How nineteenth-century “disciplines of attention” anticipated the contemporary concern with mindfulness and being “spiritual but not religious”Today, we’re driven to distraction, our attention overwhelmed by the many demands upon it—most of which emanate from our beeping and blinking digital devices. This may seem like a decidedly twenty-first-century problem, but, as Caleb Smith shows in this elegantly written, meditative work, distraction was also a serious conce...

Condemned to hang after his raid on Harper’s Ferry, John Brown prophesied that the crimes of a slave-holding land would be purged away only with blood. A study of omens, maledictions, and inspired invocations, The Oracle and the Curse examines how utterances such as Brown’s shaped American literature between the Revolution and the Civil War.In nineteenth-century criminal trials, judges played the role of law’s living oracles, but offenders were also given an opportunity to...

A groundbreaking critical introduction to Structuralism and Russian Formalism by the acclaimed literary theoristIn The Prison-House of Language, Fredric Jameson, one of the most important literary and cultural critics of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, provides a thorough historical and philosophical introduction to Structuralism and Russian Formalism. Combining a survey of these influential critical movements and a critique of their methodology,...

Presents a thought-provoking collection of five essays that explore the purposes and meanings of legal punishment in the United States, both culturally and sociallyFrom the Gospel of Matthew to numerous US Supreme Court justices, many literary and legal sources have observed that how a society metes out punishment reveals core truths about its character. The Punitive Imagination is a collection of essays that engages and contributes to debates about the pu...

This book challenges the status quo of studies in literature and religion by returning to “experience” as a bridge between theory and practice. Essays focus on keywords of religious experience and demonstrate their applications in drama, fiction, and poetry.Each chapter explores the broad significance of its keyword as a category of psychological and social behavior and tracks its unique articulation by individual authors, including Conrad, Beecher Stowe and Melville. Together, the...

In "Birds of Guernsey," published in 1879, Cecil Smith offers a meticulously detailed exploration of the avifauna of Guernsey, skillfully blending scientific observation with the lyrical prose of natural history. His work is marked by an early dedication to ornithology, providing readers with both taxonomic descriptions and rich narratives that evoke the island'Äôs unique ecosystem. Smith's writing is informed by the Victorian naturalist tradition, and he utilizes a careful blend of empiri...

Historically Black Colleges and Universities were established to provide the opportunity for higher education to people of African descent in the era of segregation. The visions, values, and heritages these schools embodied enabled them to chart new frontiers of learning, scholarship, and public engagement for and beyond the United States. Historically Black Colleges and Universities in a Globalizing World: The Past, the Present, and the Future, edited by Alem Hailu, Mohamed S. Camara, and...

When someone is grieving, what should you say? How can you help? How do you comfort without offering shallow platitudes? The Book of Comforts stands in the gap between suffering and hope, offering readers the abiding comfort found in Scripture and personal experience.Readers will gain:Long-term comfort from scripturally focused entriesA deeper understanding of their grief, loss, and pain, and discover the richness o...

In "The Critics Versus Shakspere," Francis Asbury Smith delves into the contentious debates surrounding William Shakespeare's literary legacy. Smith employs a rigorous analytical style that juxtaposes Shakespeare's celebrated works against various critical interpretations, showcasing both historical perspectives and contemporary critiques. Engaging deeply with the literary context of Elizabethan England, this book invites readers to consider the complexities of authorship, themes of identi...

The earliest known prison memoir by an African American writer—recently discovered and authenticated by a team of Yale scholars—sheds light on the longstanding connection between race and incarceration in America.“[A] harrowing [portrait] of life behind bars . . . part confession, part jeremiad, part lamentation, part picaresque novel (reminiscent, at times, of Dickens and Defoe).”—Michiko Kakutani, The New York TimesNAMED ...

Cave Creek, Nevada—Where the Unexpected Meets the Real WorldStrange, unexplained events long plagued residents of Cave Creek, a former mining town nestled in a hidden canyon north of Las Vegas.In two previous anthologies, Bitter Mountain Moonlight and Open Ended Threat, the stories recount the past and present of the mythical Cave Creek, where portals to other timelines open and then disappear in the desert and rocks around the town.Promise in the Gold takes the rea...

In "Marm Lisa," Kate Douglas Smith Wiggin weaves a captivating narrative that offers a rich tapestry of social commentary and emotional depth. Set against the backdrop of early 20th-century America, the novel combines a delicate yet vivid prose style with an exploration of themes such as friendship, sacrifice, and the complexities of human relationships. Wiggin's narrative effectively employs humor intertwined with poignant reflections, drawing readers into the lives of her characters as t...