Author: Alan Gordon Publisher: UBC Press ISBN: 0774859202 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 249
Book Description
Historians have long engaged in passionate debate about collective memory and the building of national identities. This book focuses on one national hero – Jacques Cartier – to explore how notions about the past have been created and passed on through the generations and used to present particular ideas about the world in English- and French-speaking Canada. The cult of celebrity surrounding Cartier by the mid-nineteenth century, Gordon reveals, reflected a particular understanding of history, one which accompanied the arrival of modernity in North America. This new sensibility, in turn, shaped the political and cultural currents of nation building in Canada. Cartier may have been a point of contact between English and French Canadian nationalism, but the nature of that contact, as Gordon shows, had profound limitations. The Hero and the Historians is necessary reading for anyone interested in the underlying culture of national identity – and national unity – in Canada.
Author: Harald Haarmann Publisher: Harrassowitz ISBN: 9783447116091 Category : Languages : en Pages : 196
Book Description
The hero cult is at the very core of western civilization. Does this characteristic feature originate in the milieu of Greek civilization of antiquity, with an early manifestation in Homer's epic Iliad? No. In fact, its dates back at least 7000 years, and the beginnings are associated with the warrior caste of the Proto-Indo-European pastoralists in the Eurasian steppe who started to migrate into the vast region of Old Europe. With them the cult of heroes entered and changed civilization. With their patriarchal structure and clear hierarchy the Indo-Europeans from the Eurasian steppe took advantage or their warrior caste and won the fusion process with the ancient Europeans. First slowly over generations then rapidly life in Old Europe changed from a peaceful egalitarian system to a patriarchal class system with the important class of warriors.What the newcomers maintained from the Old European order were the goddesses. The veneration of goddesses continued to be a vital part of life and additionally, goddesses were now seen as patrons to the warriors accompanying and protecting them on their way to become heroes. One of these pre-Greek goddesses stands out among all the other daughters of the Goddess of Old Europe, and this is Athena. The interaction of this pre-Greek goddess with the Indo-European heroes will be highlighted in particular. The contrast between the earliest advanced culture in human history and the ideology of the cult of heroes may stimulate the discussion about our present and it may inspire visions for our future.
Author: Silvia Montiglio Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing ISBN: 1786722909 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 369
Book Description
Hero and Leander are the protagonists in a classical tale of epic but tragic love. Hero lives secluded in a tower on the European shore of the Hellespont, and Leander on the opposite side of the passage. Since they cannot hope to marry, the couple resolves to meet in secret: each night he swims across to her, guided by the light of her torch. But the time comes when a winter storm kills both the light and Leander. At dawn, Hero sees her lover's mangled body washed ashore, and so hurls herself from the tower to meet him in death. Silvia Montiglio here shows how and why this affecting story has proved to be one of the most popular and perennial mythologies in the history of the West. Discussing its singular drama, danger, pathos and eroticism, the author explores the origin of the legend and its rich and varied afterlives. She shows how it was used by Greek and Latin writers; how it developed in the Middle Ages - notably in the writings of Christine de Pizan - and Renaissance; how it inspired Byron to swim the Dardanelles; and how it has lived on in representations by artists including Rubens and Frederic Leighton.
Author: Will Durant Publisher: Simon & Schuster ISBN: 9780743235945 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 352
Book Description
In the tradition of his own bestselling masterpieces The Story of Civilization and The Lessons of History, Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Will Durant traces the lives and ideas of those who have helped to define civilization, from its dawn to the beginning of the modern world. Heroes of History is a book of life-enhancing wisdom and optimism, complete with Durant's wit, knowledge, and unique ability to explain events and ideas in simple, exciting terms. It is the lessons of our heritage passed on for the edification and benefit of future generations—a fitting legacy from America's most beloved historian and philosopher. Will Durant's popularity as America's favorite teacher of history and philosophy remains undiminished by time. His books are accessible to readers of every kind, and his unique ability to compress complicated ideas and events into a few pages without ever "talking down" to the reader, enhanced by his memorable wit and a razor-sharp judgment about men and their motives, made all of his books huge bestsellers. Heroes of History carries on this tradition of making scholarship and philosophy understandable to the general reader, and making them good reading, as well. At the dawn of a new millennium and the beginning of a new century, nothing could be more appropriate than this brilliant book that examines the meaning of human civilization and history and draws from the experience of the past the lessons we need to know to put the future into context and live in confidence, rather than fear and ignorance.
Author: Jonathan Green Publisher: Snowbooks Ltd ISBN: 1909679402 Category : Fiction Languages : en Pages : 272
Book Description
Fighting Fantasy gamebooks have sold over 17 million books worldwide, in over 30 languages. But when Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone sat down to write The Warlock of Firetop Mountain they had no idea this one book would go on to spawn another eighty or more titles, and have an immeasurable impact on a generation of children growing up in the 1980s. Part history, part celebration, YOU ARE THE HERO chronicles more than three decades of Fighting Fantasy. Written by Jonathan Green (author of seven Fighting Fantasy titles), this mighty tome will appeal to anyone who ever wiled away a washed-out summer holiday with only two dice, a pencil, and an eraser for company. This is a fixed format PDF eBook, with all of the same stunning, full-colour artwork as the hardback and paperback. Best viewed on a colour screen of 7" upwards, as a daily reader to keep your precious hardback safe. “YOU ARE THE HERO is as read-under-the-covers immersive as its subject matter; great characters, amazing stories and a surprise behind every door. 5 stars!" -- SCIFI Now “The most comprehensive history of the Fighting Fantasy phenomenon I've ever seen. With its maps, notes, art and photographs it's not just a celebration but a fascinating resource." -- SFX “How many thousands of heroes did these books create? And how many lost their lives with a bad roll of the dice? A publishing phenomenon, without which computer games wouldn't be what they are today. About time these books were celebrated. Now go to page 45 and face your nemesis." -- Charlie Higson
Author: Sidney Hook Publisher: Read Books Ltd ISBN: 1473385164 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 220
Book Description
A great look at the role of the hero in society, often as a driving force through history. A must read for any keen amateur historian wishing to see the big picture.
Author: Larry Tye Publisher: Random House Incorporated ISBN: 1400068665 Category : Social Science Languages : en Pages : 897
Book Description
The author, a prize-winning journalist here delivers a full-fledged history not just of the Man of Steel but of the creators, designers, owners, and performers who made Superman the icon he is today.
Author: Rafael Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform ISBN: 9781548738129 Category : Languages : en Pages : 280
Book Description
Once upon a time, Columbus was a hero... Sadly, that's not the case today: Some people don't even know who he was, or what he did; while others claim he was a villain, and are advocating for the abolition of Columbus Day and everything he represented. Accusations vary from Columbus being a racist, a rapist, a genocidal maniac, and even that he ran a child sex slave ring. The question is, are these allegations true? And, where are the scholars correcting Columbus' record? Unfortunately, some of the misinformation out there comes from "scholars;" and even those who defend Columbus, won't address the actual story either. In this book, the reader will learn who modern history revisionists claim Columbus was, and what he did, vs. the actual historical accounts, coming from the mouths of those who knew him well, and wrote about them for us. The conclusion will be inevitable, that is, Columbus was a Hero, and his story and legacy need to be rediscovered again today.
Author: Wallace Hettle Publisher: LSU Press ISBN: 0807139378 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 321
Book Description
Historians' attempts to understand legendary Confederate General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson have proved uneven at best and often contentious. An occasionally enigmatic and eccentric college professor before the Civil War, Jackson died midway through the conflict, leaving behind no memoirs and relatively few surviving letters or documents. In Inventing Stonewall Jackson, Wallace Hettle offers an innovative and distinctive approach to interpreting Stonewall by examining the lives and agendas of those authors who shape our current understanding of General Jackson. Newspaper reporters, friends, relatives, and fellow soldiers first wrote about Jackson immediately following the Civil War. Most of them, according to Hettle, used portions of their own life stories to frame that of the mythic general. Hettle argues that the legend of Jackson's rise from poverty to power was likely inspired by the rags-to-riches history of his first biographer, Robert Lewis Dabney. Dabney's own successes and Presbyterian beliefs probably shaped his account of Jackson's life as much as any factual research. Many other authors inserted personal values into their stories of Stonewall, perplexing generations of historians and writers. Subsequent biographers contributed their own layers to Jackson's myth and eventually a composite history of the general came to exist in the popular imagination. Later writers, such as the liberal suffragist Mary Johnston, who wrote a novel about Jackson, and the literary critic Allen Tate, who penned a laudatory biography, further shaped Stonewall's myth. As recently as 2003, the film Gods and Generals, which featured Jackson as the key protagonist, affirmed the longevity and power of his image. Impeccable research and nuanced analysis enable Hettle to use American culture and memory to reframe the Stonewall Jackson narrative and provide new ways to understand the long and contended legacy of one of the Civil War's most popular Confederate heroes.
Author: Alan Gordon
Author: Thomas Carlyle
Author: Harald Haarmann
Author: Silvia Montiglio
Author: Will Durant
Author: Jonathan Green
Author: Sidney Hook
Author: Larry Tye
Author: Rafael
Author: Wallace Hettle