The Best of the World‘s Classics, Restricted to Prose, Vol. X - America -

Project GutenbergProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.0
Word count
413K words
Chapters
42

Tags

English Originals World Classics Humanistic CareIntellectual EnlightenmentWestern ThoughtFamous AuthorsSelected EssaysBeautiful EssaysPopular ExplanationEclectic ReadingAmerican LiteratureCross-Cultural View

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.The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to Prose, Vol. X (of X) - America -Author: ,Language: English, Class: PN: Language and Literatures: Literature: General, Criticism, Collections, Release Date: Jun 17, 2009

Editor's review

This prose anthology is the tenth volume of the "Best of the World's Classics" series, devoted exclusively to American prose and forming part of Project Gutenberg's free public-domain ebook collection. Its value lies not in any single astonishing piece but in presenting, through the anthology form, a historical cross-section of American prose, letting readers encounter within one volume essays and discursive writing by various authors on various subjects. As a public-domain reset edition, it preserves the tastes and editorial logic of an older anthology, making it suitable for author studies, comparative anthology work, and extensive reading in English prose. It is best treated as a "map of prose" rather than a "greatest-hits close-reading volume": first skim the contents to identify authors or themes of interest, then read individual pieces closely, consulting reference works on American literary history when background is unfamiliar. Because it is an original English text from an earlier era, its language and annotation conventions bear the marks of their time and require some stamina in English reading. It suits occasional dipping as well as use as a supplementary anthology for courses on American prose.

Who it's for

A good fit for

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Reading tips

  1. Read the contents and editor's note first, group pieces by author or theme, and closely read two or three at a time
  2. Keep a history of American literature or author biographies at hand; when encountering an unfamiliar name, check the background before reading the text
  3. Treat the anthology as extensive reading material; do not look up every word, but first grasp the main idea and tone of each piece

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
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42

FAQ

Is this book an English original or a Chinese translation? This is an English public-domain ebook released by Project Gutenberg, with the text in English and no Chinese translation. Readers need a certain level of English reading ability and familiarity with earlier-period English expression and typesetting conventions.
Does the anthology contain complete essays or excerpts? From the available information, this is a classic anthology restricted to prose; the specific pieces and whether they are excerpted should be confirmed against the ebook's actual contents. Before reading, skim the contents to confirm the length and genre of each piece, then decide whether to read closely or extensively.
Is it suitable for preparing for English exams? It is better suited to literary extensive reading and background expansion than to exam training. The pieces are from an earlier era, and their language style differs considerably from exam reading materials; if used for exams, it is advisable to select only short pieces for language-sense practice and to pair them with contemporary materials.

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About the author

Project Gutenberg Author

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