40 color illustrations, including a stunning array of outstanding examples of Buddhist art, architecture, statuary, and calligraphy. Numerous maps, diagrams, and charts are included to illustrate important aspects of Buddhist beliefs and to summarize the different cultural forms and developmental phases of Buddhism. A select bibliography for further reading and a detailed index will also aid the reader.
An Illustrated Tour of the 1879 Anglo-Zulu Battlefields
by Adrian GreavesGreaves' work offers detailed maps and firsthand insight into the Anglo-Zulu War, providing necessary insight and overviews of the conflict's pivotal battles like Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift. In 1878 southern Africa’s two most senior figures, army commander General Lord Chelmsford and the High Commissioner Sir Henry Bartle-Frere created a false threat of a Zulu invasion of British Natal. In an astonishing act of over-confidence and without any government permission, Frere and Chelmsford invaded Zululand with five independent columns of troops. Both leaders ignored the serious implications of their two recently failed expeditions against the Zulus’ neighbouring King Sekhukhune and his Pedi people. The Zulu war lasted only six months and witnessed two separate British invasions of Zululand – one catastrophic, one successful. This book gives the reader a general overview of the Anglo-Zulu war of 1879 with descriptive text, location photographs and illuminating map overviews of the twelve main battles including Isandlwana and Rorke’s Drift. The author’s unique maps are based on his own lecture notes and ‘battlefield map handouts’ as a Zulu War battlefield guide for over 25 years. These maps were avidly collected by his many groups and other guides; they clearly explain each battlefield’s layout and sequence of events but also included many little known details of each fierce and bloody engagement. At the suggestion of the Anglo Zulu War Historical Society, these maps are now reproduced in book form. While volumes have been written on the subject, this work gives us an even better insight into these gruelling and complex battles.
An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness
by Clare Clarke Lindsay Scorgie-PorterFew works of scholarship have so comprehensively recast an existing debate as Chinua Achebe’s essay on Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. Achebe – a highly distinguished Nigerian novelist and university teacher – looked with fresh eyes at a novel that was set in Africa, but in which Africans appear only as onlookers or as indistinguishable "savages". Dismissing the prevailing portrayal of Joseph Conrad as a liberal hero whose anti-imperialist views insulated him from significant criticism, Achebe re-cast the Polish author as a "bloody racist" in an analysis so cogent it changed the way in which his discipline looked not only at Conrad, but also at all works with settings indicative of racial conflict. The creative contribution of Achebe’s essay lies in delving far beneath the surface of Conrad’s novel; he not only generated new and highly influential hypotheses about the author's modes of thought and motivations, but also redefined the entire debate over Heart of Darkness. Just because the novel had been accepted into the "canon", and now falls into the class of “permanent literature”, Achebe says, does not mean we should not question it closely – or criticize its author.
An Image of God: The Catholic Struggle with Eugenics
by Sharon M. LeonDuring the first half of the twentieth century, supporters of the eugenics movement offered an image of a racially transformed America by curtailing the reproduction of “unfit” members of society. Through institutionalization, compulsory sterilization, the restriction of immigration and marriages, and other methods, eugenicists promised to improve the population—a policy agenda that was embraced by many leading intellectuals and public figures. But Catholic activists and thinkers across the United States opposed many of these measures, asserting that “every man, even a lunatic, is an image of God, not a mere animal."In An Image of God, Sharon Leon examines the efforts of American Catholics to thwart eugenic policies, illuminating the ways in which Catholic thought transformed the public conversation about individual rights, the role of the state, and the intersections of race, community, and family. Through an examination of the broader questions raised in this debate, Leon casts new light on major issues that remain central in American political life today: the institution of marriage, the role of government, and the separation of church and state. This is essential reading in the history of religion, science, politics, and human rights.
An Imaginary Cinema: Sergei Eisenstein and the Unrealized Film
by Dustin CondrenAn Imaginary Cinema is the first systematic study of Sergei Eisenstein's unrealized films as well as a deeply informed historical and theoretical inquiry into the role and meaning of the unmade in his oeuvre. Eisenstein directed some of the twentieth century's most important films, from the early classic of montage, Battleship Potemkin, to his late masterpiece, Ivan the Terrible. Alongside these, however, the Soviet filmmaker also toiled over a compelling array of unrealized projects, from ideas that never grew beyond complex, passionate notebook scrawls and sketches to productions that were mounted and shot to some degree of completion without ever being finished. Working from the archival remnants of several of the director's most fascinating unrealized projects—from his bold vision to film Marx's Das Kapital to his time in Hollywood struggling to adapt Dreiser's An American Tragedy—Dustin Condren's book reveals new aspects of Eisenstein's genius, showing the filmmaker in a constant state of process, open to working toward impossible and sometimes utopian ends, and committed to the pursuit of creative and theoretical discovery. Condren's analysis of these unrealized projects in An Imaginary Cinema reveals Eisenstein at crucial moments of his personal and artistic biography, and it also tells the wider story of a canonical artist negotiating the political labyrinths of Stalinist Russia, the economic pitfalls of Hollywood, and the technological shifts of early cinema.
An Imaginary Tale
by Paul J. NahinToday complex numbers have such widespread practical use--from electrical engineering to aeronautics--that few people would expect the story behind their derivation to be filled with adventure and enigma. In An Imaginary Tale, Paul Nahin tells the 2000-year-old history of one of mathematics' most elusive numbers, the square root of minus one, also known as i. He recreates the baffling mathematical problems that conjured it up, and the colorful characters who tried to solve them.In 1878, when two brothers stole a mathematical papyrus from the ancient Egyptian burial site in the Valley of Kings, they led scholars to the earliest known occurrence of the square root of a negative number. The papyrus offered a specific numerical example of how to calculate the volume of a truncated square pyramid, which implied the need for i. In the first century, the mathematician-engineer Heron of Alexandria encountered I in a separate project, but fudged the arithmetic; medieval mathematicians stumbled upon the concept while grappling with the meaning of negative numbers, but dismissed their square roots as nonsense. By the time of Descartes, a theoretical use for these elusive square roots--now called "imaginary numbers"--was suspected, but efforts to solve them led to intense, bitter debates. The notorious i finally won acceptance and was put to use in complex analysis and theoretical physics in Napoleonic times.Addressing readers with both a general and scholarly interest in mathematics, Nahin weaves into this narrative entertaining historical facts and mathematical discussions, including the application of complex numbers and functions to important problems, such as Kepler's laws of planetary motion and ac electrical circuits. This book can be read as an engaging history, almost a biography, of one of the most evasive and pervasive "numbers" in all of mathematics.