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Can I read the second book of "In Search of Lost Time" out of order if I can't find a good translation?
I want to read the In Search of Lost Time series out of order, because there is no good translation of the second book in my language.
Is it necessary to read the book series in order? Are they related? Do I miss anything if I read these books out…
Navid777
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Does 'literary fiction' neccessarily have to be reality-based, or can it have fantastical themes/elements?
There seems to be a great deal of ambiguity or confusion regarding the definition of ‘literary fiction’. Particularly, it is never really made clear to me whether literary fiction can also be speculative fiction at the same time.
On one hand,…
user394536
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7
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When did people begin to regard Gulliver's Travels as a children's book?
Jonathan Swift published Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of several Ships in 1726 as a satire on human nature. Wikipedia also adds,
Published seven years after…
Tsundoku
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7
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How much did The Lord of the Rings cost when it was first published in 1954/1955?
What was the original price (first edition/first printing by Allen & Unwin, London) of The Lord of the Rings books when they were first sold in 1954/1955?
CMK
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7
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Is there significance to the location of Lilliput in Gulliver's Travels?
If we look at the map, we can conclude that Lilliput is in the Indian Ocean. Is there any significance to its location in the Indian Ocean? What is that significance, if any?
Benjamin
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7
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Method for comparing two works of literature
I study French literature and I want to carry out a research in comparative literature which compares two books written by soldiers of the World War (one of them by a French soldier and the other one by a German soldier).
My problem is that I cannot…
user11853
7
votes
1 answer
The name of a fantasy story whose end loops back to the beginning?
I am looking for the name and author of a late 80s/early 90s fantasy/sci-fi story whose ending loops back to its beginning due to "time damage". Our hero, at the end, is about to begin the plot all over again, thanks to "time problems". It is a fat…
fundagain
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Savantism by Whitman
The poem
I'm trying to understand the following poem by Whitman, called Savantism.
THITHER, as I look, I see each result and glory retracing itself and
nestling close, always obligated;
Thither hours, months, years--thither trades, compacts,
…
user1630
7
votes
1 answer
Short story about a condemned organ
Well over 50 years ago I read a short story about an organ in a building (church or music hall?) which I believe had been slated for demolition. Rather than suffer the indignity of destruction at others' hands, the organ began playing itself with…
7
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1 answer
When was Machiavelli's Art of War first translated into Chinese?
Bookeater recently asked when Sun Zi's Art of War was first adopted outside China. However, Sun Zi was not the only author who wrote a treatise on this topic. Machiavelli wrote Dell'arte della guerra / The Art of War around 1519-1520 and it was the…
Tsundoku
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What are we supposed to learn about the reality in "Atlas Shrugged" from "The Vulture is Molting"?
In Chapter 4 of Atlas Shrugged, Dagny is walking:
She walked on. She stopped at the window of a bookstore. The window displayed a pyramid of slabs in brownish-purple jackets, inscribed: The Vulture Is Molting. “The novel of our century,” said a…
Mithical
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Looking for a book (possibly a pair of them) with whimsical illustrations of misheard phrases
I think I read this at one of my grandparents in the early 1980s, but unfortunately, many of those books have been lost over the years between sticky-fingered grandchildren, general wear and tear, and my surviving grandparents trying to reduce their…
Sean Duggan
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7
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Does The Chronicles of Narnia promote deism?
Very related: Why does the Emperor-Over-the-Sea play such a small role in the Chronicles of Narnia?
Also related: Why is the Emperor Beyond the Sea named that?
The Chronicles of Narnia refer to Aslan's father as "the Emperor beyond the Sea." He is…
EJoshuaS - Stand with Ukraine
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In Finnegans Wake, surely these two characters are different, and one is dead?
Since the motivation and argument supporting my question is long, but the question itself is fairly short, I will state the question as a spoiler. If the answer turns out to be indeed yes, then it would certainly spoil a brave first reading of…
fundagain
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7
votes
3 answers
Is there such a thing as an unbiased text?
A few months ago, I participated in a debate, where the topic to be debated upon was "An unbiased text is a myth", which is to say that all texts have their share of bias. I was on the "against" side of the debate, and lost miserably, and I'm not…
Mr. Nothing
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