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Dante (Paperback, Main)
Alessandro Barbero; Translated by Allan Cameron
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R279
Discovery Miles 2 790
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Ships in 12 - 17 working days
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"A vital guide ... It is difficult to imagine anyone seriously
interested in Dante who will not want to own this book" AN Wilson,
The Times Since Dante Alighieri wrote the Divine Comedy it has
defined how people imagine and depict not only heaven and hell, but
romantic love and the human condition. However, while Dante's works
are widely celebrated outside Italy, the circumstances of his
extraordinary life are less well known. Born in 1265, Dante's
adolescence was characterised by literary genius, but his political
activism in one of the medieval world's wealthiest cities led to
his death in exile. Pre-eminent Dante scholar Alessandro Barbero
and celebrated translator Allan Cameron bring the poet vividly to
life. Animating the political intrigue, violence, civil war, exile
and cities that shaped Dante's poetic and political life, this is a
remarkable portrait of one of the creators of European literature
and a towering medieval figure in time for the 700th anniversary of
his death.
A middle-aged judge driven by curiosity and the intellectual
challenge of his work, a nervous and neurotic young historian
willing to run all manner of risks to uncover the state crimes of
the forties, a nerdy, well-educated and good-natured young
journalist motivated principally by the desire to enjoy life and
not to dwell on the miseries of the past, a KGB general once
responsible for some of the purges and now an Islamist radical, an
inept, capricious and delightfully self-aware Jewish actor, and an
Islamic cleric loyal to the Soviet Union, whose murder has so many
repercussions, all these carefully constructed characters could be
found in any society but Alessandro Barbero has brought them to
life in one of the most elusive, unstable and neglected historical
realities: Gorbachev's Russia. And this proves to be fertile ground
for Barbero, one that generates endless themes and the opportunity
to express his love for Russian literature and culture. Barbero
used his skills as a historian to study the reality of that society
through its newspapers and journals, and his skills as a novelist
to weave a complex plot - a tale of two cities: Moscow and Baku.
And throughout, the narrative voice - perhaps the greatest
protagonist of them all - represents not the author's views but
those of the Russian public as they emerged from one dismal reality
and hurtled unknowingly towards another.
The most important study of Charlemagne in a generation, this
biography by distinguished medievalist Alessandro Barbero
illuminates both the man and the world in which he lived. Charles
the Great--Charlemagne--reigned from a.d. 768 to a.d. 814. At the
time if his death, his empire stretched across Europe to include
Bavaria, Saxony, parts of Spain, and Italy. With a remarkable grasp
of detail and a sweeping knowledge of Carolingian institutions and
economy, Barbero not only brings Charlemagne to life with accounts
of his physical appearance, tastes and habits, family life, and
ideas and actions but also conveys what it meant to be king of the
Franks and, later, emperor. He recounts how Charlemagne ruled his
empire, kept justice, and waged wars. He vividly describes the
nature of everyday life at that time, how the economy functioned,
and how Christians perceived their religion. Barbero's absorbing
analysis of how concepts of slavery and freedom were subtly altered
as feudal relations began to grow underscores the dramatic changes
that the emperor's wars brought to the political landscape.
Engaging and informed by deep scholarship, this latest account
provides a new and richer context for considering one of history's
most fascinating personalities.
The most important study of Charlemagne in a generation, this
biography by distinguished medievalist Alessandro Barbero
illuminates both the man and the world in which he lived. Charles
the Great-Charlemagne-reigned from a.d. 768 to a.d. 814. At the
time if his death, his empire stretched across Europe to include
Bavaria, Saxony, parts of Spain, and Italy. With a remarkable grasp
of detail and a sweeping knowledge of Carolingian institutions and
economy, Barbero not only brings Charlemagne to life with accounts
of his physical appearance, tastes and habits, family life, and
ideas and actions but also conveys what it meant to be king of the
Franks and, later, emperor. He recounts how Charlemagne ruled his
empire, kept justice, and waged wars. He vividly describes the
nature of everyday life at that time, how the economy functioned,
and how Christians perceived their religion. Barbero's absorbing
analysis of how concepts of slavery and freedom were subtly altered
as feudal relations began to grow underscores the dramatic changes
that the emperor's wars brought to the political landscape.
Engaging and informed by deep scholarship, this latest account
provides a new and richer context for considering one of history's
most fascinating personalities.
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