Ancient & Medieval

"Verlange nicht, dass das, was geschieht, so geschieht, wie du es wünschst, sondern wünsche, dass es so geschieht, wie es geschieht, und dein Leben wird heiter dahinströmen." - Worte und Gedanken, die man heute noch den Widrigkeiten des Schicksals entgegensetzen kann.Sprachen: Deutsch, Griechisch (bis 1453)

Il cartaginese Smerciato, rapito da bambino e venduto come schiavo, è al centro di una complicata vicenda di eredità, amori, trucchi e agnizioni. Poenulus introduce così nel teatro plautino uno spunto di riflessione sull'umanità del nemico. Al centro di Truculentus c'è invece la scaltra cortigiana Frinetta, uno tra i più antichi esempi letterari di femme fatale, che riesce a circuire i suoi tre amanti. Ad accomunare le due commedie è il tema della guerra e dei profondi cambiamenti socio-culturali che comporta. Le figure marginali nella Roma repubblicana - lo straniero e la donna - divengono protagoniste, a testimonianza di come Plauto seppe affrontare anche le scottanti questioni poste dalla Storia sulla scena romana a lui contemporanea.

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh begins with five Sumerian poems about Bilgamesh (Sumerian for "Gilgamesh"), king of Uruk, dating from the Third Dynasty of Ur (c.¿2100 BC). These independent stories were later used as source material for a combined epic in Akkadian. The first surviving version of this combined epic, known as the "Old Babylonian" version, dates back to the 18th century BC and is titled after its incipit, Sh¿tur eli sharr¿ ("Surpassing All Other Kings"). Only a few tablets of it have survived. The later Standard Babylonian version compiled by Sîn-l¿qi-unninni dates from the 13th to the 10th centuries BC and bears the incipit Sha naqba ¿muru ("He who Saw the Abyss", in unmetaphoric terms: "He who Sees the Unknown"). Approximately two-thirds of this longer, twelve-tablet version have been recovered. Some of the best copies were discovered in the library ruins of the 7th-century BC Assyrian king Ashurbanipal. The first half of the story discusses Gilgamesh, king of Uruk, and Enkidu, a wild man created by the gods to stop Gilgamesh from oppressing the people of Uruk. After Enkidu becomes civilized through sexual initiation with Shamhat, he travels to Uruk, where he challenges Gilgamesh to a test of strength. Gilgamesh wins the contest; nonetheless, the two become friends. Together, they make a six-day journey to the legendary Cedar Forest, where they plan to slay the Guardian, Humbaba the Terrible, and cut down the sacred Cedar. The goddess Ishtar sends the Bull of Heaven to punish Gilgamesh for spurning her advances. Gilgamesh and Enkidu kill the Bull of Heaven after which the gods decide to sentence Enkidu to death and kill him. In the second half of the epic, distress over Enkidu's death causes Gilgamesh to undertake a long and perilous journey to discover the secret of eternal life. He eventually learns that "Life, which you look for, you will never find. For when the gods created man, they let death be his share, and life withheld in their own hands". Nevertheless, because of his great building projects, his account of Siduri's advice, and what the immortal man Utnapishtim told him about the Great Flood, Gilgamesh's fame survived well after his death, with expanding interest in the his story. It has been translated into many languages and is featured in several works of popular fiction. The epic is regarded as a foundational work in religion and the tradition of heroic sagas, with Gilgamesh forming the prototype for later heroes like Heracles (Hercules), and the epic itself serving as an influence for Homeric epics. (wikipedia.org)

Verachtet mir die Glockengasse nicht! Ich weiß wohl, es ist eine trübe, freudlose Gasse, in ganz Wien ist keine, die sich so quälend ins Gemüt und in die Träume legt. Wenn sie noch eine rechtschaffene schwarze, kasernenhohe Proletariergasse wäre! Aber es ist die Gasse der Gecken der Armut, der Modedamen der Powerte. Hier wohnen Hausierer, deren Töchter heimlich Kreuzer auf Kreuzer legen, um drei Tage in einem protzigen Sommerbad, als »Reiche« verkleidet, zubringen zu können, hier wohnen abgemagerte Beamte mit fünf oder sechs grünbleichen Kindern, die aber Sonntags Matrosenanzüge mit großen weißen Kragen tragen müssen, hier wohnen im ersten Stock Börsianer, die zwei Winter lang reich sind und den armen Verwandten um die Ecke zeigen wollen, daß sie jetzt eine Französin zu den Kindern halten und ihnen Raketts und Tennisbälle geben, mit denen die Töchter ausgehen, obwohl es weit und breit kein Stückchen Rasen gibt.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

The R¿m¿yäa tradition is well-known for an inexhaustible variety of forms and narrative structures transmitted by different media. Oral-Written-Performed examines selected textual, oral, visual and performing forms in which the R¿ma story has functioned in Indian literature and arts. It also investigates the techniques that transform the R¿m¿yäa narratives. The volume addresses the question how narratives become vehicles for literary conventions and ideologies expressive of diverse sectarian concerns, or cultural values. It is an excellent companion to earlier publications on the R¿m¿yäa tradition and indispensable reading for students of South Asian literature, arts and religion

Assembling at the Tabard Inn in Southwark, twenty-nine pilgrims begin their journey to Canterbury Cathedral. To entertain themselves on their long road, their host suggests that they regale each other with stories, with the teller of the best tale set to earn a free supper. The pilgrims correspond to all sections of medieval society, from the crusading knight to the drunken cook, and their tales span a range of genres, including the comic ribaldry and deception of `The Miller's Tale' and the story of chivalry and courtly romance told by the Franklin. Unfinished at the time of his death, The Canterbury Tales are here presented in their original Middle-English. <BR><BR>This edition contains a wealth of material and over 3,000 notes which will help all students of Chaucer's masterpiece.

HC gerader Rücken kaschiert