Cleopatra — Volume 06

Georg Moritz EbersProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.6

Word count: 82K words
Chapters: 9

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.Cleopatra — Volume 06 by Georg EbersAuthor: Ebers, Georg, 1837-1898,Language: English, Class: PT: Language and Literatures: Germanic, Scandinavian, and Icelandic literatures, Release Date: Apr 1, 2004

Editor's review

This volume is the sixth of Ebers's Cleopatra, occupying a pivotal position in the overall arc as the narrative shifts from development toward resolution, typically carrying the task of intensifying conflict and turning the fates of the characters. Ebers's historical novels are grounded in archaeological interest and skillfully use scene and dialogue to evoke the texture of life in the ancient world, and this volume continues in the same manner. As a free eBook from Project Gutenberg, its value lies more in the accessibility and public-domain status of the text than in the quality of the edition: it has no modern introduction, notes, or maps, so readers must supply their own historical framework for the late Ptolemaic dynasty and Roman intervention in Egypt. It suits readers already midway through the story who wish to continue, reading in segments on the commute or before bed, and also serves as a sample of the reception history of nineteenth-century European classical fiction. Those expecting the pace of a modern historical thriller may find it slow and over-descriptive.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers working through the whole of Cleopatra who need to connect with what follows
Literary readers who enjoy the finely drawn scenes of nineteenth-century historical fiction
General readers interested in ancient Egypt and the classical tradition
Users of public-domain English texts for teaching or textual analysis

Not a good fit for

First-time readers unfamiliar with earlier volumes and the characters' relationships
Readers who prefer fast-paced plots and have little patience for long passages of description and dialogue
Specialist researchers who need an authoritative annotated edition or historical appendices

Reading tips

Before reading, review the main conflicts at the end of Volume 5 to clarify where this volume begins.
Read this volume together with Volume 7 to avoid a break in understanding before the ending.
Take brief notes on historical names and places for easy reference in later volumes.
If the pace feels slow, set a reading quota by chapter to keep moving forward.

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.

FAQ

Where does Volume 6 stand in the whole work?

According to the source, this is the sixth of the seven volumes of Cleopatra, following Volume 5 and preceding Volume 7, placing it in the latter part of the work. This position typically serves to escalate conflict and set up the conclusion, so it is best read in continuity with the surrounding volumes rather than as a standalone story.

Will the lack of notes affect comprehension?

Somewhat. Public-domain eBooks from Project Gutenberg generally contain no modern introduction, notes, or maps, so the historical figures, places, and events mentioned must be looked up by the reader. Keeping a chronology of the late Ptolemaic dynasty on hand, or reading a historical overview first, can considerably reduce the obstacles.

How is the electronic edition best read?

At the scale of a single volume, it suits segmented reading on a phone or e-reader, using search functions to look back at names and events. Being a public-domain text, it can also be copied for notes or read and discussed with friends, though it is not recommended as an annotated study edition.

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About the author

Georg Moritz Ebers Author · German · 1837–1898

Georg Ebers (1837–1898) was a German Egyptologist and novelist. Born in Berlin in 1837, he served as a professor at the University of Leipzig. His major contribution to Egyptology was the discovery, editing, and publication of the famous Ebers Papyrus, which provided valuable material for the study of ancient medical texts. At the same time, he devoted himself to spreading Egyptological knowledge through literature, writing historical novels such as An Egyptian Princess and Uarda. These works weave the social life and historical settings of ancient Egypt into their narratives, making specialized scholarship more accessible to general readers. His works number 172 in the library's collection, including the serialized volumes of An Egyptian Princess and Cleopatra, which shows how widely his historical novels circulated. Overall, Ebers combined scholarly rigor with a novelist's gift for popular expression, occupying a distinctive place in the popularization of Egyptology in the nineteenth century.