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Essays of Elia by Charles Lamb – review
A humble clerk with the East India Company for much of his life, Charles Lamb (1775-1834) came into his own writing essays "under the phantom cloud of Elia". This assumed name, borrowed from another clerk, enabled him to put the full resources of his wit at the service of a form to which he was temperamentally suited, and made his own.
Tragic domestic circumstances bound Charles to his sister Mary, with whom he lived "in a sort of double singleness", after she stabbed their mother to death in a fit of madness. Contrasting his tastes in reading with those of his sister, who "must have a story – well, ill, or indifferently told", Lamb confides that "out-of-the-way humours and opinion – heads with some diverting twist in them – the oddities of authorship please me most". Montaigne, whose presence hovers over the Essays of Elia (1823), would have approved.
Lamb's nimble, cadenced prose, with its occasional antiquated turn of phrase, exhibits the same curious mixture of erudition and colloquialism, of seriousness and jest, as that of his French predecessor. For his unruly "little sketches", Lamb, like Montaigne, quarries his own experience, his circle of acquaintances and relatives thinly disguised beneath initials and pseudonyms, just like Elia himself.
Evoked with rare sensuality, the minutiae of everyday life – a card game in "Mrs Battle's Opinions on Whist", the ritual of saying "Grace Before Meat", the perils of lending books in "The Two Races of Men" – are all grist to his mill. Essays of Elia certainly lends itself to repeated reading, and when Lamb's popularity was at its height, his Victorian and Edwardian readers could recite entire passages. Thanks to this elegant new Hesperus edition, Charles Lamb's forgotten masterpiece is ripe for rediscovery.
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Miscellaneous essays by C. Lamb. The first series appeared in the London Magazine, 1820–23, and as a separate volume 1823. The Last Essays of Elia were published in 1833. Lamb adopted the name Elia, which was that of a former Italian clerk at the South Sea House, ostensibly to save the embarrassment of his brother John, who worked at that same place. The essays are not reliably autobiographical. The fanciful, old‐fashioned character of the narrator is, in Lamb's words, ‘a bundle of prejudices’ with a strong liking for the whimsical, the quaint, and the eccentric. The tone is never didactic or seriously philosophical, and all the more disturbing aspects of life are avoided. The style is very literary, filled with archaisms and with echoes of Lamb's master Sterne. Some of the best‐known essays were: ‘Some of the Old Benchers of the Inner Temple’; ‘Christ's Hospital’; ‘The South Sea House’; ‘Mrs Battle's Opinions on Whist’; ‘Dream Children’; and ‘A Dissertation on Roast Pig’.
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Essays of elia.
Charles Lamb, one of the most engaging personal essayists of all time, began publishing his unforgettable, entertaining Elia essays in the London Magazine in 1820; they were so immediately popular that a book-length collection was published in 1823. Inventing the persona of “Elia” allowed Lamb to be shockingly honest and to gain a playful distance for self-examination. The resulting essays touch upon a wide range of compelling subjects from the deliciously humorous “Dissertation upon Roast Pig” to the poignantly reflective “New Year's Eve.” Yet collectively they also comprise a fascinating personal memoir, veiled under the pseudonymous disguise of Elia. Now back in print with a new foreword by the distinguished personal essayist Phillip Lopate and with useful annotations, Essays of Elia will provide a delicious stylistic treat for all readers.
“. . . one of the classics of English prose and a cornerstone of the personal essay tradition. All personal essayists worth their salt owe a huge debt to this generous and generative collection. . . ; all apprentice essayists who would strive to make headway in the form will need to read it. . . . Essays of Elia is not only an essential text, but a near-buried treasure, an all-but-lost masterpiece in our contemporary culture.” — Phillip Lopate
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The Essays of Elia Paperback – April 8, 2019
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- Print length 146 pages
- Language English
- Publication date April 8, 2019
- Dimensions 6 x 0.33 x 9 inches
- ISBN-10 1093198281
- ISBN-13 978-1093198287
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- Publisher : Independently published (April 8, 2019)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 146 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1093198281
- ISBN-13 : 978-1093198287
- Item Weight : 7.4 ounces
- Dimensions : 6 x 0.33 x 9 inches
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Essays of Elia is a collection of essays written by Charles Lamb; it was first published in book form in 1823, with a second volume, Last Essays of Elia, issued in 1833 by the publisher Edward Moxon . The essays in the collection first began appearing in The London Magazine in 1820 and continued to 1825. Lamb's essays were very popular and were ...
A humble clerk with the East India Company for much of his life, Charles Lamb (1775-1834) came into his own writing essays "under the phantom cloud of Elia". This assumed name, borrowed from ...
The Essays of Elia by Charles Lamb. Publication date 1892 Publisher Little, Brown Collection americana Book from the collections of Harvard University Language English. Book digitized by Google from the library of Harvard University and uploaded to the Internet Archive by user tpb. Notes
In English literature: Discursive prose. In The Essays of Elia (1823) and The Last Essays of Elia (1833), Charles Lamb, an even more personal essayist, projects with apparent artlessness a carefully managed portrait of himself—charming, whimsical, witty, sentimental, and nostalgic. As his fine Letters show, however, he could on occasion produce mordant…
Quick Reference. Miscellaneous essays by C. Lamb. The first series appeared in the London Magazine, 1820-23, and as a separate volume 1823. The Last Essays of Elia were published in 1833. Lamb adopted the name Elia, which was that of a former Italian clerk at the South Sea House, ostensibly to save the embarrassment of his brother John, who ...
Collection found in the bibliography of Abudl'alim Nami. Collection of 20 tales from "Tales from Shakespeare" written by Charles Lamb, 1775-1834,... Contributor: Lamb, Charles - Aḥsānullāh Ciryākoṭī, Muḥammad Date: 2002
Title The essays of Elia, Names Lamb, Charles, 1775-1834 Created / Published
The essays of Elia by Lamb, Charles, 1775-1834. Publication date 1869 Publisher London : E. Moxon Collection cdl; americana Contributor University of California Libraries Language English. With: Eliana / Charles Lamb. London : E. Moxon, 1867 Addeddate 2007-07-31 01:19:58 Bookplateleaf 0003 Call number nrlf_ucb:GLAD-50364704 Camera 1Ds ...
Charles Lamb, one of the most engaging personal essayists of all time, began publishing his unforgettable, entertaining Elia essays in the London Magazine in 1820; they were so immediately popular that a book-length collection was published in 1823. Inventing the persona of "Elia" allowed Lamb to be shockingly honest and to gain a playful distance for self-examination.
Essays of Elia, First Series Charles Lamb Full view - 1905. Common terms and phrases. actor admirable Ainger Barry Cornwall beauty Benchers better boys Bridget called character Charles Lamb Christ's Christ's Hospital Coleridge comedy common confess cousin dead death delight dreams English Essays of Elia face fancy favourite feel fortune gardens ...
Essayist Charles Lamb achieved success through the publication of Tales from Shakespeare, which he produced with his sister Mary. He is best known for the essays he wrote under his pseudonym Elia.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Charles Lamb. J. M. Dent, 1915 - English Essays - 327 pages. Using the persona of Elia, these essays are a personal memoir covering a range of subjects from the humorous "Dissertation upon Roast Pig" to the reflective "New Year's Eve."
Charles Lamb, one of the most engaging personal essayists of all time, began publishing his unforgettable, entertaining Elia essays in the London Magazine in 1820; they were so immediately popular that a book-length collection was published in 1823. Inventing the persona of "Elia" allowed Lamb to be shockingly honest and to gain a playful distance for self-examination.
Essays of Elia is a collection of essays written by Charles Lamb; it was first published in book form in 1823, with a second volume, Last Essays of Elia, issued in 1833 by the publisher Edward Moxon. The essays in the collection first began appearing in The London Magazine in 1820 and continued to 1825.
Essayist, critic, poet, and playwright Charles Lamb achieved lasting fame as a writer during the years 1820-1825, when he captivated the discerning English reading public with his personal essays in the London Magazine, collected as Essays of Elia (1823) and The Last Essays of Elia (1833). Known for their charm, humor, and perception, and laced with idiosyncrasies, these essays appear to be ...
Charles Lamb was considered the most delightful of English essayists in the middle of the 19th century. Essays of Elia is a collection of his finest work. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Pomona Press are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using ...
Essays of Elia by Lamb, Charles, 1775-1834; Pater, Walter, 1839-1894. Publication date 1902 Publisher New York, The Century co. Collection library_of_congress; americana Contributor The Library of Congress Language English "The text of this volume is that of the 1836 Moxon edition of the Essays."
1. the late Elia. When Lamb began to write for the London Maga zine in August, 1820, he assumed the pen name of Elia (pronounced by him Ell-ia) in memory of an obscure Italian clerk of this name whom he had known at the South-Sea House. 1 3-4. to see his papers collected into a volume. This volume included Elia's twenty-eight contributions to ...
Lazy Day Gardener. Charles Lamb's 'Essays of Elia' are a balm to the spirit and a delight to those who love words. Surely everyone remembers Lamb and his tragic story from high school lit classes, but (perhaps as he intended) his essays transcend the reality of his life and speak to the modern reader.
The Essays of Elia, by Charles Lamb, was originally published in 1823. The work is a collection of literary essays, some originally appearing in The London Magazine, under the psuedonym "Elia". Read more Report an issue with this product or seller. Previous page. Print length. 146 pages. Language. English.
1854. Part One of Five. English essayist and poet, Charles Lamb (pen name Elia), studied at Christ's Hospital where he formed a lifelong friendship with Samuel Taylor Coleridge. When he was twenty years old Lamb suffered a period of insanity. His sister, Mary Ann Lamb, had similar problems and in 1796 murdered her mother in a fit of madness.
The Essays of Elia Charles Lamb Full view - 1907. ... actor Allan April Fool beauty better boys character Charles Lamb child Christ's Hospital Clare common confess cousin creature daugh day's pleasuring dear death delight dreams Elinor face fancy fear feel gentleman give grace Hamlet hand hath heart Hertfordshire honour hour humour images ...