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Biography Of The Life Of Manuel
''Biography of the Life of Manuel'' is a series of novels, essays and poetry by James Branch Cabell. It purports to trace the life, illusions and disillusions of Dom Manuel, Count of Poictesme (a fictional province of France), and of his physical and spiritual descendants through many generations. Theme The conceit of the series is that the life (or at least the expectations) of Dom Manuel 'the Redeemer', which is the subject of the novel '' Figures of Earth'', did not end in his death but was continued in his heirs. The life of each follows the same pattern. ''The comedy is always the same. In the first act, the hero imagines a place where happiness exists. In the second, he strives towards that goal. In the third, he comes up short, or what amounts to the same thing: he achieves his goal only to find that happiness lies a little further down the road.'' --'' The High Place : A Comedy of Disenchantment'' (1923) Sequence The components of the ''Biography'' were written between 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Branch Cabell
James Branch Cabell (; April 14, 1879 – May 5, 1958) was an American author of fantasy fiction and ''belles-lettres''. Cabell was well-regarded by his contemporaries, including H. L. Mencken, Edmund Wilson, and Sinclair Lewis. His works were considered escapist and fit well in the culture of the 1920s, when they were most popular. For Cabell, veracity was "the one unpardonable sin, not merely against art, but against human welfare." Although escapist, Cabell's works are ironic and satirical. Mencken disputed Cabell's claim to romanticism and characterized him as "really the most acidulous of all the anti-romantics. His gaudy heroes ... chase dragons precisely as stockbrockers play golf." Cabell saw art as an escape from life, but found that, once the artist creates his ideal world, it is made up of the same elements that make the real one. Interest in Cabell declined in the 1930s, a decline that has been attributed in part to his failure to move out of his fantasy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The High Place
''The High Place'' (subtitled ''A Comedy of Disenchantment'') is a 1923 fantasy novel by James Branch Cabell, first published in hardcover by Robert M. McBride in an edition illustrated by Frank C. Pape. It is the eighth volume in the Storisende edition of Cabell's ''Biography of the Life of Manuel''. ''The High Place'' is a satirical sequel to the Sleeping Beauty tales, depicting a marriage where the "happily ever after" coda has gone far awry. In 1936, dramatist Sidney Kingsley attempted to stage an adaptation of the novel, to be retitled "The Enchanted Princess", on Broadway. Frank Morgan was reported to be the likely star of the production. The production was abandoned later that year, and Kingsley let his option on the novel expire. ''The High Place'' was revived in 1970 as a release in the Ballantine Adult Fantasy Series. It was reissued later in the decade by both Del Rey Books and Dover Books. Reception H. L. Mencken called ''The High Place'' "an extremely amusing b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Games Workshop
Games Workshop Group (often abbreviated as GW) is a British manufacturer of miniature wargames, based in Nottingham, England. Its best-known products are '' Warhammer Age of Sigmar'' and '' Warhammer 40,000''. Founded in 1975 by John Peake, Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson, Games Workshop was originally a manufacturer of wooden boards for games including backgammon, mancala, nine men's morris and Go. It later became an importer of the U.S. role-playing game '' Dungeons & Dragons'', and then a publisher of wargames and role-playing games in its own right, expanding from a bedroom mail-order company in the process. It expanded into Europe, the US, Canada, and Australia in the early 1990s. All UK-based operations were relocated to the current headquarters in Lenton, Nottingham in 1997. It started promoting games associated with ''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy in 2001. It also owns Forge World (which makes complementary specialist resin miniatures and conversion ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White Dwarf (magazine)
''White Dwarf'' is a magazine published by British games manufacturer Games Workshop, which has long served as a promotions and advertising platform for Games Workshop and Citadel Miniatures products. During the first ten years of its publication, it covered a wide variety of fantasy and science-fiction role-playing games (RPGs) and board games, particularly the role playing games '' Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' (''AD&D''), '' Call of Cthulhu'', ''RuneQuest'' and ''Traveller''. These games were all published by other games companies and distributed in the United Kingdom by Games Workshop stores. The magazine underwent a major change in style and content in the late 1980s. It is now dedicated exclusively to the miniature wargames produced by Games Workshop. History 1975: ''Owl and Weasel'' to ''White Dwarf'' Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone initially produced a newsletter called ''Owl and Weasel'', which ran for twenty-five issues from February 1975 before it evolved into ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Langford
David Rowland Langford (born 10 April 1953) is a British author, editor, and critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science fiction fanzine and newsletter ''Ansible'', and holds the all-time record for most Hugo Awards, with a total of 29 wins. Personal background David Langford was born and grew up in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales before studying for a degree in Physics at Brasenose College, Oxford, where he first became involved in science fiction fandom. Langford is married to Hazel and is the brother of the musician and artist Jon Langford. His first job was as a weapons physicist at the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston, Berkshire from 1975 to 1980. In 1985 he set up a "tiny and informally run software company" with science fiction writer Christopher Priest, called Ansible Information after Langford's news-sheet. The company has ceased trading. Increasing hearing difficulties have reduced Langford's participation i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horwendill
Aurvandill (Old Norse) is a figure in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, the god Thor tosses Aurvandill's toe – which had frozen while the thunder god was carrying him in a basket across the Élivágar rivers – into the sky to form a star called ' ('Aurvandill's toe'). In wider medieval Germanic-speaking cultures, he was known as ' in Old English, ' in Old High German, ' in Lombardic, and possibly as ' in Gothic. An Old Danish Latinized version, ''Horwendillus'' (Ørvendil), is also the name given to the father of ''Amlethus'' (Amleth) in Saxo Grammaticus' ''Gesta Danorum''. Comparative studies of the various myths where the figure is involved have led scholars to reconstruct a Common Germanic mythical figure named ', which seems to have personified the 'rising light' of the morning, possibly the Morning Star (Venus). However, the German and – to a lesser extent – the Old Danish evidence remain difficult to interpret in this model. Name and origin Etymology Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hamlet Had An Uncle
''Hamlet Had an Uncle: A Comedy of Honor'' is a novel by James Branch Cabell, published in 1940. It is the second book of his trilogy ''Heirs and Assigns''. Cabell had incubated a 'true version' of the Hamlet story for decades, and based his tale on Saxo Grammaticus, whose epic saga recounts the story of the historical Hamlet, Prince of Jutland, his murder of his father Horvendill, and his rivalry with Wiglek, the Prince of Denmark. Reception ''Kirkus Reviews'' declared it to be "slightly salacious" and "highly specialized nature, for those who like this eclectic type of thing".HAMLET HAD AN UNCLE reviewed at '' Kirkus Reviews
''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Ki ...
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The Cream Of The Jest
''The Cream of the Jest : A Comedy of Evasions'' is a comical and philosophical novel with possible fantasy elements, by James Branch Cabell, published in 1917. Much of it consists of the historical dreams and philosophical reflections of the main character, the famous writer Felix Kennaston. An early reviewer said it was more a series of essays than a novel.. Reprinted in . Plot introduction The novel takes place almost entirely around Lichfield, Virginia, Cabell's fictionalization of Richmond, Virginia, particularly in Kennaston's house, in the country. However, Kennaston's dreams take place in various parts of Europe and the Mediterranean basin at various times in the past. Also, part of ''The Cream of the Jest'' consists of the ending of the first version of Kennaston's novel, which is set in the Middle Ages around the castle of Storisende in a mythical country. The time covers a few years, apparently not long before the novel's publication in 1917. Plot summary The book ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jurgen, A Comedy Of Justice
''Jurgen, A Comedy of Justice'' is a fantasy novel by American writer James Branch Cabell, which gained fame (or notoriety) shortly after its publication in 1919. It is a humorous romp through a medieval cosmos, including a send-up of Arthurian legend, and excursions to Heaven and Hell as in ''The Divine Comedy''. Cabell's work is recognized as a landmark in the creation of the comic fantasy novel, influencing Terry Pratchett and many others. The book and its reception The eponymous hero, who considers himself a "monstrous clever fellow," embarks on a journey through ever more fantastic realms in search of a parodized version of courtly love. Everywhere he goes he meets eccentric knights and damsels, in an acerbic satire of contemporary America. Jurgen gains the attention of the Lady of the Lake, Queen Guinevere, Anaitis, Helen of Troy, Chloris, and even the Devil's wife. His wanderings take him from Poictesme to Glathion, Cocaigne, Leuke, Hell, and Heaven. The novel became mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Poictesme
Poictesme () is a fictional country or province which forms the setting of the fantasy works of James Branch Cabell, known collectively as ''Biography of the Life of Manuel''. Poictesme is ruled by the Count Dom Manuel. It was the author's intention to situate Poictesme roughly in Southern France. The name suggests the two real French cities of Poitiers (medieval ''Poictiers'') and Angoulême (medieval ''Angoulesme''). Poictesme is a fief of King Ferdinand of Castile and León, who installs Manuel as count in the year 1234. Cabell's fictional history of the country extends as far as the 17th century. The first map of Poictesme was drawn by Cabell himself, but other maps were created by artists such as Frank C. Papé, Peter Koch, and Judith Ann Lawrence. At the height of Cabell's popularity in the 1920s, Cabell's publishers sold framed wall-maps of Poictesme. The undergraduate literary journal of Virginia Commonwealth University is named ''pwatem'' after the fictional provinc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Comedy Of Woman-Worship
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient Greek letter alpha, from which it derives. The uppercase version consists of the two slanting sides of a triangle, crossed in the middle by a horizontal bar. The lowercase version can be written in two forms: the double-storey a and single-storey ɑ. The latter is commonly used in handwriting and fonts based on it, especially fonts intended to be read by children, and is also found in italic type. In English grammar, " a", and its variant " an", are indefinite articles. History The earliest certain ancestor of "A" is aleph (also written 'aleph), the first letter of the Phoenician alphabet, which consisted entirely of consonants (for that reason, it is also called an abjad to distinguish it fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective admission. Set within the Academical Village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the university is referred to as a "Public Ivy" for offering an academic experience similar to that of an Ivy League university. It is known in part for certain rare characteristics among public universities such as its historic foundations, student-run honor code, and secret societies. The original governing Board of Visitors included three U.S. presidents: Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe. The latter as sitting President of the United States at the time of its foundation. As its first two rectors, Presidents Jefferson and Madison played key roles in the university's foundation, with Jefferson designing both the original courses of study and the u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
