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Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám (Fitzgerald 5th edition)

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Poetry
Chapter: 5 | Listen: 2

The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám is so-named from the Persian word rubáiyát – a Persian word denoting a specific type of two-line stanza. Omar’s Rubaiyat is a beautiful anthology of Islamic wisdom literature: originally penned in medieval Persian during the late 11th century AD. The best known English translations are those by Edward Fitzgerald: his fifth (and last) translation includes a mere 101 quatrains – a fraction of Omar’s original work. Fitzgerald’s selection loosely groups quatrains by theme; rendering quatrains into English as four-line, rhymed stanzas. Omar’s writings are pervaded by the consciousness of the transient quality of life. In his Rubáiyát, the author ponders the limits of human knowledge and morality: and confronts his readers point-blank with the difficult questions that challenge every generation: – what is the ultimate benefit derived from human knowledge? – given human mortality; is is best to guide our lives by the dictates of reason, or sensuality? – what happens to my soul when I die? – why did God – the Creator – give me existence? (Introduction by Godsend) [chương_files]

Dryden vs Shadwell – a Poetic Duel

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Poetry, Satire
Chapter: 5 | Listen: 7

Throughout history there have been many creative artists whose fame depends largely on their association with a much greater artist. Such the case of Thomas Shadwell, poet and prolific writer of low brow comedies, who is today most famous as the butt of satire by one of greatest and most influential English poets, John Dryden. Shadwell and Dryden were at first colleagues and collaborators, but later fell out over some sharp divergences of opinion. In particular, Dryden disagreed with Shadwell’s high estimation of Ben Jonson, and even more of the latter’s claim to be be Jonson’s artistic heir. The most celebrated product of this controversy was Dryden’s satirical poem, Mac Flecknoe, in which he presents Shadwell as the apostle of dullness. This elegant satire was first circulated unpublished in pamphlet form and then published in 1682. Shadwell responded with “The Medal of John Bayes” which has as a preface a mocking “Epistle to the Tories.” Dryden’s reply was a further poem “The Medal” which likewise had a preface: “Epistle to the Whigs.” Shadwell is also the subject of harsh reference in Dryden’s Absolom and Achitophel (1681). In his lifetime, Shadwell emerged the victor from this dispute. In 1688, James II was deposed, and Dryden, as a Tory and a staunch Catholic, lost both favour at court and the position of Poet Laureate. His successor was Shadwell, a Whig and a convenient rather than a devout Protestant. Forced into retirement, Dryden concentrated on the translations of Latin classics, most notably the […]

Short Poetry Collection 181

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Poetry
Chapter: 35 | Listen:

This is a collection of 35 poems read in English by LibriVox volunteers for June 2018. Translated poems: The Bride of Corinth, by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, translated by John Anster (1793-1867) The Diwan of Abu’l-Ala by Abu al-Ala Al-Ma’arri, translated by Henry Baerlein (1875-1960) [chương_files]

Short Poetry Collection 096

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Poetry
Chapter: 40 | Listen: 3

This is a collection of poems read by LibriVox volunteers for the months of April and May 2011. [chương_files]

Ballad of St. Barbara and Other Verses

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Poetry
Chapter: 35 | Listen: 2

This book of poetry by G. K. Chesterton, originally published in 1922, contain 35 poems on a variety of subjects. (Summary by Maria Therese) [chương_files]

Waste Land (version 3)

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Poetry
Chapter: 1 | Listen: 3

The Waste Land is T. S. Eliot’s Modernist masterpiece, first published in 1920. Rich in allusions to Shakespeare, Dante, Baudelaire, the Bible, Marvell, Buddha, and the folklore of the Holy Grail, among other sources, the poem emphasizes the fundamental fragmentation and lack of connection that characterizes modern life and relationships. (Summary by Elizabeth Klett) [chương_files]

Sammlung kurzer Werke von Karl May

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Essay/Short nonfiction, Fiction, Poetry
Chapter: 20 | Listen: 3

Sammlung von 19 kurzen Werken von Karl May: Die beiden Kulledschi. Eine Orienterzählung aus Ägypten. Veröffentlicht in: Der Gute Kamerad. 5. Jg. Nr. 50. Berlin, Stuttgart (1891). Der blinde Bergmann. Ein Gedicht. Veröffentlicht in: Schacht und Hütte. 1. Jg. Nr. 3. Dresden (1875). Die Both Shatters. Ein Abenteuer aus dem »wilden Westen« von Karl Hohenthal (Pseudonym). Veröffentlicht in: Für alle Welt! 5. Jg. Heft 27. Stuttgart (1882). Ehrlich währt am Längsten. Aufsatz über ein Deutsches Sprüchwort. Mit hoher Wahrscheinlichkeit von Karl May verfaßt. Veröffentlicht in: Schacht und Hütte. 1. Jg. Nr. 6. Dresden (1875). Herbstgedanken. Ein kurzer, bildhafter Aufsatz. Veröffentlicht in: Schacht und Hütte. 1. Jg. Nr. 6. Dresden (1875). Im Sonnenthau. Eine Erzählung aus dem Erzgebirge. Veröffentlicht in: Trewendt’s Volks-Kalender auf das Schaltjahr 1880. 36. Jg. Breslau (1879). Inn – nu – woh, der Indianerhäuptling. Ein Abenteuer aus der Mappe eines Vielgereisten. Veröffentlicht in: Deutsches Familienblatt. Wochenschrift für Geist und Gemüth zur Unterhaltung für Jedermann. 1. Jg. Nr. 1. – Dresden: H.G. Münchmeyer (1875). Jagd auf wilde Truthühner in Texas. Ein kurzer Aufsatz. Veröffentlicht in: Illustrirte Welt. 38. Jg. Heft 15. Stuttgart, Leipzig, Berlin, Wien (1890). Mein Elysium. Gedicht veröffentlicht in: Neuer Deutscher Reichsbote. Jg. 1878. Stolpen (1877). Meine einstige Grabschrift. Veröffentlicht in: Neuer Deutscher Reichsbote. Jg. 1873. Stolpen (1872). Der Oelprinz. Ein Abenteuer aus den Vereinigten Staaten von Nordamerika. Veröffentlicht in: Frohe Stunden. 2. Jg. Nr. 11. Dresden, Leipzig (1878). Ein Prairiebrand. Eine Kurzgeschichte aus Nordamerika. Veröffentlicht in: Der Gute Kamerad. 1. Jg. Nr. 11. Berlin, Stuttgart (1887). […]

On the Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery

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Essay/Short nonfiction, Fiction, Non-fiction, Science
Chapter: 1 | Listen: 4

Joseph Lister was born near London in 1827. He studied medicine at the University of London and pursued a career as a surgeon in Scotland. He became professor of Surgery in Glasgow and later (1877) at Kings College Hospital, in London. Lister’s contribution to the advancement of surgery cannot be overestimated. Before his work on antisepsis, wounds were often left open to heal, leading to long recoveries, unsightly scarring, and not infrequently amputation or death due to infection. Lister’s work enabled more wounds to be closed primarily with sutures, drastically reducing healing time, scarring, amputations, and deaths due to infection. Lister retired in 1896 but was called back to assist in the operation on King Edward VII for appendicitis just days before the King’s coronation. The King later credited Lister for his survival and quick recovery. Lister died in 1912. [chương_files]

Crossways

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Poetry
Chapter: 16 | Listen:

The first collection by Irish-born poet William Butler Yeats. Many decades before his mysterious and austere Modernist verse earned him a Nobel prize, Yeats achieved renown as one of the last major poets in the High Romantic tradition. These poems showcase his Celtic imagination, his love for Irish folk-tales, and his commitment to the Romantic ideal of love. (Summary by Kasper Nijsen) [chương_files]

Short Poetry Collection 095

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Poetry
Chapter: 31 | Listen: 3

This is a collection of poems read by LibriVox volunteers for the months of February and March 2011. [chương_files]