Why Read the Classics is a collection of thirty-six essays by Italo Calvino on 'his' classics: the writers, poets and scientists who had meant most to him at different stages of his life. After the title essay, which explores several original definitions of what makes a classic, the pieces range in time from antiquity (Homer, Ovid) through early modern and Enlightenment Europe (Ariosto, Defoe, Diderot, Voltaire) to the masters of the nineteenth-century novel (Stendhal, Balzac, Flaubert, Dickens, Tolstoy, Conrad), before ...
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Why Read the Classics is a collection of thirty-six essays by Italo Calvino on 'his' classics: the writers, poets and scientists who had meant most to him at different stages of his life. After the title essay, which explores several original definitions of what makes a classic, the pieces range in time from antiquity (Homer, Ovid) through early modern and Enlightenment Europe (Ariosto, Defoe, Diderot, Voltaire) to the masters of the nineteenth-century novel (Stendhal, Balzac, Flaubert, Dickens, Tolstoy, Conrad), before dealing with Calvino's early American mentors (Twain, James, Hemingway) and contemporaries such as Borges, Pasternak and Queneau. The essays also offer the most comprehensive sample yet available of Calvino the literary critic in substantial articles which he wrote over a period of thirty years from the 1950s to his death in 1985. Why Read the Classics constitutes Calvino's literary canon, sheds fascinating light on the key texts which influenced this major twentieth-century fantasist and postmodernist, and proves that even if he had not become an internationally renowned fiction writer Calvino would have ranked among the most interesting essayists and critics of the twentieth century.
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Seller's Description:
This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. In fair condition, suitable as a study copy. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 300grams, ISBN: 9780099284895.
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New. B-format paperback. Penguin Modern Classics . In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
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New. 2009. Paperback. Beginning with an essay on the attributes that define a classic, this collection provides the author's criticism. Translator(s): Parks, Tim; McLaughlin, Martin; Creagh, Patrick; Weaver, William. Series: Penguin Modern Classics. Num Pages: 288 pages. BIC Classification: DN; DSBH. Category: (G) General (US: Trade); (U) Tertiary Education (US: College). Dimension: 204 x 130 x 18. Weight in Grams: 224......We ship daily from our Bookshop.
