Biographical passages : essays in Victorian and Modernist biography : honoring Mary M. Lago / edited by Joe Law and Linda K. Hughes.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Lago, Mary.

Law, Joe.

Hughes, Linda K.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

English prose literature--19th century--History and criticism.

English prose literature.

Biography as a literary form.

English prose literature--20th century--History and criticism.

Modernism (Aesthetics)--Great Britain.

Modernism (Aesthetics).

Physical Description:

viii, 208 p. : ill.

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Columbia : University of Missouri Press, c2000.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In the last two decades, biographies have grown in popularity, often eclipsing the novel in sales and accessibility to specialists and the general public alike. Widely regarded as a distinctly modern form, today's biographies are marked by their willingness to "tell all" or to pursue overt political aims. But how new, how unprecedented, are today's biographies? Biographical Passages addresses this important question by juxtaposing Victorian and Modernist biography from diverse perspectives. Challenging the view that modern biographies are radically different from the straitlaced and ponderous Victorian tomes, Joe Law and Linda K. Hughes illustrate that continuities in biographical practice do exist, proving, for example, that the "tell-all" biography is not the exclusive preserve of the twentieth century. Enlisting the talents of such acclaimed biographers and scholars as P. N. Furbank and Michael Holroyd, Biographical Passages is a true exploration of the art and craft of biography. Essays on the usefulness of biography in approaching late Victorian artists provide a detailed scrutiny of modern biography across disciplines and from a rich array of vantage points. Additional essays on E. M. Forster and the relations between England and India analyze the role of cultural difference in biography. Law and Hughes conclude Biographical Passages with an epilogue in tribute to a scholar whose work is closely connected to all the essays in this collection-Mary Lago. Widely known for her important contributions to studies of late Victorian and Edwardian literature, art, music, and Anglo-Indian relations, Lago is the author of biographies of Christina Herringham and E. M. Forster.

Contents:

Intro

Contents

Acknowledgments

And What Have You Done?

The Craftlike Nature of Biography

On the Border-line between the New and the Old

A Kind of Voyage

Victorian Artists Family Biographies

In nite Rest

The Road from Poodur

Essaying Biography

Publications by Mary Lago

About the Contributors

Index.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

"Publications by Mary Lago": p. 193-198.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0-8262-6101-9

OCLC:

932325671