The Monster That Is History

The Monster That Is History PDF Author: David Der-Wei Wang
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 9780520937246
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 420

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Book Description
In ancient China a monster called Taowu was known for both its vicious nature and its power to see the past and the future. Over the centuries Taowu underwent many incarnations until it became identifiable with history itself. Since the seventeenth century, fictive accounts of history have accommodated themselves to the monstrous nature of Taowu. Moving effortlessly across the entire twentieth-century literary landscape, David Der-wei Wang delineates the many meanings of Chinese violence and its literary manifestations. Taking into account the campaigns of violence and brutality that have rocked generations of Chinese—often in the name of enlightenment, rationality, and utopian plenitude—this book places its arguments along two related axes: history and representation, modernity and monstrosity. Wang considers modern Chinese history as a complex of geopolitical, ethnic, gendered, and personal articulations of bygone and ongoing events. His discussion ranges from the politics of decapitation to the poetics of suicide, and from the typology of hunger and starvation to the technology of crime and punishment.

Prehistoric Monsters

Prehistoric Monsters PDF Author: Allen A. Debus
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 0786458151
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 341

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Book Description
Over centuries, discoveries of fossil bones spawned legends of monsters such as giants and dragons. As the field of earth sciences matured during the 19th century, early fossilists gained understanding of prehistoric creatures such as Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops and Stegosaurus. This historical study examines how these genuine beasts morphed in the public imagination into mythical, powerful engines of destruction and harbingers of cataclysm, taking their place in popular culture, film, and literature as symbols of "lost worlds" where time stands still.

Monsters and Monarchs

Monsters and Monarchs PDF Author: Debbie Felton
Publisher: University of Texas Press
ISBN: 1477323066
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 235

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Book Description
Jack the Ripper. Jeffrey Dahmer. John Wayne Gacy. Locusta of Gaul. If that last name doesn’t seem to fit with the others, it’s likely because our modern society largely believes that serial killers are a recent phenomenon. Not so, argues Debbie Felton—in fact, there’s ample evidence to show that serial killers stalked the ancient world just as they do the modern one. Felton brings this evidence to light in Monsters and Monarchs, and in doing so, forces us to rethink the assumption that serial killers arise from problems unique to modern society. Exploring a trove of stories from classical antiquity, she uncovers mythological monsters and human criminals that fit many serial killer profiles: the highway killers confronted by the Greek hero Theseus, such as Procrustes, who tortured and mutilated their victims; the Sphinx, or “strangler,” from the story of Oedipus; child-killing demons and witches, which could explain abnormal infant deaths; and historical figures such as Locusta of Gaul, the most notorious poisoner in the early Roman Empire. Redefining our understanding of serial killers and their origins, Monsters and Monarchs changes how we view both ancient Greek and Roman society and the modern-day killers whose stories still captivate the public today.

Strange Monsters of the Recent Past

Strange Monsters of the Recent Past PDF Author: Howard Waldrop
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780441160693
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description


Monsters in America

Monsters in America PDF Author: W. Scott Poole
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781481308823
Category : Animals, Mythical
Languages : en
Pages : 311

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Book Description
Monsters are here to stay.--Christopher James Blythe "Journal of Religion and Popular Culture"

Dragons of the Deep

Dragons of the Deep PDF Author: Carl Wieland
Publisher: New Leaf Publishing Group
ISBN: 9780890514245
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 88

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Book Description
"Monsters" once swam through Earth's oceans, and they were likely the inspiration for ancient sightings by mariners who described fantastic encounters on the open seas. In this colorful new book, Dr. Carl Wieland's laymen-friendly descriptions are complemented by beautiful illustrations. Readers will be amazed that these complex, huge beasts actually lived. This book provides a thoroughly biblical analysis, insisting that these "dragons of the sea" came into existence during the Creation Week as outlined in Genesis. Dragons of the Deep is totally evolution free, explaining the facts about fossils from a biblical perspective--Answers In Genesis.

The Monster That Is History

The Monster That Is History PDF Author: David Der-Wei Wang
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 9780520937246
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 420

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Book Description
In ancient China a monster called Taowu was known for both its vicious nature and its power to see the past and the future. Over the centuries Taowu underwent many incarnations until it became identifiable with history itself. Since the seventeenth century, fictive accounts of history have accommodated themselves to the monstrous nature of Taowu. Moving effortlessly across the entire twentieth-century literary landscape, David Der-wei Wang delineates the many meanings of Chinese violence and its literary manifestations. Taking into account the campaigns of violence and brutality that have rocked generations of Chinese—often in the name of enlightenment, rationality, and utopian plenitude—this book places its arguments along two related axes: history and representation, modernity and monstrosity. Wang considers modern Chinese history as a complex of geopolitical, ethnic, gendered, and personal articulations of bygone and ongoing events. His discussion ranges from the politics of decapitation to the poetics of suicide, and from the typology of hunger and starvation to the technology of crime and punishment.

The Monster That Is History

The Monster That Is History PDF Author: Dewei Wang
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520238737
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 416

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Book Description
In ancient China a monster called Taowu was known for both its vicious nature and its power to see the past and the future. Since the seventeenth century, fictive accounts of history have accommodated themselves to the monstrous nature of Taowu. Moving effortlessly across the entire twentieth-century literary landscape, David Der-wei Wang delineates the many meanings of Chinese violence and its literary manifestations.

Monsters and Monstrosity in Jewish History

Monsters and Monstrosity in Jewish History PDF Author: Iris Idelson-Shein
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1350052159
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 289

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Book Description
This is the first study of monstrosity in Jewish history from the Middle Ages to modernity. Drawing on Jewish history, literary studies, folklore, art history and the history of science, it examines both the historical depiction of Jews as monsters and the creative use of monstrous beings in Jewish culture. Jews have occupied a liminal position within European society and culture, being deeply immersed yet outsiders to it. For this reason, they were perceived in terms of otherness and were often represented as monstrous beings. However, at the same time, European Jews invoked, with tantalizing ubiquity, images of magical, terrifying and hybrid beings in their texts, art and folktales. These images were used by Jewish authors and artists to push back against their own identification as monstrous or diabolical and to tackle concerns about religious persecution, assimilation and acculturation, gender and sexuality, science and technology and the rise of antisemitism. Bringing together an impressive cast of contributors from around the world, this fascinating volume is an invaluable resource for academics, postgraduates and advanced undergraduates interested in Jewish studies, as well as the history of monsters.

The Last Monster

The Last Monster PDF Author: Ginger Garrett
Publisher: Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0553535269
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
A story steeped in magical realism about love, fear, and the thrill of discovering who we were born to be, The Last Monster is a story about making peace with our insecurities and defending those who must hide what they really are. Sofia has never felt special. Not at school, or with her track team, and especially not since she’s become sick. She’s always been different, but this doesn't make her stand out . . . it's makes her invisible. Then something special lands right in Sofia’s lap. An ancient book that serves as a portal for the Greek philosopher, Xeno, one of Aristotle’s lost students. Sofia has been chosen to be the next Guardian. Suddenly Sofia is not only trying to survive middle-school cliques and first crushes, she’s in charge of protecting grotesquely beautiful, lonely monsters that have roamed the Earth for centuries. Drawn into Xeno’s violent and unpredictable world of mystery, Sofia learns that loving outsiders has a price. "While the fantastical elements are compelling, it’s the real-world situations that make this book stand out. . . a perfect recommendation for introspective kids who feel like outsiders."--SLJ "Garrett's prose, frequently poignant and sophisticated, is punctuated with wry humor."--Kirkus "The oft-used concept of finding one’s true self is employed here in a uniquely imaginative way, complete with occasional black-and-white illustrations. An appealing tale for readers dealing with their own insecurities."--Booklist

Oversummoned, Overpowered, and Over It! Volume 2

Oversummoned, Overpowered, and Over It! Volume 2 PDF Author: Saitosa
Publisher: J-Novel Club
ISBN: 1718392508
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 233

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Book Description
Hey, everyone! It’s your favorite protagonist, Inori Takafuji. Not much has changed since you last saw me. I’ve still been summoned more times than any person has a right to be, I still love sleeping, and I still have more skills than I know what to do with. But I’ve got a new job! I’m no longer the Rising Sun Kingdom’s extraneous hero—I’m an adventurer. That’s right, it’s a brand-new me! I’m gonna live free! No more training for— Huh? There’s still training? Well, at least now I can kick back and— Oh? That’s a no-go too? And what’s that? Literal gods are gunning for me? Welp...that’s just fantastic. No rest for the wicked, I guess. Anyway, time to see what the Holy Land of Ryne has in store for me...