
American Hieroglyphics
The Symbol of the Egyptian Hieroglyphics in the American Renaissance
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
American Hieroglyphics
The Symbol of the Egyptian Hieroglyphics in the American Renaissance
About this book
A sophisticated examination of the American Symbolists, back in print for the first time in more than a decade.
The discovery of the Rosetta Stone and the subsequent decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphics captured the imaginations of nineteenth-century American writers and provided a focal point for their speculations on the relationships between sign, symbol, language, and meaning. Through fresh readings of classic works by Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, Poe, Hawthorne, and Melville, John T. Irwin's American Hieroglyphics examines the symbolic mode associated with the pictographs.
Irwin demonstrates how American Symbolist literature of the period was motivated by what he calls "hieroglyphic doubling, " the use of pictographic expression as a medium of both expression and interpretation. Along the way, he touches upon a wide range of topics that fascinated people of the day, including the journey to the source of the Nile and ideas about the origin of language.
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Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Preface
- Part One: Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman
- Part Two: Poe
- Part Three: Hawthorne and Melville
- Epilogue
- Notes
- Index