In theory the CMPS was set up to enshrine the human and social studies that were at the heart of Enlightenment culture. Staum illustrates, however, that the Institute helped transform key ideas of the Enlightenment in order to maintain civil rights while upholding social stability, and that the social and political assumptions on which it was based affected notions of social science. He traces the careers of individual members and the factions within the Institute, arguing that the discord within the CMPS reflects the unravelling of Enlightenment culture. Minerva's Message presents a valuable overview of the intellectual life of the period and brings together new evidence about the social sciences in their nascent period.
From classicism to comedy, Kubrick to the Coen Brothers, this practical and instructive guide offers a straightforward approach to film in an accessible format: a perfect read for novices and experts alike. A fresh, engaging, and beautifully illustrated volume, Talk About Cinema is the ideal companion for those looking to gain a deeper understanding of cinema today. The main genres of contemporary cinema are clearly defined and exemplified, and chapters on major dates, turning points, and "firsts" since the turn of the twentieth century allow the reader to contextualize different cinematic movements. From Postmodernism and Expressionism to Teen Movies, Westerns, and Science Fiction, all the major trends and styles of recent times are explored and provide a detailed picture of the contemporary cinematic landscape. The portraits of thirty eminent contemporary filmmakers offer valuable insight into the creative and stylistic processes of some of the greatest names in world cinema, while a chapter on twenty seminal works from the last century details those films that have proved inspirational in shaping cinema as we know it today, such as The Twilight Zone, Scarface, and Night of the Living Dead. Hundreds of screenshots and original photographs of legendary actors and directors on set and on screen provide snapshots of their glamorous world, and an easy-to-use glossary ensures that the reader is never overwhelmed by jargon. If you want to understand and discuss film-related topics, Talk About Cinema effortlessly synthesizes a wealth of pertinent facts and ideas into a fun, didactic, and readable volume.
First English edition of a classic Verne novel. Jules Verne, celebrated French author of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in 80 Days, wrote over 60 novels collected in the popular series "Voyages Extraordinaires." A handful of these have never been translated into English, including Invasion of the Sea, written in 1904 when large-scale canal digging was very much a part of the political, economic, and military strategy of the world's imperial powers. Instead of linking two seas, as existing canals (the Suez and the Panama) did, Verne proposed a canal that would create a sea in the heart of the Sahara Desert. The story raises a host of concerns — environmental, cultural, and political. The proposed sea threatens the nomadic way of life of those Islamic tribes living on the site, and they declare war. The ensuing struggle is finally resolved only by a cataclysmic natural event. This Wesleyan edition features notes, appendices and an introduction by Verne scholar Arthur B. Evans, as well as reproductions of the illustrations from the original French edition.
From the novels of Anne Rice to The Lost Boys, from The Terminator to cyberpunk science fiction, vampires and cyborgs have become strikingly visible figures within American popular culture, especially youth culture. In Consuming Youth, Rob Latham explains why, showing how fiction, film, and other media deploy these ambiguous monsters to embody and work through the implications of a capitalist system in which youth both consume and are consumed. Inspired by Marx's use of the cyborg vampire as a metaphor for the objectification of physical labor in the factory, Latham shows how contemporary images of vampires and cyborgs illuminate the contradictory processes of empowerment and exploitation that characterize the youth-consumer system. While the vampire is a voracious consumer driven by a hunger for perpetual youth, the cyborg has incorporated the machineries of consumption into its own flesh. Powerful fusions of technology and desire, these paired images symbolize the forms of labor and leisure that American society has staked out for contemporary youth. A startling look at youth in our time, Consuming Youth will interest anyone concerned with film, television, and popular culture.
This is the first complete edition and the first English translation of a surprising work by a popular French novelist whose work continues to delight readers to this day.
Don't miss Selznick's other novels in words and pictures, The Invention of Hugo Cabret and Wonderstruck, which together with The Marvels, form an extraordinary thematic trilogy! A breathtaking new voyage from Caldecott Medalist Brian Selznick.Two stand-alone stories--the first in nearly 400 pages of continuous pictures, the second in prose--create a beguiling narrative puzzle.The journey begins at sea in 1766, with a boy named Billy Marvel. After surviving a shipwreck, he finds work in a London theatre. There, his family flourishes for generations as brilliant actors until 1900, when young Leontes Marvel is banished from the stage.Nearly a century later, runaway Joseph Jervis seeks refuge with an uncle in London. Albert Nightingale's strange, beautiful house, with its mysterious portraits and ghostly presences, captivates Joseph and leads him on a search for clues about the house, his family, and the past.A gripping adventure and an intriguing invitation to decipher how the two stories connect, The Marvels is a loving tribute to the power of story from an artist at the vanguard of creative innovation.
