As Gold in the Furnace: A College Story

Copus, J. E. (John Edwin), 1854-1915Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.5
Word count
339K words
Chapters
34

Tags

English Originals Young Adult Fiction Campus LifePortrait GalleryInspirationMoral DilemmaYouth GrowthYouth Reading

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today."As Gold in the Furnace" : A College Story by J. E. CopusAuthor: Copus, J. E. (John Edwin), 1854-1915,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Nov 5, 2011

Editor's review

This is a full-length novel set against the backdrop of college campus life. Its author, John E. Copes, was born in the mid-nineteenth century, and the work carries a strong period flavor. The title is taken from the image of "gold in the furnace," suggesting that the protagonist undergoes trials and growth in the course of his studies. The novel unfolds around college life, touching on themes such as friendship, ambition, temptation, and character formation, and presents the environment of American higher education and the spiritual outlook of young people at that time. For readers studying late-nineteenth-century American campus literature, educational history, or social customs, the book has a certain documentary value; for readers who enjoy classic coming-of-age stories, it also offers a youthful experience that transcends its era. The style is rather traditional and the narrative pace relatively slow; it is best read with an eye to understanding the historical background, focusing on the characters' choices and transformations in adversity rather than seeking intense dramatic conflict.

Who it's for

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Reading tips

  1. Before reading, learn about late-nineteenth-century American university systems and campus culture to better understand the characters' situations.
  2. Use the "gold in the furnace" image in the title as a clue, and pay attention to key passages where the protagonist faces setbacks and changes.
  3. Consider taking notes on character relationships to trace how interactions among classmates and teachers drive the protagonist's growth.
  4. If the original English is difficult, read chapter summaries first and then return for close reading to maintain continuity.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34

FAQ

How is this book different from modern campus novels? This book was written in the late nineteenth century and reflects the university system, social etiquette, and youth attitudes of that time; its pace is slower and its didactic tone more pronounced. Modern campus novels differ greatly in both concerns and narrative style; reading this book is more like learning about a period's educational life through literature.
What does "gold in the furnace" in the title mean? The image is borrowed from the smelting process and serves as a metaphor for the growth process in which a person is tested, impurities are removed, and character takes shape through study and life. As you read, pay attention to the protagonist's choices when facing difficulties and temptations, and see how this metaphor is embodied in the plot.
Is the original English difficult to read? The language belongs to late-nineteenth-century English, with longer sentences and older vocabulary, so it is somewhat removed from modern English. Readers with a foundation in English reading and familiarity with classical style will find it smoother; beginners may wish to use annotations or read summaries first.

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About the author

Copus, J. E. (John Edwin), 1854-1915 Author · 1854–1915

J. E. Copus (John Edwin Copus, 1854–1915) was an English-language author of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries whose life is now little known, and available public information is very limited. Only one work can currently be confirmed: the college novel As Gold in the Furnace: A College Story. Its title evokes the image of gold refined in the furnace, suggesting a story set in college life and concerned with the testing and growth of character in a young person's educational environment. Works of this kind typically centre on campus routine, relations between students and teachers, and young people's moral choices, and carry a didactic, coming-of-age quality. They may appeal to readers interested in educational fiction of the late Victorian and Edwardian periods. Because biographical material is lacking, his nationality, profession, and writing background cannot be reliably established; readers may instead treat this work as a sample of campus narrative from its era and use it to observe how popular English fiction of the time handled themes of growth, discipline, and belief.