"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," by Mark Twain, is part of
the "Barnes and Noble Classics" series, which offers quality
editions at affordable prices to the student and the general
reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of
carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features
of "Barnes and Noble Classics": New introductions commissioned from
today's top writers and scholars Biographies of the authors
Chronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural
events Footnotes and endnotes Selective discussions of imitations,
parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and
films inspired by the work Comments by other famous authors Study
questions to challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations
Bibliographies for further reading Indices and Glossaries, when
appropriateAll editions are beautifully designed and are printed to
superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical
interest. "Barnes and Noble Classics "pulls together a
constellation of influences--biographical, historical, and
literary--to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring
works. ""Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" is the only one of Mark
Twain's various books which can be called a masterpiece. I do not
suggest that it is his only book of permanent interest; but it is
the only one in which his genius is completely realized, and the
only one which creates its own category." "T. S. Eliot" Huckleberry
Finn, rebel against school and church, casual inheritor of gold
treasure, rafter of the Mississippi, and savior of Jim the runaway
slave, is the archetypical American maverick. Fleeing the
respectable society that wants to"sivilize" him, Huck Finn shoves
off with Jim on a rhapsodic raft journey down the Mississippi
River. The two bind themselves to one another, becoming intimate
friends and agreeing "there warn't no home like a raft, after all.
Other places do seem so cramped up and smothery, but a raft don't.
You feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft." As Huck
learns about love, responsibility, and morality, the trip becomes a
metaphoric voyage through his own soul, culminating in the glorious
moment when he decides to "go to hell" rather than return Jim to
slavery. Mark Twain defined classic as "a book which people praise
and don't read"; Huckleberry Finn is a happy exception to his own
rule. Twain's mastery of dialect, coupled with his famous wit, has
made "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn "one of the most loved and
distinctly American classics ever written. Nominated for a Grammy
for his work as co-producer of the five-CD box set "The Jazz
Singers" (1998), Robert O'Meally is Zora Neale Hurston Professor of
Literature at Columbia University and Director of Columbia
University's Center for Jazz Studies. He is the principal writer of
"Seeing Jazz" (1997), the catalogue for the Smithsonian's exhibit
on jazz and literature, and the co-editor of "The Norton Anthology
of African American Literature" (1996).
|
内容加载中，请稍后...
商品评论（0条）