Why read the classics? -- The odysseys within The odyssey -- Xenophon's Anabasis -- Ovid and universal contiguity -- The sky, man, the elephant -- Nezami's seven princesses -- Tirant lo blanc -- The structure of the Orlando furioso -- Brief anthology of octaves from Ariosto -- Gerolamo Cardano -- Th
Why Read the Classics?
โ Scribed by Italo Calvino; Martin McLaughlin
- Publisher
- Vintage
- Year
- 1991;2000
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 206 KB
- Category
- Fiction
- ISBN
- 0141189703
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
โฆ Synopsis
Why Read the Classics? is an elegant defence of the value of great literature by one of the finest authors of the last century. Beginning with an essay on the attributes that define a classic (number one - classics are those books that people always say they are 'rereading', not 'reading'), this is an absorbing collection of Italo Calvino's witty and passionate criticism.
Review
'Enthusiasm and intelligence: these are the essential qualities of the critic. Calvino, himself a novelist of rare quality, possessed both generously. This is a book to read for itself, and also because it will send you back to other books to read, either again in a new way, or for the first time... Superb' Daily Telegraph 'This volume itself is a classic book at bedtime, a seductive invitation to forgotten opportunities or rereading' The Times
About the Author
Italo Calvino, one of Italy's finest postwar writers, has delighted readers around the world with his deceptively simple, fable-like stories. He was born in Cuba in 1923 and raised in San Remo, Italy; he fought for the Italian Resistance from 1943-45. His major works include Cosmicomics (1968), Invisible Cities (1972), and If on a winter's night a traveler (1979). He died in Siena in 1985.
Martin L. McLaughlin is Professor of Italian and Fiat-Serena Professor of Italian Studies at the University of Oxford where he is a Fellow of Magdalen College. In addition to his published academic works he is the English translator of Umberto Eco and Italo Calvino among many others.
Library : General
Formats : EPUB
ISBN : 9780141189703
๐ SIMILAR VOLUMES
### Amazon.com Review Why read Italo Calvino's book on the classics? Because it passes his own test for what a classic is, and its brisk prose can blast your concept of the word clean of the dusty associations that cling to it. Calvino gives 14 offbeat definitions of *classic*, my favorite being "a
### Amazon.com Review Why read Italo Calvino's book on the classics? Because it passes his own test for what a classic is, and its brisk prose can blast your concept of the word clean of the dusty associations that cling to it. Calvino gives 14 offbeat definitions of *classic*, my favorite being "a
All that can be done is for each one of us to invent our own ideal library of our classics. from *Why Read the Classics?* Classics, according to Italo Calvino, are not only works of enduring cultural value, but also something much more personal: talismans, touchstones, books through which
Why read the classics? -- The odysseys within The odyssey -- Xenophon's Anabasis -- Ovid and universal contiguity -- The sky, man, the elephant -- Nezami's seven princesses -- Tirant lo blanc -- The structure of the Orlando furioso -- Brief anthology of octaves from Ariosto -- Gerolamo Cardano -- Th
### Amazon.com Review Why read Italo Calvino's book on the classics? Because it passes his own test for what a classic is, and its brisk prose can blast your concept of the word clean of the dusty associations that cling to it. Calvino gives 14 offbeat definitions of *classic*, my favorite being "a