Thomas Hardy and the survivals of time

Description:

"Andrew Radford here situates Hardy's fiction and poetry in a context of the new sciences of humankind that evolved during the Victorian age to accommodate an immense range of literal and figurative 'excavations' then taking place. Combining literary close readings with broad historical analyses, he explores Hardy's artistic response to geological, archaeological and anthropological findings. In particular, he analyses Hardy's lifelong fascination with the doctrine of 'survivals', a term coined by E.B. Tylor in Primitive Culture (1871) to denote customs, beliefs and practices persisting in isolation from their original cultural context. Radford reveals how Hardy's subtle reworking of Tylor's doctrine offers a valuable insight into the inter-penetration of science and literature during this period." "An important aspect of Radford's research focuses on lesser known periodical literature that grew out of a British amateur antiquarian tradition of the nineteenth century. His readings of Hardy's literary notebooks disclose the degree to which Hardy's own considerable scientific knowledge was shaped by the middlebrow periodical press. Thus, Thomas Hardy and the Survivals of Time raises questions not only about the reception of scientific ideas but also the creation of nonspecialist forms of scientific discourse."--Jacket.

subjects: Antiquities,  Antiquities in literature,  Archaeology,  Fictional works,  History,  History in literature,  In literature,  Knowledge,  Literature and anthropology,  Literature and history,  Paganism in literature,  Hardy, thomas, 1840-1928,  England, antiquities,  Great britain, history, 19th century,  Littérature et anthropologie,  Histoire,  Littérature et histoire,  Antiquités dans la littérature,  Paganisme dans la littérature,  Histoire dans la littérature,  LITERARY CRITICISM,  European,  English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh,  Criticism and interpretation,  Literature,  Knowledge and learning

People: Thomas Hardy (1840-1928)

Places: England,  Wessex (England)

Times: 19th century