The mistral : a windswept history of modern France / Catherine Tatiana Dunlop.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Dunlop, Catherine Tatiana, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Mistral--History--19th century.

Mistral.

Winds--France--Provence--History--19th century.

Winds.

Human ecology--France--Provence--History--19th century.

Human ecology.

Atmospheric science--France--History--19th century.

Atmospheric science.

France.

France--Provence.

Genre:

History

Physical Description:

181 pages : illustrations (some color), maps (some color) ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Chicago : The University of Chicago Press, 2024.

Summary:

"Every year, most forcefully when winter turns to spring, the chilly mistral wind blows through the Rhône Valley of southern France over the northwest coast of the Gulf of Lion into the Mediterranean. Sometimes the winds are brisk and sustained, other times they are unleashed in violent gusts. Trees are knocked over or permanently bent to the east in the path of the wind, trains are swept off their tracks, crops are destroyed. Afterward the sky is clear and blue, as Provence is often pictured. The legendary wind is central to the area's regional identity, inspiring artists and writers near and far for centuries. This force of nature is the focus of Dunlop's Windswept, a beautifully written examination of the power of the mistral wind, and in particular the ways it has challenged central tenets of 19th century European society: order, mastery, predictability. As Dunlop shows, while the modernizing state sought liberation from environmental realities through scientific advances, land modification, and other technological solutions, the wind blew on, literally crushing attempts at control, and becoming increasingly integral to regional feelings of place and community"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction

Invisible sculptor: the mistral and the formation of the Provençal landscape

The lion's roar: Mediterranean journeys with the mistral

Ascent into the wind: The Mont Ventoux Observatory and the rise of atmospheric science

Good air, bad air: public health and the cleansing power of the mistral

A sense of place: painting the mistral in the open air

Epilogue: Living with the mistral in the twenty-first century.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780226827544

0226827542

OCLC:

1415892123