Lost in the Original: Tony Harrison as a Classicist Poet

2019 ◽  
pp. 29-38
Author(s):  
Josephine Balmer
Keyword(s):  
Working Class ◽  
Literary Culture ◽  
Classical Literature ◽  
Creative Development ◽  
Dramatic Works ◽  
Classical Education ◽  
Time Class ◽  
Canonical Texts

How does a classical education benefit a contemporary poet and how might it impede their creative development? Tony Harrison’s engagement with classical literature is wide-ranging and diverse. He has translated many classical texts, both Greek and Latin, from Sophocles through Palladas to Martial. In addition, his own poetry is steeped in classical reference and reception, always ironically underscoring the paradox of a working-class scholar’s alienation from both the classical academy and his own class and family. Yet, as Josephine Balmer argues, these ‘divided voices’ are precisely what inform and elevate Harrison’s exceptional art as a classical translator, a form which thrives on ambiguity and slippage. Furthermore, his unparalleled skill in reversioning and reinterpretating canonical texts has led, in turn, to the maturity and confidence of his later collections, such as Laureate’s Block (2000) and Under the Clock (2005), bridging the gaps of time, class and memory. If Harrison’s dramatic works, such as The Trackers of Oxyrynchus, reveal how easily literary culture might be destroyed, then his poetry celebrates how, among the loss, there will always be gain.

scholarly journals The image of the hero-entrepreneur in Russian classical literature as a pledge of socially responsible principles of modern Russian entrepreneurship

2021 ◽  
pp. 349-356
Author(s):  
Н.А. Чистякова
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Analysis ◽  
Classical Literature ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Dramatic Works ◽  
Documentary Sources ◽  
The Status ◽  
Public Consciousness ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
Xix Century

В последнее десятилетие резко изменилось отношение российской общественности к предпринимательству с негативного на нейтральное и даже позитивное. Для подтверждения предположения об изменении эмоционального статуса понятия «предпринимательство» автором был произведен соцопрос. Поскольку предположение об изменении статуса понятия «предпринимательство» подтвердилось, автор посредством историко-культурного анализа постарался объяснить причину изменения стереотипа. Акцент был сделан на роль произведений русской классической литературы в формировании общественного сознания. Кроме того, автор конкретизировал отраженный в классической литературе идеал русского предпринимателя. Конкретно, в статье проанализирован образ предпринимателя в русской классической литературе XIX века: разобраны литературные типы работников финансовой сферы, найдены положительные примеры, выявлены социально ответственные принципы подхода к делу. Для обеспечения большей объективности для анализа привлечены как эпические, так и драматические произведения. Автор выясняет, как в русской классической литературе отражаются проблемы личности предпринимателя, актуальные в настоящее время. В статье произведен сравнительный анализ «кодексов чести» предпринимателя – источников XIX и XXI века, – в которых раскрывается тема чести русского финансиста, его морального облика. В исследовании утверждается преемственность традиций в сфере предпринимательства, сформированных основной частью населения страны, жившего по законам Российской Империи, кроме того, обосновывается содержательная связь художественных и документальных источников и доказывается необходимость создания образа современного коммерсанта на основе принципов, отраженных в отечественной классике. In the last decade, the attitude of the Russian public towards entrepreneurship has changed dramatically from negative to neutral and even positive. To confirm the assumption about the change in the emotional status of the concept of «entrepreneurship», the author conducted a social survey. Since the assumption about the change in the status of the concept of «entrepreneurship» was confirmed, the author tried to explain the reason for the change in the stereotype through historical and cultural analysis. The emphasis was placed on the role of works of Russian classical literature in the formation of public consciousness. In addition, the author concretized the ideal of the Russian entrepreneur reflected in the classical literature. Specifically, the article analyzes the image of the entrepreneur in the Russian classical literature of the XIX century: the literary types of financial workers are analyzed, positive examples are found, and socially responsible principles of the approach to business are identified. To ensure greater objectivity, both epic and dramatic works are used for analysis. The author finds out how the Russian classical literature reflects the problems of the entrepreneur's personality that are currently relevant. The article presents a comparative analysis of the «codes of honor» of the entrepreneur-sources of the XIX and XXI centuries-which reveal the theme of the honor of the Russian financier, his moral image. The study confirms the continuity of traditions in the field of entrepreneurship, formed by the main part of the country's population, who lived according to the laws of the Russian Empire, in addition, substantiates the meaningful connection of artistic and documentary sources and proves the need to create an image of a modern merchant based on the principles reflected in the Russian classics.

scholarly journals Reading and Literary Preferences of Generation Z Schoolchildren: Socio-Cultural Context

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (6) ◽  
pp. 668-681 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera P. Chudinova
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Information Technologies ◽  
Literary Culture ◽  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Video Production ◽  
Sociological Research ◽  
Classical Literature ◽  
Generation Z ◽  
Literary Classics

The article is devoted to the problem of transferring literary culture from previous generations to “Generation Z”. A brief description of this generation is presented from the perspective of the theory of generations by American researchers Neil Hove and William Strauss. The topic of children’s reading for generations of the 20th century is briefly covered. By the example of the reading repertoire of children and teenagers, works of literary classics and actual children’s literature, the article shows the process of gradual weakening of the transfer of values of literary culture from generation to ge­neration. The materials of complex and sociological research, conducted by the Russian State Children’s Library at the beginning of the 21st century, highlight the problems of reading the best literature that traditionally has been included in the reading of generations. The results of research given in the article testify to the process of losing the nearly century-old literary tradition. For instance, this problem can be seen in the example of parents choosing books for children of primary and secondary school age. In many ways, the repertoire of reading literary classics by children and adolescents is formed by school: this is the school curriculum and lists of extracurri­cular reading. The interest of schoolchildren in classical literature and in books of previous generations continues to fall. The process of changing the repertoire of leisure reading in adolescents is shown. The repertoire of their reading is significantly fragmen­ted. This is largely due to trends in the development of book publishing and the spread of literature. The article indicates the pros and cons of adolescents’ reading, caused by new information technologies; shows the influence of these technologies on reading literacy and reading culture. The process of literature selection by adolescents, boys and girls, is illustrated basing on the results of another new study. It is shown that the choice of schoolchildren is largely random and contains works of modern literature with a predominance of fantasy genre books. The research results demonstrate that today the main factors that have a significant impact on the choice of literature for teenagers and young people are video production and peers’ advice. Solving the problem of supporting reading and forming a reading circle of “Generation Z” schoolchildren, in the context of literary tradition attenuation, is a difficult task to be accomplished by competent adult mentors together with adolescents and young people themselves.

scholarly journals Ancient vases in modern vitrines: the sensory dynamics and social implications of museum display

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-109
Author(s):  
Caspar Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Working Class ◽  
Early Modern ◽  
Social Implications ◽  
Classical Education ◽  
Works Of Art ◽  
Public Museums ◽  
Museum Display ◽  
Painted Pottery ◽  
Proper Interpretation

Abstract This contribution explores the changing sensory priorities underpinning the display of Greek painted pottery in European collections. The focus is on the introduction of glass-fronted cabinets in the purpose-designed public museums of art and archaeology of the mid-nineteenth century. Contrary to expectations, the contemporaneous debates surrounding the use of gallery furniture show that the museum stakeholders were less worried about the safety of the objects than the prospect of middle- and working-class visitors being exposed to the sexualized imagery on Athenian pottery. A survey of the different traditions of display in Britain and continental Europe highlights the shift from the multisensory engagements in early modern elite collections with vases as evidence of ancient custom to the selective viewing of the objects’ painted decoration as works of art whose proper interpretation called for classical education.

scholarly journals Learning Spanish: The best-sellers for home reading classes

2018 ◽  
pp. 58-61
Author(s):  
Elena Korzhukova
Keyword(s):  
Point Of View ◽  
Learning Material ◽  
State University ◽  
Classical Literature ◽  
Eduardo Mendoza ◽  
Home Reading ◽  
Reading Material ◽  
Key Points ◽  
Best Sellers ◽  
Canonical Texts

The article deals with the learning material for such kind of classes in non-linguistic University as home reading. Best-sellers are considered to be suitable literary material for these purposes. The objective of the study is to prove the inaccuracy of the traditional point of view that defends the so-called canonical texts (classics) as the only basis for learning foreign languages. A separate issue here is the specific nature of the Moscow State University for International Relations that specify the sources for reading in the foreign language when they can differ from those of other universities. On the other hand, student motivation stands out as one of the key points when choosing reading material.Taking examples from the novels of the Spanish authors Arturo Pérez-Reverte and Eduardo Mendoza, we expose their didactic usefulness as they represent cultural, historical and linguistic interest, despite all the pessimism on the subject of the advocates of pure classical literature, the artistic value of which is certainly indisputable.In conclusion we advocate the wider use of high-quality best-selling books to teach the Spanish language in home reading classes.

scholarly journals THE CONCEPT OF “EXPERIENCE” AND THE MAKING OF THE ENGLISH WORKING CLASS, 1924–1963

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 179-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
STUART MIDDLETON
Keyword(s):  
Working Class ◽  
Literary Criticism ◽  
Political Action ◽  
Literary Culture ◽  
New Left ◽  
Cultural Criticism ◽  
Conceptual History ◽  
History Of ◽  
Raymond Williams ◽  
A Site

Despite intense scholarly interest in the “Anglo-Marxism” that rose to prominence in Britain from the mid-1950s, its intellectual lineaments and lineages have yet to be fully accounted for. This is particularly the case with the concept of “experience,” which was a central category in the work of two of the most influential figures of the early “New Left” in Britain: Raymond Williams and E. P. Thompson. This essay traces a conceptual history of “experience” from its emergence in Cambridge literary criticism during the 1920s and 1930s, and in the quasi-Marxist literary culture of the 1930s, to the confluence of these two currents in the work of Williams and Thompson. Reassessing the nature of each thinker's engagement with Leavisite literary and cultural criticism, and of Thompson's attempted reformulation of Marxism, it argues that recovering their widely differing usages of “experience” illuminates their distinctive conceptions of “culture” as a site of political action.

Some Remarks on the Hindu Drama

1923 ◽  
Vol 55 (4) ◽  
pp. 585-608
Author(s):  
Jarl Charpentier
Keyword(s):  
Real Life ◽  
Hard Work ◽  
High Rank ◽  
Classical Literature ◽  
Dramatic Works ◽  
The One ◽  
Very High

Amongst the dramatic works of the Hindus a peculiar position is occupied by the Mudrā-Rākṣasa, the one work known under the name of Viśākhadatta. Neither the superior genius of Kālidāsa, nor the pathetic sublimity of Bhavabhūti, nor even the versatility and skill of Śrī-Harṣa has been in any way rivalled by this author, nor can he perhaps lay claim to a very high rank as a stylist, although some of his verses are certainly among the loftiest passages in the classical literature of India. But he excels them all in the marvellous power of characterizing his personages ; and, if Rāma, Jīmūtavāhana, and even Śakuntalā often appear to us, with all their praiseworthy qualities, somewhat pale and lifeless, like fair spirits from a wonderland far away from the sin-stained earth, nothing of that sort could ever be said of the figures acting the play of Viśākhadatta. For there is certainly no lack of real life either in the diabolical plotting and unbending energy of Cāṇakya, or in the noble bitterness of Rākṣasa, or the stubborn blockheadedness of Malayaketu. Besides, the whole theme of the play is political intrigue and preparations for war, the hard work of men, and there is nothing at all about love and sentimentality, except the little scene between Candanadása and his family at the beginning of the last act, which is of absolutely no importance for the development of the play. Even religion and pious feelings seem to have been looked upon by the author as rather unimportant things—his interest is politics and nothing but politics.

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