How To Travel With A Salmon Other Essays

Author : Umberto Eco
Publisher : HMH
ISBN 13 : 0547540434
Total Pages : 259 pages
Book Rating : 4.36/5 ( download)

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Download or read book How to Travel with a Salmon written by Umberto Eco and published by HMH. This book was released on 1995-09-15 with total page 259 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Impishly witty and ingeniously irreverent” essays on topics from cell phones to librarians, by the author of The Name of the Rose and Foucault’s Pendulum (The Atlantic Monthly). A cosmopolitan curmudgeon the Los Angeles Times called “the Andy Rooney of academia”—known for both nonfiction and novels that have become blockbuster New York Times bestsellers—Umberto Eco takes readers on “a delightful romp through the absurdities of modern life” (Publishers Weekly) as he journeys around the world and into his own wildly adventurous mind. From the mundane details of getting around on Amtrak or in the back of a cab, to reflections on computer jargon and soccer fans, to more important issues like the effects of mass media and consumer civilization—not to mention the challenges of trying to refrigerate an expensive piece of fish at an English hotel—this renowned writer, semiotician, and philosopher provides “an uncanny combination of the profound and the profane” (San Francisco Chronicle). “Eco entertains with his clever reflections and with his unique persona.” —Kirkus Reviews Translated from the Italian by William Weaver

Author : Umberto Eco
Publisher : Columbia University Press
ISBN 13 : 0231500149
Total Pages : 168 pages
Book Rating : 4.42/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Serendipities written by Umberto Eco and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 1998-10-06 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Best-selling author Umberto Eco's latest work unlocks the riddles of history in an exploration of the "linguistics of the lunatic," stories told by scholars, scientists, poets, fanatics, and ordinary people in order to make sense of the world. Exploring the "Force of the False," Eco uncovers layers of mistakes that have shaped human history, such as Columbus's assumption that the world was much smaller than it is, leading him to seek out a quick route to the East via the West and thus fortuitously "discovering" America. The fictions that grew up around the cults of the Rosicrucians and Knights Templar were the result of a letter from a mysterious "Prester John"—undoubtedly a hoax—that provided fertile ground for a series of delusions and conspiracy theories based on religious, ethnic, and racial prejudices. While some false tales produce new knowledge (like Columbus's discovery of America) and others create nothing but horror and shame (the Rosicrucian story wound up fueling European anti-Semitism) they are all powerfully persuasive. In a careful unraveling of the fabulous and the false, Eco shows us how serendipities—unanticipated truths—often spring from mistaken ideas. From Leibniz's belief that the I Ching illustrated the principles of calculus to Marco Polo's mistaking a rhinoceros for a unicorn, Eco tours the labyrinth of intellectual history, illuminating the ways in which we project the familiar onto the strange. Eco uncovers a rich history of linguistic endeavor—much of it ill-conceived—that sought to "heal the wound of Babel." Through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, Greek, Hebrew, Chinese, and Egyptian were alternately proclaimed as the first language that God gave to Adam, while—in keeping with the colonial climate of the time—the complex language of the Amerindians in Mexico was viewed as crude and diabolical. In closing, Eco considers the erroneous notion of linguistic perfection and shrewdly observes that the dangers we face lie not in the rules we use to interpret other cultures but in our insistence on making these rules absolute. With the startling combination of erudition and wit, bewildering anecdotes and scholarly rigor that are Eco's hallmarks, Serendipities is sure to entertain and enlighten any reader with a passion for the curious history of languages and ideas.

Author : Umberto Eco
Publisher : HMH
ISBN 13 : 0547545967
Total Pages : 322 pages
Book Rating : 4.67/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Travels in Hyperreality written by Umberto Eco and published by HMH. This book was released on 2014-06-24 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A “scintillating collection” of essays on Disneyland, medieval times, and much more, from the author of Foucault’s Pendulum (Los Angeles Times). Collected here are some of Umberto Eco’s finest popular essays, recording the incisive and surprisingly entertaining observations of his restless intellectual mind. As the author puts it in the preface to the second edition: “In these pages, I try to interpret and to help others interpret some ‘signs.’ These signs are not only words, or images; they can also be forms of social behavior, political acts, artificial landscapes.” From Disneyland to holography and wax museums, Eco explores America’s obsession with artificial reality, suggesting that the craft of forgery has in certain cases exceeded reality itself. He examines Western culture’s enduring fascination with the middle ages, proposing that our most pressing modern concerns began in that time. He delves into an array of topics, from sports to media to what he calls the crisis of reason. Throughout these travels—both physical and mental—Eco displays the same wit, learning, and lively intelligence that delighted readers of The Name of the Rose and Foucault’s Pendulum. Translated by William Weaver

Author : Umberto Eco
Publisher : Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
ISBN 13 : 0544176561
Total Pages : 595 pages
Book Rating : 4.60/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Name of the Rose written by Umberto Eco and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This book was released on 2014 with total page 595 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1327, Brother William of Baskerville is sent to investigate charges of heresy against Franciscan monks at a wealthy Italian abbey but finds his mission overshadowed by seven bizarre murders.

Author : Umberto Eco
Publisher : HMH
ISBN 13 : 0547563787
Total Pages : 480 pages
Book Rating : 4.87/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Kant and the Platypus written by Umberto Eco and published by HMH. This book was released on 2000-11-09 with total page 480 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How do we know a cat is a cat . . . and why do we call it a cat? An “intriguing and often fascinating” look at words, perceptions, and the relationship between them (Newark Star-Ledger). In Kant and the Platypus, the renowned semiotician, philosopher, and bestselling author of The Name of the Rose and Foucault’s Pendulum explores the question of how much of our perception of things is based on cognitive ability, and how much on linguistic resources. In six remarkable essays, Umberto Eco explores in depth questions of reality, perception, and experience. Basing his ideas on common sense, Eco shares a vast wealth of literary and historical knowledge, touching on issues that affect us every day. At once philosophical and amusing, Kant and the Platypus is a tour of the world of our senses, told by a master of knowing what is real and what is not. “An erudite, detailed inquirity into the philosophy of mind . . . Here, Eco is continental philosopher, semiotician, and cognitive scientist rolled all into one.” —Library Journal (starred review)

Author : Paul Greenberg
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 1101442298
Total Pages : 304 pages
Book Rating : 4.96/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Four Fish written by Paul Greenberg and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2010-07-15 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A necessary book for anyone truly interested in what we take from the sea to eat, and how, and why.” —Sam Sifton, The New York Times Book Review Acclaimed author of American Catch and The Omega Princple and life-long fisherman, Paul Greenberg takes us on a journey, examining the four fish that dominate our menus: salmon, sea bass, cod, and tuna. Investigating the forces that get fish to our dinner tables, Greenberg reveals our damaged relationship with the ocean and its inhabitants. Just three decades ago, nearly everything we ate from the sea was wild. Today, rampant overfishing and an unprecedented biotech revolution have brought us to a point where wild and farmed fish occupy equal parts of a complex marketplace. Four Fish offers a way for us to move toward a future in which healthy and sustainable seafood is the rule rather than the exception.

Author : Umberto Eco
Publisher : Indiana University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780253024190
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.96/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Apocalypse Postponed written by Umberto Eco and published by Indiana University Press. This book was released on 2000-11-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An erudite and witty collection of Umberto Eco's essays on mass culture from the 1960s through the 1980s, including major pieces which have not been translated into English before. The discussion is framed by opposing characterizations of current intellectuals as apocalyptic and opposed to all mass culture, or as integrated intellectuals, so much a part of mass culture as to be unaware of serving it. Organized in four main parts, "Mass Culture: Apocalypse Postponed," "Mass Media and the Limits of Communication," "The Rise and Fall of Counter-Cultures," and "In Search of Italian Genius," Eco looks at a variety of topics and cultural productions, including the world of Charlie Brown, distinctions between highbrow and lowbrow, the future of literacy, Chinese comic strips, whether countercultures exist, Fellini's Ginger and Fred, and the Italian genius industry.

Author : Donna Leon
Publisher : Open Road + Grove/Atlantic
ISBN 13 : 0802194036
Total Pages : 201 pages
Book Rating : 4.39/5 ( download)

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Download or read book My Venice written by Donna Leon and published by Open Road + Grove/Atlantic. This book was released on 2013-12-03 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A collection of “entertaining . . . unapologetically opinionated” essays from the New York Times–bestselling author of the Commissario Guido Brunetti novels (The New York Times). Donna Leon has won legions of fans and waves of critical acclaim for her international bestselling mystery series featuring Venetian Commissario Guido Brunetti—not only for her intricate plots and gripping narratives, but for her insight into the culture, politics, family-life, and history of Venice. But outside of her mystery novels, Leon has also been writing essays on Venetian life and related topics for years. In My Venice and Other Essays, the best of these essays are collected: more than fifty charming and insightful works ranging in topic from battles over garbage in the canals to the troubles with rehabbing Venetian real estate. Leon shares episodes from her life, explores her love of opera, and recounts tales from in and around her country house in the mountains. With pointed observations and humor, she also explores her family history, her former life in New Jersey, and the idea of the “Italian man.” Sure to please longtime Leon fans as well as anyone who appreciates the wit and wisdom of a master wordsmith, this volume offers “an intriguing glimpse at the strong views of an exceptionally interesting and entertaining novelist” (The Seattle Times).

Author : David Coggins
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1982152516
Total Pages : 272 pages
Book Rating : 4.12/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Optimist written by David Coggins and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2022-05-10 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The perfect fly fishing book for today's novice, enthusiastic amateur, as well as the devoted angler is part narration of the author's own angling obsessions and adventures, part practical how-to, and part meditation on a connection to the natural world.

Author : Umberto Eco
Publisher : Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
ISBN 13 : 9780156607520
Total Pages : 196 pages
Book Rating : 4.22/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Misreadings written by Umberto Eco and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This book was released on 1993 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Playful parodies by the author of The Name of the Rose and Foucault's Pendulum. Here, Eco pokes fun at the oversophisticated, overacademic, and overintellectual, and along the way makes penetrating comments about our modern mass culture and the elitist avant-garde in art in criticism.