DOCSLIB.ORG

Arch : Northwestern University Institutional Repository

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Arch : Northwestern University Institutional Repository NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY Myth and the Modern Problem: Mythic Thinking in Twentieth-Century Britain A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS for the degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Field of History By Matthew Kane Sterenberg EVANSTON, ILLINOIS December 2007 2 © Copyright by Matthew Kane Sterenberg 2007 All Rights Reserved 3 ABSTRACT Myth and the Modern Problem: Mythic Thinking in Twentieth-Century Britain Matthew Sterenberg This dissertation, “Myth and the Modern Problem: Mythic Thinking in Twentieth- Century Britain,” argues that a widespread phenomenon best described as “mythic thinking” emerged in the early twentieth century as way for a variety of thinkers and key cultural groups to frame and articulate their anxieties about, and their responses to, modernity. As such, can be understood in part as a response to what W.H. Auden described as “the modern problem”: a vacuum of meaning caused by the absence of inherited presuppositions and metanarratives that imposed coherence on the flow of experience. At the same time, the dissertation contends that— paradoxically—mythic thinkers’ response to, and critique of, modernity was itself a modern project insofar as it took place within, and depended upon, fundamental institutions, features, and tenets of modernity. Mythic thinking was defined by the belief that myths—timeless rather than time-bound explanatory narratives dealing with ultimate questions—were indispensable frameworks for interpreting experience, and essential tools for coping with and criticizing modernity. Throughout the period 1900 to 1980, it took the form of works of literature, art, philosophy, and theology designed to show that ancient myths had revelatory power for modern life, and that modernity sometimes required creation of new mythic narratives. Most fundamentally and most importantly, the dissertation demonstrates how mythic thinking constituted a new mode of making meaning that appealed to the imagination rather than reason by making the claim that myths communicate timeless truths that cannot be apprehended through 4 reason or science. Myth therefore signified what its advocates found lacking in both modernity and in alternative responses to it: myth was rooted neither in the past nor the present but was timeless, it offered wisdom rather than knowledge, unity instead of fragmentation, order in place of chaos, spiritual solace instead of unbelief, and meaning rather than confusion. If, as Auden contended, the modern problem was at bottom about a vacuum of meaning, then mythic thinking—because it posited an entirely novel way of making meaning that broke with the past— was an audacious and unique twentieth-century attempt to fill that vacuum. 5 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Oftentimes while writing this dissertation on myth I felt like I was in a myth, namely the myth of Sisyphus and his endless, futile toils. Quite simply, the dissertation would have been impossible to complete without the support, encouragement, and assistance of numerous friends, family members, and colleagues. So I am delighted to have this opportunity to thank them. My first thanks must go to my advisor and friend Bill Heyck who has enthusiastically and unfailingly supported this project from the beginning. Whenever my confidence flagged, he was there with an offer of lunch and the right reassuring words to get me back on track. Not only has he been an exemplary advisor, he is my role model for what it means to be a scholar and teacher. The other members of my excellent dissertation committee have also helped teach me what it means to be a scholar and to do scholarship. Alex Owen was an insightful and challenging dialogue partner as I tried to develop my thesis. Her knowledge of early twentieth-century Britain was indispensable and her interpretation of that period—which forced me to rethink some of my own notions—was stimulating in precisely the way that the best historical scholarship can be. Ken Alder’s enthusiasm for this project has been a constant source of encouragement. Every conversation with him reminded me that doing historical scholarship can be fun, thrilling, and endlessly surprising and fascinating—motivations that can easily be lost sight of during the long slog of writing a dissertation. Finally, I am grateful to him and the program in Science and Human Culture for making possible the funding that enabled me to do research abroad in Britain. A number of others have helped bring this dissertation to completion. Thanks to Marc Baer who first sparked my interest in British history and has offered advice on this project along the way. Thanks also to Ethan Schrum for his advice, encouragement, and for his helpful 6 comments on one of the chapters, which saved me from a number of errors. Likewise thanks to David Shaw for bringing to my attention the C.S. Lewis essay “First and Second Things.” I am grateful to the staff at the British Library, Senate House Library, Lambeth Palace Library, the BBC Written Archives Centre, and the Science Fiction Foundation Collection at the University of Liverpool for assisting me with the research for this project. Michael Pelletier, Amy Whipple, Thom Hajkowski, Guy Ortolano, Karl Gunther, Jana Measells, and Krzys Kozubski helped me more than they know. I am grateful to the Northwestern University Department of History and the benefactors of the Evan Frankel Fellowship for funding my studies. Many thanks also to Simon Greenwold for making possible the funding that enabled me to complete this project and for giving me an insider’s view of academic administration. While in the U.K. I benefited from the hospitality and help of many. I am grateful both to Larry Siedentop and to John Burrow for taking an interest in my work and for their hospitality and advice. Thanks especially to all at 25 Abercairn Road, all at St Helens, to Jan-Dirk and Ayako Schmoecker, and to Ernie Lew. Thanks as well go my friends from Northwestern IV GCF. I have been blessed by the generosity, encouragement, and wisdom of Ric and Allison Ashley. Bolu Ajiboye’s tenure at Northwestern almost exactly overlapped with mine, so I have been able to enjoy his humor and conversation for the entirety of my time here. Michael Rempe was a thoughtful friend and partner in crime when it came time to experience the oenological delights of Spain. Scott and Tara Norris, Page and Paul Lee, Kate and Doug Sprague, Edy Widjaja, Han Li, Randy Claussen, and Bumyong Choi have been steadfast friends. So likewise have been Kyle and Gigi Reed; Wednesday night sci fi marathons with Kyle will be greatly missed. Hannah Tims and Meris Mondernach displayed a gift for hospitality that brightened many a stressful week. I’ve greatly 7 appreciated Erik Rosengren’s sense of humor, candor, and encouragement. Thanks to Matt Young for many stimulating conversations, each one proof that the stereotype of scientists as illiberally educated bores is false. Thanks to Peter Sterenberg for keeping up a constant stream of ridicule, all of it carefully calculated to prod me into finishing this thing. Thanks to Masaharu, Natsue, and Makiko Itoh for their support in so many ways. My final and deepest thanks go to my parents, Russell and Lois Sterenberg, and to my wife, Yuko; this dissertation is dedicated to them. None of this would have been possible without my parents, who have been steadfast in their support and abounding in patience. They remain the best readers of my work. Finally, words cannot capture the gratitude I feel for Yuko and what it has meant to share life with her. I’ve come to depend on your patience, encouragement, good cheer, humor (even when missed), wisdom, and love. Just as I was about to give birth to this dissertation you topped me by giving birth to our first child, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Thank you. 8 CONTENTS ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………………..iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………………………………………...……….v Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION……………….………………………………...……………..……….9 Chapter 2. THE SHADOW OF THE GOLDEN BOUGH: ANTHROPOLOGY AND THE POPULARIZATION OF MYTHOLOGY IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY BRITAIN….33 Chapter 3. “THE GRAIL IS STIRRING”: MODERNIST WRITERS, THE MATTER OF BRITAIN, AND THE SPIRITUAL USES OF MYTH………………………………....78 Chapter 4. MAKING A MYTHOLOGY FOR ENGLAND: THE INKLINGS AND THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF MYTH………………………………………………………....127 Chapter 5. COPING WITH THE CATASTROPHE: J.G. BALLARD, THE BRITISH NEW WAVE, AND MYTHIC SCIENCE FICTION………………………………………....174 Chapter 6. MINDING THE MYTH-KITTY: MYTH AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF CULTURAL AUTHORITY IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY LITERARY CRITICISM.222 Chapter 7. MAKING A MODERN FAITH: MYTH AND MODERNITY IN TWENTIETH- CENTURY BRITISH THEOLOGY…………………………………………………....276 Chapter 8. CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………………………315 9 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The Modern Problem Modernity was predicament without precedent. That was W.H. Auden’s conclusion as he reflected on the challenges of modern life in 1948. He explained that inhabitants of the twentieth century were: …faced with the modern problem, i.e., of living in a society in which men are no longer supported by tradition without being aware of it, and in which, therefore, every individual who wishes to bring order and coherence into the stream of sensations, emotions, and ideas entering his consciousness, from without and within, is forced to do deliberately for himself what in previous ages has been done for him by family, custom, church, and state, namely the choice of the principles and presuppositions in terms of which he can
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Article Fairy Marriages in Tolkien’S Works GIOVANNI C
    article Fairy marriages in Tolkien’s works GIOVANNI C. COSTABILE Both in its Celtic and non-Celtic declinations, the motif the daughter of the King of Faerie, who bestows on him a of the fairy mistress has an ancient tradition stretching magical source of wealth, and will visit him whenever he throughout different areas, ages, genres, media and cul- wants, so long as he never tells anybody about her.5 Going tures. Tolkien was always fascinated by the motif, and used further back, the nymph Calypso, who keeps Odysseus on it throughout his works, conceiving the romances of Beren her island Ogygia on an attempt to make him her immortal and Lúthien, and Aragorn and Arwen. In this article I wish husband,6 can be taken as a further (and older) version of to point out some minor expressions of the same motif in the same motif. Tolkien’s major works, as well as to reflect on some over- But more pertinent is the idea of someone’s ancestor being looked aspects in the stories of those couples, in the light of considered as having married a fairy. Here we can turn to the often neglected influence of Celtic and romance cultures the legend of Sir Gawain, as Jessie Weston and John R. Hul- on Tolkien. The reader should also be aware that I am going bert interpret Gawain’s story in Sir Gawain and the Green to reference much outdated scholarship, that being my pre- Knight as a late, Christianised version of what once was a cise intent, though, at least since this sort of background fairy-mistress tale in which the hero had to prove his worth may conveniently help us in better understanding Tolkien’s through the undertaking of the Beheading Test in order to reading of both his theoretical and actual sources.
    [Show full text]
  • David Burrows and Simon O'sullivan, Fictioning
    BOOK REVIEW: David Burrows and Simon O’Sullivan, Fictioning: The Myth-Functions of Contemporary Art and Philosophy John Cussans The deadpan cover of David Burrows and Simon O’Sullivan’s Fictioning: The Myth-Functions of Contemporary Art and Philosophy will come as a surprise to anyone familiar with the authors’ parallel lives as the creators of Plastique Fantastique, the performance art group whose multi-sensory, neo-pagan, anarcho-sci-fi performance-rituals have been warping art audience sensoria since 2004. The emphatically no-frills design gives the impression of an editors’ proof waiting to be signed off. However, lurking beneath the black sans serif title that floats on a sea of grey, there is an obscure sequence of white letters fading into a smudgy evocation of an under- exposed film negative: ‘thr s nt & nvr hs bn nythng t ndrstnd!’ This disemvowelled sentence, the title of a group show Plastique Fantastique curated in 2012, reminds us that, beyond the sobriety of academic appearances and scholarly convention, there exists a mutating plasmate of unknown origin, whose creative unfolding we may never fully grasp or comprehend. The semi-visible unsentence is a coded reference to the esoteric leanings of the two authors and their shared admiration for the art of Austin Osman Spare, the English artist-magician to whom they dedicate an early section of the book. Spare was famously a proponent of sigil magic, an ancient occult practice rooted in medieval hermeticism and updated by Spare in the early twentieth century, through which one’s secret wishes can be made to have real world effects.
    [Show full text]
  • Earl Kemp: Ei54
    Vol. 10 No. 1 February 2011 –e*I*54– (Vol. 10 No. 1) February 2011, is published and © 2011 by Earl Kemp. All rights reserved. It is produced and distributed bi-monthly through http://efanzines.com by Bill Burns in an e-edition only. Contents – eI54 – February 2011 Cover: “Cupid Goes Cosmic,” by Steve Stiles …Return to sender, address unknown….44 [eI letter column] by Earl Kemp Introduction “The Last Dangerous Visionaries,” by Earl Kemp A Touch of Ellison, by Earl Terry Kemp “I Must Have It,” by Ted White A Personal Remembrance of Harlan Ellison, by Lynn Munroe In Company with Harlan, by Linda Moorcock Harlan, by Michael Moorcock Harlan, by John-Henri Holmberg Harlan Ellison’s Dangerous Visions, by Rob Latham Fifty Years—That’s Not Too Many, by Richard Lupoff Nebula Awards Tempe AZ 2006, by Patricia Rogers Get Stuffed, by Jerome Winter Unzipped, by J.D. Crayne Harlan Ellison and Final Stage, by Bud Webster Fond Memories, by Various Back cover: “Steam Punk Rescue,” by Ditmar [Martin James Ditmar Jenssen] Writing is the hardest work in the world. I have been a bricklayer and a truck driver, and I tell you—as if you haven't been told a million times already—that writing is harder. Lonelier. And nobler and more enriching. —Harlan Ellison THIS ISSUE OF eI is for Harlan Ellison on the occasion of his being named recipient of the 2011 Eaton Award for Lifetime Achievement in Science Fiction by the University of California, Riverside. In the strictly science fiction world, it is also in memory of Ruth Kyle.
    [Show full text]
  • Teaching Speculative Fiction in College: a Pedagogy for Making English Studies Relevant
    Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University English Dissertations Department of English Summer 8-7-2012 Teaching Speculative Fiction in College: A Pedagogy for Making English Studies Relevant James H. Shimkus Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/english_diss Recommended Citation Shimkus, James H., "Teaching Speculative Fiction in College: A Pedagogy for Making English Studies Relevant." Dissertation, Georgia State University, 2012. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/english_diss/95 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of English at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in English Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TEACHING SPECULATIVE FICTION IN COLLEGE: A PEDAGOGY FOR MAKING ENGLISH STUDIES RELEVANT by JAMES HAMMOND SHIMKUS Under the Direction of Dr. Elizabeth Burmester ABSTRACT Speculative fiction (science fiction, fantasy, and horror) has steadily gained popularity both in culture and as a subject for study in college. While many helpful resources on teaching a particular genre or teaching particular texts within a genre exist, college teachers who have not previously taught science fiction, fantasy, or horror will benefit from a broader pedagogical overview of speculative fiction, and that is what this resource provides. Teachers who have previously taught speculative fiction may also benefit from the selection of alternative texts presented here. This resource includes an argument for the consideration of more speculative fiction in college English classes, whether in composition, literature, or creative writing, as well as overviews of the main theoretical discussions and definitions of each genre.
    [Show full text]
  • Frustrated Redemption: Patterns of Decay and Salvation in Medieval Modernist Literature
    City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works Dissertations and Theses City College of New York 2013 Frustrated Redemption: Patterns of Decay and Salvation in Medieval Modernist Literature Shayla Frandsen CUNY City College of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/519 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] Frustrated Redemption: Patterns of Decay and Salvation in Medieval and Modernist Literature Shayla Frandsen Thesis Advisor: Paul Oppenheimer Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts of the City College of the City University of New York Table of Contents Preface 1 The Legend of the Fisher King and the Search for the 5 Modern Grail in The Waste Land, Paris, and Parallax “My burden threatens to crush me”: The Transformative Power 57 of the Hero’s Quest in Parzival and Ezra Pound’s Hugh Selwyn Mauberley Hemingway, the Once and Future King, 101 and Salvation’s Second Coming Bibliography 133 Frandsen 1 Preface “The riddle of the Grail is still awaiting its solution,” Alexander Krappe writes, the “riddle” referring to attempts to discover the origin of this forever enigmatic object, whether Christian or Folkloric,1 yet “one thing is reasonably certain: the theme of the Frustrated Redemption” (18).2 Krappe explains that the common element of the frustrated redemption theme is “two protagonists: a youth in quest of adventures and a supernatural being .
    [Show full text]
  • Mythic Journeys Program Participants
    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 27, 2004 MEDIA CONTACTS: Anya Martin (678) 468-3867 Dawn Zarimba Edelman Public Relations (404) 262-3000 [email protected] Mythic Journeys Program Participants Michael Vannoy Adams, D. Phil., C.S.W., is a Jungian analyst doing pioneering work in the field of myth and story in archetypal psychology. He is the author of The Mythological Unconscious, The Multicultural Imagination: "Race," Color, and the Unconscious and (forthcoming in 2004) The Fantasy Principle: Psychoanalysis of the Imagination. He is a clinical associate professor at the NYU Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis and a faculty member at the Object Relations Institute, the Blanton-Peale Graduate Institute and the New School University, where he was previously associate provost. He has been a Marshall Scholar in England and a Fulbright Senior Lecturer in India. He is the recipient of two Gradiva Awards from the National Association for the Advancement of Psychoanalysis. Stephen Aizenstat, Ph.D., is the founding president of Pacifica Graduate Institute, a private graduate school offering masters and doctoral programs in psychology and mythological studies. He is a licensed clinical psychologist, a marriage and family therapist, and a credentialed public school teacher. His original research centers on a psychodynamic process of “tending the living image,” particularly in the context of “dreamwork,” and he has conducted dreamwork seminars for more than 25 years throughout the US, Europe and Asia. Aizenstadt has recorded “DreamTending,” a six audiotape series released by Sounds True. His other publications include: “Dreams are Alive” in Depth Psychology: Meditations in the Field, edited by D.
    [Show full text]
  • Anna Karenina the Truth of Stories “ How Glorious Fall the Valiant, Sword [Mallet] in Hand, in Front of Battle for Their Native Land.” —Tyrtaeus, Spartan Poet the St
    The CollegeSUMMER 2014 • ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE • ANNAPOLIS • SANTA FE Anna Karenina The Truth of Stories “ How glorious fall the valiant, sword [mallet] in hand, in front of battle for their native land.” —Tyrtaeus, Spartan poet The St. John’s croquet team greets the cheering crowd in Annapolis. ii | The College | st. john’s college | summer 2014 from the editor The College is published by St. John’s College, Annapolis, MD, Why Stories? and Santa Fe, NM [email protected] “ He stepped down, trying not to is not just the suspense, but the connection made Known office of publication: through storytelling that matters: “Storytelling Communications Office look long at her, as if she were ought to be done by people who want to make St. John’s College the sun, yet he saw her, like the other people feel a little bit less alone.” 60 College Avenue In this issue we meet Johnnies who are story- Annapolis, MD 21401 sun, even without looking.” tellers in modern and ancient forms, filmmakers, Periodicals postage paid Leo Tolstoy, ANNA KARENINA poets, even a fabric artist. N. Scott Momaday, at Annapolis, MD Pulitzer Prize winner and artist-in-residence on Postmaster: Send address “Emotions are what pull us in—the character’s the Santa Fe campus, says, “Poetry is the high- changes to The College vulnerabilities, desires, and fears,” says screen- est expression of language.” Along with student Magazine, Communications writer Jeremy Leven (A64); he is one of several poets, he shares insights on this elegant form Office, St. John’s College, 60 College Avenue, alumni profiled in this issue of The College who and how it touches our spirits and hearts.
    [Show full text]
  • Educating the Moral Imagination : the Fantasy Literature of George
    EDUCATING THE MORAL IMAGINATION: THE FANTASY LITERATURE OF GEORGE MACDONALD, C.S. LEWIS, AND MADELEINE L'ENGLE Monika B. Hilder Master of Arts, The University of British Columbia 1983 Bachelor of Arts, The University of British Columbia 1980 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Faculty of Education O Monika Barbara Hilder 2003 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY December 2003 All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission of the author. APPROVAL NAME Monika Barbara Hilder DEGREE Doctor of Philosophy TITLE Educating the Moral Imagination: The Fantasy Literature of George MacDonald, C.S. Lewis, and Madeleine L'Engle EXAMINING COMMITTEE: Chair Rina Zazkis, Professor --------------- Kieran Egan, profess& Senior Supervisor J . Ki a -K~~Assistai5r0f~r,oepartrnentoTEn~lish, ---9Unive y of British Columbia Member -- Geoffrey Madoc-Jones, ASS~& Professor External Examiw Examiner Date: December 3, 2003 PARTIAL COPYRIGHT LICENSE I hereby grant to Simon Fraser University the right to lend my thesis, project or extended essay (the title of which is shown below) to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. I further agree that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by me or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publication of this work for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission.
    [Show full text]
  • And Estonian Kalev
    Scandinavian Kalf and Estonian Kalev HILDEGARD MUST OLD ICELANDIC SAGAStell us about several prominent :men who bore the name Kalfr, Kalfr, etc.1 The Old Swedish form was written as Kalf or Kalv2 and was a fairly common name in Viking-age Scandinavia. An older form of the same name is probably kaulfR which is found on a runic stone (the Skarby stone). On the basis of this form it is believed that the name developed from an earlier *Kaoulfr which goes back to Proto-Norse *KapwulfaR. It is then a compound as are most of old Scandinavian anthroponyms. The second ele- ment of it is the native word for "wolf," ON"ulfr, OSw. ulv (cf. OE, OS wulf, OHG wolf, Goth. wulfs, from PGmc. *wulfaz). The first component, however, is most likely a name element borrowed from Celtic, cf. Old Irish cath "battle, fight." It is contained in the Old Irish name Cathal which occurred in Iceland also, viz. as Kaoall. The native Germ.anic equivalents of OIr. cath, which go back to PGmc. hapu-, also occurred in personal names (e.g., as a mono- thematic Old Norse divine name Hr;or), and the runic HapuwulfR, ON Hr;lfr and Halfr, OE Heaouwulf, OHG Haduwolf, Hadulf are exact Germanic correspondences of the hybrid Kalfr, Kalfr < *Kaoulfr. However, counterparts of the compound containing the Old Irish stem existed also in other Germanic languages: Oeadwulf in Old English, and Kathwulf in Old High German. 3 1 For the variants see E. H. Lind, Nor8k-i8liind8ka dopnamn och fingerade namn fran medeltiden (Uppsala and Leipzig, 1905-15), e.
    [Show full text]
  • Acoustic Sounds Catalog Update
    WINTER 2013 You spoke … We listened For the last year, many of you have asked us numerous times for high-resolution audio downloads using Direct Stream Digital (DSD). Well, after countless hours of research and development, we’re thrilled to announce our new high-resolution service www.superhirez.com. Acoustic Sounds’ new music download service debuts with a selection of mainstream audiophile music using the most advanced audio technology available…DSD. It’s the same digital technology used to produce SACDs and to our ears, it most closely replicates the analog experience. They’re audio files for audiophiles. Of course, we’ll also offer audio downloads in other high-resolution PCM formats. We all like to listen to music. But when Acoustic Sounds’ customers speak, we really listen. Call The Professionals contact our experts for equipment and software guidance RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT RECOMMENDED SOFTWARE Windows & Mac Mac Only Chord Electronics Limited Mytek Chordette QuteHD Stereo 192-DSD-DAC Preamp Version Ultra-High Res DAC Mac Only Windows Only Teac Playback Designs UD-501 PCM & DSD USB DAC Music Playback System MPS-5 superhirez.com | acousticsounds.com | 800.716.3553 ACOUSTIC SOUNDS FEATURED STORIES 02 Super HiRez: The Story More big news! 04 Supre HiRez: Featured Digital Audio Thanks to such support from so many great customers, we’ve been able to use this space in our cata- 08 RCA Living Stereo from logs to regularly announce exciting developments. We’re growing – in size and scope – all possible Analogue Productions because of your business. I told you not too long ago about our move from 6,000 square feet to 18,000 10 A Tribute To Clark Williams square feet.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of the Kalevala in Finnish Culture and Politics URPO VENTO Finnish Literature Society, Finland
    Nordic Journal of African Studies 1(2): 82–93 (1992) The Role of the Kalevala in Finnish Culture and Politics URPO VENTO Finnish Literature Society, Finland The question has frequently been asked: would Finland exist as a nation state without Lönnrot's Kalevala? There is no need to answer this, but perhaps we may assume that sooner or later someone would have written the books which would have formed the necessary building material for the national identity of the Finns. During the mid 1980s, when the 150th anniversary of the Kalevala was being celebrated in Finland, several international seminars were held and thousands of pages of research and articles were published. At that time some studies appeared in which the birth of the nation state was examined from a pan-European perspective. SMALL NATION STATES "The nation state - an independent political unit whose people share a common language and believe they have a common cultural heritage - is essentially a nineteenth-century invention, based on eighteenth-century philosophy, and which became a reality for the most part in either the late nineteenth or early twentieth century. The circumstances in which this process took place were for the most part marked by the decline of great empires whose centralised sources of power and antiquated methods of administrations prevented an effective response to economic and social change, and better education, with all the aspirations for freedom of thought and political action that accompany such changes." Thus said Professor Michael Branch (University of London) at a conference on the literatures of the Uralic peoples held in Finland in the summer of 1991.
    [Show full text]
  • THE INTERACTION BETWEEN LANDSCAPE and MYTH in the NOVELS of JOHN COWPER POWYS by GWYNETH F. MILES MA Bryn Mawr College, 196?
    c . \ THE INTERACTION BETWEEN LANDSCAPE AND MYTH IN THE NOVELS OF JOHN COWPER POWYS by GWYNETH F. MILES M.A. Bryn Mawr College, 196? A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in the Department of English We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA September, 1973 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by his representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department The University of British Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada i Abstract Powys' novels are deeply rooted in a sense of place; much of their conflict develops through the effect of a particular locality upon the characters who live there or come there. This thesis demonstrates how Powys' sense of place is com• pounded of both a feeling for the physical landscape, and an awareness of the historical and mythical traditions which form its human past. Powys finds correspondences between the scenery and legends of a locality and the psychological states of his personae, and thus uses landscape and myth for symbolic purposes. The interaction of myth and landscape largely creates the characteristic atmosphere of the five novels studied here.
    [Show full text]