Showing titles in Ancient, Classical & Medieval Literature

Songs of Kabir is a book from 1915 consisting of 100 poems of Kabir, the 15th century Indian poet and mystic, translated to English by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.

This remarkable poem, dedicated to Queen Elizabeth I, was Spenser's finest achievement: the first epic poem in modern English. The Faerie Queene combines dramatic narratives of chivalrous adventure with exquisite and picturesque episodes of pageantry. At the same time, Spenser is expounding a deeply-felt allegory of the eternal struggle between Truth and Error.

Orphaned Jane journeys from a harsh childhood to become the loving caregiver of a child at the mysterious manor of Mr. Rochester. Jane is drawn to her enigmatic employer, but as dark secrets emerge, she must choose between her newfound security and the uncertainty of a life lived for oneself.

Six phenomenally sophisticated Noël Coward comedies: Fallen Angels, Hay Fever, Private Lives, Design for Living, Blithe Spirit, Present Laughter.

Ovid’s Metamorphoses is an epic poem, but one that upturns almost every convention. There is no main hero, no central conflict, and no sustained objective. What it is about (power, defiance, art, love, abuse, grief, rape, war, beauty, and so on) is as changeable as the beings that inhabit its chapters. The sustained thread is power and how it transforms us, both those of us who have it and those of us who do not.

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde by poet and writer Lavinia Greenlaw.

One of the great works of English literature, this powerful, compelling story explores love from its first tentative beginnings through to passionate sensuality and eventual tragic disillusionment. Lavinia Greenlaw's new version for radio brings Chaucer's language up-to-date for a modern audience while remaining true to his original poetic intention.

John Donne (1573-1631) is considered by many to be the finest poet of the Elizabeth Age after Shakespeare. Ironically, poetry was not Donne's dominant preoccupation. In his own day, he was better known as a scholar, and, in later life, a clergyman. His verse was composed sporadically and in an offhand fashion and appears not to have been subjected to revision. In spite of occasional solecisms, his poetic verbiage is vigorous and compelling and marked by a striking use of imagery.

Warrior-prince Rama is about to be crowned Young King, when he hears the devastating news that his father, king of Ayodhya, has been tricked into banishing him to the forest. His devoted wife, Sita, insists on accompanying him in exile, but the evil 10-headed Lord Ravana has fallen deeply in love with the beautiful princess and steals her away. Aided by Hanuman, mighty captain of the monkeys, Rama sets out across the world to find her and destroy Ravana in a deadly battle.

The words of Kahlil Gibran give his book The Prophet a broad range of inspiration and philosophy. They provide exceptional insight into human desires and understanding. The vivid observations are vibrant with feeling and acceptance of life’s many questions and hopes. One review saluted the story as being untouched by the harshness of life. Gibran’s other two books, The Forerunner and The Madman, are of deep assistance in the same manner.

The Nature of Things was written in the 1st century BC by Roman polymath Lucretius. It is written as a didactic poem, and explains Epicurean physics.

In this original adaptation of E.M. Forster’s novel, an encounter in Florence and an offer to exchange rooms brings George Emerson to the attention of Lucy Honeychurch. Their flirtation is cut short by Lucy’s chaperone, but when they meet again back home in England, Lucy must negotiate the demands of her station with the desires of her heart.

This single inherited epic in our language has it all: drama, blood, heroism, mourning, and teaching with soul-searching thought about all this. It looks back. In its top layer of listening, we are brought along with heroic figures, even with a superhero, to challenge agonizing monsters. This world also includes beautiful sea voyages, crafty disputes, the falling of tribes, and moving elegies. Most often its Old English poetry can translate directly into fresh pictures. The epic Beowulf is a masterfully told story.

Angela Lansbury plays Elizabeth Bennet as she deals with matters of upbringing, marriage, moral rightness and education in her aristocratic society.

14 canti scelti a cura di Piero Maccarinelli. Nel 2007 al Foro di Traiano, per dieci serate un manipolo di grandi attori ha dato voce ai più bei canti del poema omerico...

Sophocles' timeless drama is often considered the greatest of all surviving Athenian plays. Oedipus, king of Thebes, must save his ailing city by tracking down the murderer of its former king. Translation by F. Storr.

In this classic farce, a young man pretends to be a war hero to impress a pretty girl. As his lies progress, so do his troubles - with hilarious results. Playwright Pierre Corneille’s comedy of manners is considered a groundbreaking work that influenced contemporaries such as the young Molière. An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast production, starring Tara Lynne Barr, Janine Barris, Sue Cremin, Danny Mann, Christopher Neame, John Sloan, Mark Sullivan, and Matthew Wolf Includes a conversation about Corneille and French drama with Larry F. Norman of the University of Chicago.

Barbara is a major in the Salvation Army - but she's also the daughter of Andrew Undershaft, a man who's made millions from the sale of weapons of war. The real battle, however, rages between between the devilish father and his idealistic daughter as they answer the question: does salvation come through faith or finance? This sparkling comedy traverses family relations, religion, ethics and politics - as only Shaw, the master dramatist, can!

Charles Baudelaire is one of the greatest French poets. His most famous work, "Les Fleurs du Mal"("The Flowers of Evil"), was deemed scandalous at the time because of its themes of sex and death, lesbianism, corruption, wine, and the oppressiveness of living. The effect on fellow artists was "immense, prodigious, unexpected, mingled with admiration and with some indefinable anxious fear", while the regime of the Second Empire had Baudelaire prosecuted and fined for his "insult to public decency". Baudelaire's style had a tremendous influence on French poetry, and also on English writers; he was a pioneering translator, and created strong ties with the Anglo-Saxon literature.

The Iliad is an epic Greek poem written by philosopher Homer, and is considered one of the oldest pieces of western literature still in existence. The story takes place during the last weeks of the 10-year Trojan War, with a focus on the quarrels between King Agamemnon and the legendary warrior Achilles. However, this tale's most famous scene is when the Greek's give a gift to the Trojans of a large wooden horse, but one that is filled with soldiers, that allows the Greeks to infiltrate the high walls of the city of Troy.

"Le bateau ivre" regroupe les poésies de Rimbaud écrits entre 1869 - il est alors âgé de 15 ans - et 1873. Il s'agit de textes en vers, assez courts, que l'auteur a présentés aux éditeurs ou aux écrivains parnassiens.