Valeria Rodriguez itibaren Bohapur, Punjab, India

valrodriguez

12/22/2024

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Valeria Rodriguez Kitabın yeniden yazılması (10)

2019-01-21 14:41

Babalar Ve Oğullar-Jale Parla TrendKitaplar Kütüphanesi

Tarafından yazılmış kitap Tarafından: İletişim Yayınevi

The sub-title of this book is "How the French Invented High Fashion, Fine Food, Chic Cafés, Style, Sophistication, and Glamour." However, "How Louis XIV Invented High Fashion, Fine Food, etc" would be more appropriate. And it's true, mostly; a lot of these things exploded as a direct result of how Louis XIV [say it with me now: ka-TOHRZ] ran things during his reign. One of the really interesting things was how many of them were introduced to protect French industry and the French economy. What was really interesting was being able to recognize how some of these things extended beyond France's borders as a result of France being one of the first European countries to standardize its language. That sub-title, though, kind of pissed me off. It's not about how "the French" invented all of these things; it's really about all of the innovations that Louis XIV introduced and popularized during his reign. And, as influential as Louis XIV was, there are so many other historical figures and situations that have done much more to create modern France. So, interesting, but not what I was expecting. Still good, though, if you know what you're in for. For the first time in Western cooking, a radical separation beween sugar and salt went into effect. Before the birth of haute cuisine, sweet dishes were part of every course. The new French chefs allowed salt and pepper to dominate until the end of the meal and gradually moved sweet dishes to the last course, which began to be called le dessert. They also redefined sweetness: sugar, readily available in France for the first time because of its New World colonies, replaced honey in recipes. And another interesting little fact (surprised me): Versailles may well have been the original theme park. Far from being the exclusive preserve of the court and official visitors, the château and its gardens were always open to the public: visitors had to be suitably dressed, and they had to get an entrance pass before leaving Paris.

2019-01-21 18:41

Yüzyıllık Yalnızlık - Gabriel Garcia Marquez TrendKitaplar Kütüphanesi

Tarafından yazılmış kitap Tarafından: Can Yayınları

Despite the historical setting, THE ELEPHANT'S JOURNEY, by Jose Saramago is not a historical novel. The viewpoint is self-referential and observant, iconoclastic but never with rancor. The author comments about literal word meanings: “It will be as if we were adding subtitles in our own language to a film, a concept unknown in the sixteenth century, to compensate for our ignorance or imperfect knowledge of the language spoken by the actors. We will, therefore, have two parallel discourses that will never meet, this one, which we will be able to follow without difficulty, and another, which, from this moment on, will remain silent.” His observation applies equally well to his narrative style -- intentionally jumping between historical context and universal values. The historical facts are these. King Joao III of Portugal is married to Dona Caterina (Catherine of Hapbsburg), sister of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. Charles V's daughter, Maria of Spain, has married Maximillian II, the nephew of Charles V. King Joao III and Catarina, casting about for a belated but impressive wedding present for Maximillian and his bride, hit upon their elephant, itself a gift to them from their colony in Goa, India. Maximillian II will soon be departing from his position as regent of Spain to renewed residence in Austria. Accordingly, the elephant Solomon and his mahout Subhro are provided with a convoy of cavalry, oxen, mules and carts of hay (to feed the elephant), and dispatched to Valladolid to be met by Archduke Maximillian's convoy as it makes its way across the Alps to Vienna. From this event Saramago weaves a delightful story. Subhro is able to provide some helpful logistical suggestions for increasing the progress of the procession -- under normal circumstances, what temerity! However, the mahout is in a unique position. His common sense commands recognition – after all, the captain of the convoy can't fire him. Who would take care of Solomon? Along the way, an incident with a local priest endows the elephant with the reputation for knowing the difference between regular water and holy water (not the only time that Saramago will aim his wit at religion). One would do well to remember Saramago's observation: “It isn't true that heaven and the heavens are indifferent to our preoccupations and desires. They're constantly sending us signs and warnings, and the only reason we don't add good advice to that list is that experience, heaven's and ours, has shown that memory, which isn't anyone's strong point, is best not overburdened with too much detail.” At Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo on the Portuguese-Spanish border, there is a ridiculous confrontation with the Austrian escort over who should accompany the elephant to Valladolid. Of the townspeople's retreat to safety, Saramago explains: “...as war is just a spectacle, that's fine, the trouble starts when they want to involve us as players...” Fortunately, since the Austrian contingent is not authorized to do any fighting, a sensible compromise is quickly reached. Both contingents will make the trip to Valladolid. The introduction of Maximillian II and his entourage begin a new chapter in the story. To start, Maximillian exerts his aristocratic perogative and renames the elephant Suleiman – and the mahout Subhro as Fritz! Maximillian's presence adds a new layer of protocol for Saramago to target. As the journey proceeds, vanity, credulity, self-importance, guile, and sentimentality are displayed like a peacock's fan, burnished in the rays of self-deception. Saramago is a master at managing the reader's investment in the story. The elephant begins as an opaque vessel for relaying Saramago's own observations on humanity. However, little by little, he develops Solomon into an independent character. Solomon's farewell to the porters is both believable and touching. Does the elephant sense the change in his daily routine or something deeper? Saramago lets the reader judge for himself. The scene is reinforced by later vignettes of behavior. Of the alps, Saramago, again avoids putting concrete thoughts into the mind of the elephant. He merely remarks, laconically, “We do not know what he [Solomon] is thinking, but, in the midst of these alps, we can be sure of one thing, he is not a happy elephant.” By journey's end, we have come to admire the elephant's quiet patience and dignity, and to care about both him and his mahout Subhro. We are filled with regret at this singular journey's inevitable end.

Okuyucu Valeria Rodriguez itibaren Bohapur, Punjab, India

Kullanıcı, bu kitapları portalın yayın kurulu olan 2017-2018'de en ilginç olarak değerlendirdi "TrendKitaplar Kütüphanesi" Tüm okuyucuların bu literatürü tanımalarını tavsiye eder.