Eggplant.place

223d

"Style is but the faintly contemptible vessel in which the bitter liquid is recommended to the world."
The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1927)

American playwright and novelist Thornton Wilder died #OD in 1975.

He won three Pulitzer Prizes, for the novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and for the plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, and a U.S. National Book Award for the novel The Eighth Day.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thornton_Wilder

Books by Thornton Wilder at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/54602

#books #literature

Thornton Wilder pictured in his Yale College graduation photo, 1920. Image courtesy of the Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

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Frontispiece of The bridge of San Luis Rey

Author: Thornton Wilder

Illustrator: Amy Drevenstedt

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/69768

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227d

"There comes with old age a time when the heart is no longer fusible or malleable, and must retain the form in which it has cooled down."

In December 1864.

Sheridan Le Fanu's Gothic locked room mystery-thriller Uncle Silas completes its serialisation in his Dublin University Magazine as "Maud Ruthyn and Uncle Silas" and is published as a three-volume novel by Richard Bentley in London.

Uncle Silas at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/14851

#books #literature

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230d

Meet Belle da Costa Greene, the Most Fascinating Librarian in American History

By Jessica Stewart

https://mymodernmet.com/belle-da-costa-greene-morgan-library/

#books #librarian

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219d

In December 1919.

T. E. Lawrence loses most of the manuscript of Seven Pillars of Wisdom while changing trains at Reading in England en route from the Paris Peace Conference to Oxford.

The book had to be rewritten three times. From Seven Pillars, "... and then lost all but the Introduction and drafts of Books 9 and 10 at Reading Station, while changing trains. This was about Christmas, 1919." (p. 21)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Pillars_of_Wisdom

#books #literature

Tooling on the cover of the first public printing (1st edition) of Seven Pillars of Wisdom, showing twin scimitars and the legend: "the sword also means clean-ness + death".

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230d

"When one has weighed the sun in the balance, and measured the steps of the moon, and mapped out the seven heavens, there still remains oneself. Who can calculate the orbit of his own soul?"

Oscar Wilde died #OTD in 1900.

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/921

#books #literature

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223d

Ancient Indian texts reveal the liberating power of metaphysics

Indian metaphysics presented a philosophical route to a higher level of existence beyond limits of space and time

by Jessica Frazier

https://psyche.co/ideas/ancient-indian-texts-reveal-the-liberating-power-of-metaphysics?utm_source=Aeon+Newsletter&utm_campaign=0c3092fff2-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_12_7&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-d88b59c7bc-72664972

Books on this subject at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=metaphysics&submit_search=Search

#books #oldmanuscript #metaphysics

Diagrams of the Universe: The Two-and-a-Half Continents, the Universe in the Shape of a Person, and the Seven Levels of Hell, Gujarat, India, 1613. Courtesy the Cleveland Museum of Art

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230d

"There is nothing in the world like a persuasive speech to fuddle the mental apparatus and upset the convictions and debauch the emotions of an audience not practised in the tricks and delusions of oratory."

Mark Twain was born #OTD in 1835

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1213

#books #literature

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219d

"The educator must above all understand how to wait; to reckon all effects in the light of the future, not of the present."

Swedish writer Ellen Key was born #OTD in 1849.

She on many subjects in the fields of family life, ethics and education and was an important figure in the Modern Breakthrough movement. She was an early advocate of a child-centered approach to education and parenting, and was also a suffragist.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellen_Key

Ellen Key at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/502

#books

Portrait of Ellen Key, 1910.

Her clothing is characteristic of the early 20th century: a modest yet elegant dress made from soft, natural fabrics, with gentle pleats and simple detailing. Her hair is styled in a neat updo, reflecting the understated sophistication of her time.

Ellen's expression is thoughtful and contemplative, her eyes carrying a sense of wisdom and introspection. The background is warm and unobtrusive, subtly evoking a Scandinavian interior with muted tones and clean lines.

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219d

Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin: The Woman Who Unraveled the Stars

By: Akshita Singh

https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-resources/famous-astronomers/cecilia-payne-gaposchkin-the-woman-who-unraveled-the-stars/

Her PhD thesis is available at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/73996

#books #astrophysics

Cover page of Stellar atmospheres: A contribution to the observational study of high temperature in the reversing layers of stars

Author: Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin

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223d

As today is the re-opening of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, this is a good reason to re-read Victor Hugo's masterpiece. There is also an interesting book on the restoration of Notre-Dame (1843).

Notre-Dame de Paris - Tome 1 by Victor Hugo:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/70891

Notre-Dame de Paris - Tome 2:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/71445

The Hunchback of Notre Dame:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/6539

Projet de restauration de Notre-Dame de Paris by Lassus and Viollet-le-Duc:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/18920

#books #literature

Frontispiece of Notre-Dame de Paris - Tome 1

Author: Victor Hugo

Illustrator: François Flameng

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219d

In December 1922

A valise containing all Ernest Hemingway's manuscripts of the past year's writing is stolen at Paris-Gare de Lyon.

His first book, Three Stories and Ten Poems, was published in Paris. All that remained after the loss of the suitcase were two of the stories the volume contained; he wrote the third story early in 1923 while in Italy. A few months later, "in our time" was produced in Paris.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Hemingway

Hemingway at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/50533

#books #literature

Hemingway's 1923 passport photo; at this time, he lived in Paris with his wife Hadley and worked as a foreign correspondent for the Toronto Star Weekly.

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220d

#OTD in 1884.

The first London publication of Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn occurs.

Twain initially conceived of the work as a sequel to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer that would follow Huckleberry Finn through adulthood. He worked on the manuscript off and on for the next several years, ultimately abandoning his original plan of following Huck's development into adulthood.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adventures_of_Huckleberry_Finn

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/76

#books #literature

Cover of the book «Adventures of Huckleberry Finn» by Mark Twain, 1884

By E. W. Kemble (1861–1933)

The central focus is a depiction of Huckleberry Finn, often shown in a casual and relaxed pose, embodying his free-spirited and rebellious nature.

Kemble’s illustration style captures Huck in his rustic clothing—likely a worn shirt, pants rolled up at the cuffs, and perhaps a slouchy hat—evoking the setting of the American South.

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252d

"A good man with a good conscience doesn’t walk so fast."

#OTD in 1913.

Georg Büchner's play Woyzeck, unfinished on his death in 1837, receives its first performance at the Residenztheater, Munich.

Woyzeck at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/5322

#books #literature #theatre

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252d

#OTD in 1906.

Max Reinhardt inaugurates the Kammerspiele series of new plays at the Deutsches Theater in Berlin, with a production of Ghosts by Henrik Ibsen, designed by Edvard Munch.

Ghosts at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/8121

#books #literature #theatre

Event Gespenster Print | Go to Admin Venue Kammerspiele Berlin, Schumannstr. 13A, Berlin (Mitte), Germany First Date 8th November 1906

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252d

#OTD in 1838.

French novelist George Sand begins an uncomfortable winter living with her lover, the ailing Polish-born composer and pianist Frédéric Chopin, on the Mediterranean island of Majorca in the abandoned Carthusian monastery of Valldemossa.

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/14688

#books

More details Sand sews while Chopin plays piano, in a hypothetical reconstruction of Delacroix's 1838 painting, Portrait of Frédéric Chopin and George Sand.

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229d

#OTD in 1908.

Cuala Press, set up at Churchtown, Dublin, as a private press independent of the former Dun Emer Press in connection with the Irish Literary Revival and Arts and Crafts movement by Elizabeth "Lolly" Yeats with editorial support from her brother W. B. Yeats, produces its first publication, Poetry and Ireland: Essays by W. B. Yeats and Lionel Johnson (died 1902).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuala_Press

#books #literature

Elizabeth Yeats using the Cuala Press in Dun Emer Press (1903).

A poised woman in her early 30s, with neatly styled dark hair and wearing modest, period-appropriate attire. She might have an apron over her clothing, reflecting the hands-on nature of her craft.

A traditional hand-operated press dominates the scene. It is crafted from wood or metal, with levers, rollers, and stacks of paper nearby. This press symbolizes the artisanal approach of the Cuala Press.

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229d

"I saw you - and from that day
I see only you in the world."

Johan Henric Kellgren, born #OTD in 1751, was a Swedish poet and critic.

Kellgren began as a tutor and later worked as a journalist and editor for Stockholms Posten, where he gained a reputation as a sharp and influential critic. Notable works include "Mina Löjen", which blends satire with lyrical beauty, and "Den nya skapelsen", which highlights themes of renewal & enlightenment.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johan_Henric_Kellgren

#books #poetry #literature

19th century portrait of Kellgren, engraved by Evald Hansen.

Kellgren is portrayed as a man of intellectual bearing, with sharp, refined features. His face, clean-shaven and composed, reflects both intelligence and sensitivity. His hair, styled neatly and appropriate to the late 18th-century or early 19th-century fashion, might be powdered or combed back.

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229d

"A mathematician, like a painter or a poet, is a maker of patterns. If his patterns are more permanent than theirs, it is because they are made with ideas."

Godfrey Harold Hardy, who died #OTD in 1947, was an English mathematician, known for his achievements in number theory & mathematical analysis.

In biology, he is known for the Hardy–Weinberg principle, a basic principle of population genetics.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G._H._Hardy

Books by G.H. Hardy at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/39236

#books #mathematics

Photograph of Hardy c. 1927.

Hardy, in his late 80s, would have a distinguished, weathered face marked by deep lines, showing the passage of time and a life immersed in thought and creativity. His thin, white mustache would frame his upper lip, complementing his wispy, receding hair. His gaze, often described as thoughtful and piercing, might be directed slightly away from the camera, adding a reflective quality.

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229d

"Ask no questions, and you'll be told no lies."

#OTD in 1860.

Charles Dickens's Bildungsroman Great Expectations begins serialization in All the Year Round. Although intended for weekly publication, Great Expectations was divided into nine monthly sections, with new pagination for each.

Great Expectations at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/1400

#books #literature

Great Expectations advertised in All the Year Round.

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With Estella after all.

Great Expectations
[1867 Edition]
by Charles Dickens

https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/1400

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229d

#OTD in 1833.

Charles Dickens' first published work of fiction, "A Dinner at Poplar Walk", is the first item in what will become Sketches by Boz. It appears unsigned in the Monthly Magazine (London).

The earliest version of Sketches by Boz was published by John Macrone in two series: the first as a two-volume set in February 1836, and then a "Second Series" in August 1836.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sketches_by_Boz

Sketches by Boz at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/882

#books #literature

Frontispiece of the (first series) first edition, February 1836. Illustration by George Cruikshank

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252d

#OTD in 1900.

Sister Carrie a novel by Theodore Dreiser was published by Doubleday & McClure: 1,008 copies were printed, but the publisher made no effort to advertise the book and only 456 copies were sold.

https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/5267

#books #literature

Sister Carrie first edition 1900. The publishers kept the cover intentionally bland in order not to promote what was expected to be a controversial work.

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221d

#OTD in 1892.

George Bernard Shaw's first play Widowers' Houses has its first performance, at the Royalty Theatre in London under the auspices of the Independent Theatre Society. The author is booed.

This is one of three plays Shaw published as Plays Unpleasant in 1898. The other plays in the group are The Philanderer and Mrs. Warren's Profession.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widowers%27_Houses

Books by Bernard Shaw at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/467

#books #literature #theatre

G Bernard Shaw

Frederick H. Evans - National Portrait Gallery: NPG P113

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221d

#OTD in 1812.

Leigh Hunt is tried and convicted of libel for calling the Prince Regent "a violator of his word, a libertine over head and ears in debt and disgrace" in The Examiner on March 22.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leigh_Hunt

Original files (with links) are available at @internetarchive

Books by Leigh Hunt at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/3612

#books #literature

The Examiner 1812-12-06: Iss 258
Publication date 1812-12-06

https://archive.org/details/sim_examiner-a-weekly-paper-on-politics-literature-music_1812-12-06_258/page/n11/mode/2up

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The Examiner 1812-03-22: Iss 221
Publication date 1812-03-22

https://archive.org/details/sim_examiner-a-weekly-paper-on-politics-literature-music_1812-03-22_221/mode/1up

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221d

"Was that, then, the way we do things? "Not knowing"— was that the way the most profound things happened? ... Was the secret of never escaping from the greater life the secret of living like a sleepwalker?"
The Passion According to G.H.

~Clarice Lispector (December 10, 1920 – December 9, 1977)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarice_Lispector

#books #literature

Uma coletânea de contos de Clarice Lispector (1920-1977), publicada em julho deste ano nos Estados Unidos com o título "The complete stories", entrou na lista dos 100 melhores livros de 2015 feita pelo jornal americano "The New York Times". A editora Rocco planeja publicar a versão nacional de "The complete stories" em abril de 2016. O título da versão nacional ainda não foi definido. Clarice Lispector nasceu em Tchetchelnick, na Ucrânia. Seu nome de batismo era Haia. Ela se mudou com a família para o Brasil em 1922 e aqui ganhou o nome de Clarice. Em sua lista de melhores do ano, o "New York Times" escreve que "a brasileira foi uma das verdadeiras [vozes] autênticas da literatura latino-americana". O jornal cita como exemplos desses "inovadores" o argentino Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986), o mexicano Juan Rulfo (1917-1986) e o também brasileiro Machado de Assis (1839-1908).

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221d

#OTD in 1822.

French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel, in a memoir read to the Academy of Sciences, coins the terms linear polarization, circular polarization, and elliptical polarization, and reports a direct refraction experiment verifying his theory that optical rotation is a form of birefringence.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustin-Jean_Fresnel

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polarization_(waves)

The wave theory of light is available at @internetarchive
https://archive.org/details/wavetheoryofligh00crewrich

#books #physics