The Life of Joan of Arc, Vol. 1 and 2

France, Anatole, 1844-1924Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 4.2
Word count
1.8M words
Chapters
179

Tags

English Originals World HistoryHistorical Figures French HistoryCharacter StudyLegendary LivesJoan of ArcNational HeroHeroic FiguresWar and FaithHistorical NarrativeReligion and PowerWomen's Power

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 Life of Joan of Arc, Vol. 1 and 2 by Anatole FranceAuthor: France, Anatole, 1844-1924,Language: English, Class: DC: History: General and Eastern Hemisphere: France, Andorra, Monaco, Release Date: Oct 7, 2006

Editor's review

The Life of Joan of Arc, Vol. 1 and 2 is a biographical work on Joan of Arc by the French writer Anatole France, released as an English-language ebook in a two-volume set by Project Gutenberg. France is a major figure in French literature, and the book reflects his approach to historical figures through a literary lens: beyond marshaling historical sources, it emphasizes the portrayal of character and period atmosphere. As a public-domain resource, its advantages are that both volumes are complete and freely available, making it suitable as supplementary reading for those interested in Joan of Arc's life and late medieval French history. Readers should distinguish between historical narrative and literary expression and not treat it as the sole authoritative biography. It is advisable to read the table of contents and introductory chapters first to establish a timeline before proceeding to the main text, and to read the two volumes in stages to avoid information overload from reading straight through.

Who it's for

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Reading tips

  1. Read the table of contents and opening chapters first to map out the timeline of Joan of Arc's life
  2. Read the two volumes separately, taking brief notes after each volume before continuing
  3. Understand the text alongside background material on late medieval French history
  4. Compare key events with other biographies to distinguish literary narrative elements

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

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FAQ

Is this book rigorous historical scholarship or a literary biography? Anatole France treats Joan of Arc's life in a literary manner; the book combines historical sourcing with clearly literary expression. Readers should regard it as a literary historical biography rather than a work of pure scholarship, and verify key historical facts against other studies.
Do the two volumes need to be read in order? Reading in order is recommended. The two volumes connect sequentially along the timeline; reading the first volume first establishes the character and historical background, making the second volume more coherent. If time is limited, you can start by reading the table of contents to identify key chapters.
Is the English edition accessible to non-native readers? The book was written relatively early, and its English carries period and literary coloring with long sentences. Non-native readers should have at least intermediate reading proficiency and keep a dictionary and historical background material on hand for a smoother reading experience.

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About the author

France, Anatole, 1844-1924 Author

Anatole France (France, Anatole, 1844-1924) was a French writer whose real name was Anatole François Thibault. Because the available material is limited, the details of his life cannot be set out here, but it is clear that he produced a large body of work, of which 57 titles are held in this collection. His representative works include Penguin Island, Les Dieux ont soif (The Gods Are Athirst), The Revolt of the Angels, Vie de Jeanne d'Arc (The Life of Joan of Arc), and La rôtisserie de la Reine Pédauque (At the Sign of the Reine Pédauque), spanning novels, historical biography, and satirical fable. France's prose is elegant and unhurried, and he often examines society and history with urbane irony and a skeptical spirit, weaving philosophical reflection into his narratives. He had a lasting influence on French literature and was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1921.