The Intelligence of Flowers
The Intelligence of Flowers

Author: Maurice Maeterlinck

Publisher: State University of New York Press

Published: 2013-12-05

Total Pages: 110

ISBN-13: 0791479218

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Winner of the 2008 Prix de la Traduction Littéraire presented by French Community of Belgium The second of Maeterlinck's four celebrated nature essays—along with those on the life of the bee, ant, and termite—"The Intelligence of Flowers" (1907) represents his impassioned attempt to popularize scientific knowledge for an international audience. Writing with characteristic eloquence, Maeterlinck asserts that flowers possess the power of thought without knowledge, a capacity that constitutes a form of intelligence. Appearing one hundred years after the first publication, Philip Mosley's new translation of the original French essay, and the related essay "Scents," maintains the verve of Maeterlinck's prose and renders it accessible to the present-day reader. This is a book for those who are excited by creative encounters between literature and science as well as current debates on the relationship of humankind to the natural world.

The Intelligence of the Flowers
The Intelligence of the Flowers

Author: Maurice Maeterlinck

Publisher: Theclassics.Us

Published: 2013-09

Total Pages: 18

ISBN-13: 9781230249322

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This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1907 edition. Excerpt: ... applied to the removal of various necessities that crush us, such as pain, old age and death, one half of the energy displayed by any little flower in our gardens, we may well believe that our lot would be very different from what it is. in This need of movement, this craving for space, among the greater number of plants, is manifested in both the flower and the fruit. It is easily explained in the fruit, or, in any case, discloses only a less complex experience and foresight. Contrary to that which takes place in the animal kingdom and because of the terrible law of absolute immobility, the chief and worst enemy of the seed is the paternal stock. We are in a strange world, where the parents, unable to move from place to place, know that they are condemned to starve or stifle their offspring. Every seed that falls at the foot of the tree or plant is either lost or doomed to sprout in wretchedness. Hence the immense f effort to throw off the yoke and conquer space. Hence the marvellous systems of dissemination, of propulsion, of navigation of the air which we find on every side in the forest and the plain: among others, to mention, in passing, but a few of the most curious, the aerial screw or samara of the Maple; the bract of the Lime-tree; the flyingmachine of the Thistle, the Dandelion and the Salsafy; the detonating springs of the Spurge; the extraordinary squirt of the Momordica; the hooks of the eriophilous plants; and a thousand other unexpected and astounding pieces of mechanism; for there is. not, so to speak, a single seed but has invented for its sole use a complete method of escaping from the maternal shade. It would, in fact, be impossible, if one had not practised a little botany, to believe the expenditure of imagination...

The Intelligence of the Flowers (Classic Reprint)
The Intelligence of the Flowers (Classic Reprint)

Author: Maurice Maeterlinck

Publisher: Forgotten Books

Published: 2017-10-11

Total Pages: 188

ISBN-13: 9780265166635

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Excerpt from The Intelligence of the Flowers It would be superfluous once more to trace the picture of the great systems of floral fertilization: the play of stamens and pistil, the seduction of perfumes, the appeal of harmonious and dazzling colours, the concoction of nectar, which is absolutely useless to the flower and is manufactured only to attract and retain02 - 1040. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

The Intelligence of the Flowers
The Intelligence of the Flowers

Author: Maurice Maeterlinck

Publisher:

Published: 2021-10-12

Total Pages: 100

ISBN-13: 9782357289000

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"This vegetable world, which to us appears so placid, so resigned, in which all seems acquies-cence, silence, obedience, meditation, is, on the con-trary, that in which the revolt against destiny is the most vehement and the most stubborn." Far from being a botanical study, this magnificent poetic work puts the special nature of flowers. The Intelligence of the Flowers constitutes a real philosophical discovery of the floral world, and particularly its interaction with social insects to give birth to life. This original text is surprising by its scientific precision and accuracy. Maeterlinck's meticulous observations lead us to a veritable masterpiece of descriptions and fundamental questions, bringing into question the observer and the observed. Indeed, the analogies that he uses between the floral kingdom and that of men, make us humble and inquiring, moved and pensive. This portrayal of the intellectual mechanisms of flowers becomes simultaneously poetic, philosophical, and political. Moving between wonder and knowledge, Maeterlinck asks us to preserve the links that unite us with nature. Now that an ecological disaster is threatening to destroy this fragile harmony, this book is well worth reading. Maurice Maeterlinck was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1911 "in appreciation of his many-sided literary activities, and especially of his dramatic works, which are distinguished by a wealth of imagination and by a poetic fancy, which reveals, sometimes in the guise of a fairy tale, a deep inspiration, while in a mysterious way they appeal to the readers' own feelings and stimulate their imaginations". Large print edition, easy-to-read layout, illustrated.

Brilliant Green
Brilliant Green

Author: Stefano Mancuso

Publisher: Island Press

Published: 2015-03-12

Total Pages: 190

ISBN-13: 1610916034

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In this book, a leading plant scientist offers a new understanding of the botanical world and a passionate argument for intelligent plant life. Are plants intelligent? Can they solve problems, communicate, and navigate their surroundings? For centuries, philosophers and scientists have argued that plants are unthinking and inert, yet discoveries over the past fifty years have challenged this idea, shedding new light on the complex interior lives of plants. In Brilliant Green, leading scientist Stefano Mancuso presents a new paradigm in our understanding of the vegetal world. He argues that plants process information, sleep, remember, and signal to one another-showing that, far from passive machines, plants are intelligent and aware. Part botany lesson, part manifesto, Brilliant Green is an engaging and passionate examination of the inner workings of the plant kingdom.--