Good Sense and Good Taste

Chagas, Manuel Pinheiro, 1842-1895Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 16K words
Chapters: 2

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.Bom-senso e bom-gosto by Manuel Pinheiro ChagasAuthor: Chagas, Manuel Pinheiro, 1842-1895,Language: Portuguese, Class: PQ: Language and Literatures: Romance literatures: French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Release Date: Sep 23, 2009

Editor's review

This book is "Common Sense and Good Taste" (Bom-senso e bom-gosto), written in Portuguese by the Portuguese author Manuel Pinheiro Chagas. It is a public-domain e-book from Project Gutenberg, classified under Romance-language literature. Judging by the title, it deals with topics such as judgment and aesthetic taste in an essayistic, argumentative vein, and is well suited to observing the tone of nineteenth-century Portuguese literature and critical discourse. Its appeal lies in its likely light length and style, allowing readers to encounter how a nineteenth-century author discusses "common sense" and "taste" and to sense the concern of writers of the period with standards of taste. It is suitable as supplementary reading for a Portuguese literature anthology or as an entry point into the modern Portuguese essay tradition. Note that the available information provides only bibliographic details and does not set out the specific contents of the chapters; readers should not expect a systematic aesthetic theory. A safer approach is to treat the book as a historical text, attending to its manner of argument and period tone rather than seeking aesthetic principles that can be applied directly.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers studying Portuguese literature who wish to encounter nineteenth-century essayistic texts
Readers interested in modern taste criticism and the mentality of literary figures
Advanced learners seeking public-domain Portuguese materials for language or textual analysis

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking systematic aesthetic theory or a modern guide to taste
Beginners with weak Portuguese who want light, story-driven works
General leisure readers expecting a plot-driven novel or a complete literary history

Reading tips

First browse the table of contents and opening to determine whether it is argumentative or essayistic, then decide whether to read it through or selectively.
While reading, note the author's use of "common sense" and "taste" and compare semantic differences with today.
Compare it with other nineteenth-century Portuguese essays to observe shared tones of critical discourse.
If the language proves difficult, read an introduction or related scholarship first, then return to selected passages of the original.

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

What is this book mainly about?

Judging by the title and classification, it is an argumentative text written in Portuguese by Chagas, discussing "common sense" and "good taste" and forming part of nineteenth-century Portuguese literature and critical discourse. The available information does not provide a detailed chapter breakdown; readers should approach it as a historical essay.

Is this book suitable for learning Portuguese?

It can serve as advanced reading material but is not suitable for absolute beginners. The text reflects nineteenth-century writing habits, and its sentence patterns and vocabulary differ from contemporary Portuguese. Intermediate reading ability or above is recommended, along with annotations or scholarly resources.

How does it differ from modern books on aesthetics or taste?

It is not an aesthetic guide in the modern sense but an argumentative text from a specific historical context. Its value lies in understanding how writers of the time discussed common sense and taste, not in providing directly applicable aesthetic standards; readers should view its views with a historical eye.

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About the author

Chagas, Manuel Pinheiro, 1842-1895 Author

Manuel Pinheiro Chagas (1842–1895) was a Portuguese writer. Public information about his life, education and official posts is limited, so no conjecture is offered here. Four of his works are held in the collection, showing considerable variety in subject and genre. Historia alegre de Portugal presents Portuguese history as an accessible reader for the people and for schools, and the word "alegre" in the title suggests a light, humorous tone. Bom-senso e bom-gosto, judging by its title, concerns common sense and good taste and appears to be discursive or critical in nature. A Lenda da Meia-Noite, "The Midnight Legend," indicates his interest in legends and supernatural or fantastic narrative material. Astucias de Namorada, e Um melodrama em Santo Thyrso combines writing on the stratagems of courtship with a melodrama, showing his engagement with dramatic narrative. Overall, his writing balances popular instruction with literary interest, uses plain language, and addresses ordinary readers and schools, giving it some significance in Portuguese popular reading and educational literature.