Burke Books

Classical Freudian Psychology...his discussion on Group Behavior and the Ego (leadership functions and issues) is insightful and provides provocative understanding of group process....traditional Psychoanalytic thought.....

In his Pulitzer-Prize winning book, The Denial of Death, Ernest Becker wrote that Freud's "great work, Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego...in my opinion is probably the single most potentially liberating tract that has ever been fashioned by man." I haven't read this work of Freud's yet, but I will soon, because of Becker's comment. I've read many of Freud's works and have found them fascinating and very helpful, even though they're far fetched at times and I don't share Freud's disdain for religious faith. Becker's work is wonderful (I'm reviewing now from cover to cover the many passages I've highlighted) and voices both appreciations and criticisms of Freud throughout his work. So if he says this about Group Psychology, I've got to read it!

As an ex-patriot living in Italy I couldn't help but catch the soccer bug. It is the national religion and Mr. Burke's book uncovers the reality in the cult. Following a well known Italian team backed by a notoriously famous "Mister" the book penetrates to the roots of the most prestigious soccer league in the world. It is a great read for veteran soccer enthusiasts or for the young aspiring fan.

This is an excellent, wonderful snapshot of the crazy, life-and-death world of Italian soccer.

You don't have to love soccer and you don't even have to love sports to love this book. It has drama, personality, grit, emotion, and, above all, a ring of joy throughout it. Some books you read to learn; others you read for joy. This is the rare work that lets you do both, page after page.

I was walking through a northern Italian village one evening when Italy was playing a selection game for the last Coppa. "Where is everyone?" my wife asked me. Suddenly the entire countryside exploded in a joyous roar. Italy had just scored.

In seconds, the street was full of kids and parents laughing, hugging and jumping on their motorini to hook horns.

It was a moment of magic, and the good Mr. Burke manages to catch much of that spirito in these pages.

Viva La Roma!

'Practical Art Criticism' by Edmund Burke Feldman is informative and highly readable, principally because the author addresses his subject without the befuddling, esoteric jargon usually associated with art criticism. Indeed, this is a practical book that gives the reader percipience into modes of interpretation, rubrics for 'visualizing', sentience of demiurgic intent, apperception of myriad praxes and validation of aesthetic conation.

To quote Paul Simon's brief review on the book's back cover, 'I don't know a lot about Art (since the break-up), but I do know a load of old garfunkel when I see it.'

This was one of the most useful books on art criticism that I have come across. One of my concerns as an art education student is the question of how to critique works of art, and furthermore, what methods may be used to pass on this knowledge to my future students? This book, since it was written for practical purposes to be used by art critics, artists, educators, and students alike, supplies its reader with very valuable information regarding the concept of art criticism, the various types of critical review, how criticism is used and applied, and the various "problems" and issues involved in art criticism. Feldman was able to make the issue of criticism easier for his reader to understand, through his use of examples of established artwork, illustrating his thoughts and ideas with easy-to-understand language, and identifying what is perceived in each work of art using various methods of interpretation. Through a variety of ways, Feldman instructed his reader as to how to interpret, judge, and defend their criticism.
Overall, this was a very enjoyable and relatively easy read. I would highly suggest this book for anyone interested in understanding works of art -especially teachers and students. The illustrative examples and explanatory writings relate to the art world of today, but also aids us in our understanding of how to interpret art of the past. In combination with other art criticism books, it is my belief that anyone may learn to interpret, judge, and defend their art and art criticism. Edmund Feldman is a wonderful author and teacher; able to guide his audience through the complex issues surrounding art and its criticism.

I consulted this book from freshman year all the way up to the ominous interviews and beyond. The questions relate to EVERYTHING. There are even helpful appendices. I would definitely recommend this book for a novice apply to psychology graduate programs.

This book provides a wealth of information in a concise way. It answers any question a student could possibly have about preparing for grad study in psychology. In fact, it prepares students with questions they may not have thought to ask! The timetable for grad study preparation is very useful. The book is an easy read and the best reference for getting ready for grad school in psychology. It offers everything you need in a handy format. I felt so much more prepared after reading this book.

"The Rhetoric of Religion" is the unofficial third volume in Burke's second trilogy (a claim also made by some for "Language As Symbolic Action"), following his "Rhetoric" and "Grammar of Motives," although it is clearly neither the summation nor the completion of his line of inquiry begun in those other volumes. What makes this volume stand out is more the applied use of his concepts than their theoretical development. Burke offers a short discussion on "On Words and The Word" before proceeding to a detailed analysis of verbal action in St. Augustine's "Confessions." For me the key section is his analysis of the first three chapters of Genesis, where he works backwards to explain the creation of the Creation story, the best explication of Burke's Iron Law of History. Returning to his literary roots, the final section finds Burke offering a conversation between God and Satan in "Prologue in Heaven," where Burke literally puts his case before the highest court.

Ultimately, the point is one that Burke has sounded before: that we should not be using terminologies developed in laboratories for our study of human motives. Instead, Burke offers his theories of transcendence and the model of the symbolic act as developed over the previous four decades. Consequently, "The Rhetoric of Religion" is not a book with which to begin your inquiry into either Burke or the field of rhetoric and social theory, but rather the volume that provides a more practical application of his work. Like "Language As Symbolic Action," it should be read after going through his "Rhetoric" and "Grammar" volumes.

Kenneth Burke is one great mind of the 20th century. In this book he studies religion, particularly Saint Augustine's writings and Confessions. Through this particular study he reveals his method that is one great tool indeed. He considers language to be made of signifying elements that are the association of a certain object (sounds or letters) and a meaning. Those elements are brought together through morphology or syntax to build compound words or sentences. But Kenneth Burke goes further than Saussure and considers the signifying elements that are repeated in a text and how they are positioned in relation with one another. It is from these networks of signifying elements that he derives the deeper meaning of a text. The relations can be built along lines of similarity or difference, or even opposition. The networked elements can be similar as for their sounds or letters, though different as for their morphological or syntactic environments, or actually opposed morphologically or syntactically, or simply semantically. This is extremely complex and rich and it leads to very powerful remarks. The second step is in line with the first. No individual element, sentence, image, simile, or any other linguistic entity has a meanig all by itself. The real meaning comes from the networks in which it is positioned and how it is positioned in this network. The third step is that the stating of any signifying element implies the possible stating of its antagon. Order implies disorder, time timelessness, etc. The creation of perfection implies imperfection and God states a thou-shalt-not which implies disobedience, doing what is not supposed to be done. This is fundamental. A society does not forbid something that does not exist. If a law says we must not do something it is because it is actually performed. If a society does not forbid something it can be because it does not exist at all or because it is perfectly seen as acceptable. The absence of a law does not imply anything one way or the other. The existence of a law implies that what it forbids exists and what it authorizes exists too, as well as, in both cases, what it does not forbid or what it does not allow. Kenneth Burke injects this approach into his linguistic reading of religious texts. This is extremely powerful and you have to read the book to see how he exploits such principles. From Genesis Kenneth Burke finds out time was created by God as his first creative act, hence it implies that God's eternity before creation was timeless and that God's eternity after the end will be timeless. Eternity is not the flow of time without a beginning nor an end, but eternity is the absolute absence of both flowing and time, hence eternity is a certain static present that fills in the whole conceivable expanse of duration. Time in this conception is only contained within the alpha of the beginning and the omega of the end. If we consider the Fall, it is the result of the thou-shalt-not that implies temptation and disobedience. The Fall implies then a salvation but this salvation can only be gained through a sacrifice that will reprieve the Fall. Burke follows this sacrifice through the whole Bible to show how it is brought to perfection with Christ : God sacrifices his own son to redeem men and women equally and give them the possibility to choose the right actions through perseverance that can only come from the grace God has given them, the grace that enables them to recapture their virginity in their communion in the reenacted sacrifice of the son that will reinforce the will of men and women to persevere in doing the right things. It is this grace and this communion in the reenacting of the sacrifice that boosts the will that makes perseverance possible, which is the Holy Spirit in man. This is the Word in its creating power and it implies communion with that godly energy, as well as with the sacrifice of the son and with other human beings. The conclusion that we can draw from this book is that the concept of God comes from the desire of man to transcend his material limits. He is subjected to time, hence he invents timelessness as perfect eternity. He is subjected to natural conditions, hence he invents supernatural conditions beyond his natural environment. A perfect religion, and there are many, will state that time cannot exists without timelessness, the flow of time without static eternity, nature without supernature, and that reality is the union and perfect balance between these antagons, hence static immobility that is seen as precarious from man's natural experience and having to be eternally regained or rebuilt from both man's and God's points of view, man's both natural and supernatural, material and mental experience. This approach regains a real understanding and the true power of religion : its inner logic, its inner energy. It is no longer an opiate but an empowerment and it will always be that provided it does not refuse to see changing natural conditions and to change the supernatural construct that needs to change along with natural conditions if the balance between the two has to be maintained. Beyond natural material elements man will always conceive of stronger forces and energies that are the real engine of our changing world, our changing time, and will dream of a world where change will no longer be necessary because perfection will be reached, hence timeless permanence. If we know this is a dream that drives us in life, we can assume it and hence accept to live in the real world and try to make it approach this dreamed perfection.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

Anyone who wishes to understand American History, namely the Revolution, needs to read this book. These essays were crutial in the development of the revolutionary movement in America. Thomas Paine is a keynote figure in this time period and helped the American cause.

Let us, for a moment, forget the historical and literary importance of Right of Man and Common Sense. What if this book had just been published today? Would it still be worth reading? The answer is an unequival yes.

Althought many parts of this deal with specific issues of Paine's time (especially Rights of Man), even after two centuries, the writings of Thomas Paine are able to stoke the fires of liberty in the soul of the reader with their passion, their fierce logic and their unexpected humor.

Rights of Man comprises two long volumes written by Paine in response to English criticism of the French revolution. Although much that he says is ironic in light of events that occured after he penned these volumes, you can see the hope that the Revolution produced. He breaks government down to basic principles, pointing out the needs that government fulfills and the method by which they should be constructed. It is thought-provoking, even in the modern day and will make you look on politics of our own time with a new light. Rights of Man does drag a bit when Paine begins repeating himself, but it remains interesting and though-provoking.

But Common Sense is the real treat. The pamplet that set a continent on fire is -- this was a surprise -- a thrill to read. I found myself actually laughing at Paine's sarcasm and satire -- his way of taking monarchy and absolutism and exposing them for the ridiculuous constructions that they are.

Any student of history should read these volumes for their portrayal of late 18th century geopolitics. But you will find them to be unexpectedly entertaining.

The exhibition was a great survey of the "relations" between the american Sargent and the spanish Sorolla . A wealth of good images, reproducing some unseen paintings. Now what remains of it is this beautiful book, very well documented and which shows us some works of two artists rarely seen together. The text is lively and informative.

This book has some of the best quality for the colors. One of the best books on Sargent and Sorrolla!

I first read this book years ago when it was first published and always thought it was one of the best, and most realistic, stories of the cold war period. Having spent a lot of time in Moscow during those years, I felt that the author really captured the ambience of that world. I am glad to see it has been re-published; I will order another copy. More than most, it really made the reader feel in and familiar with the Russia of that time.

Great book, it is not often that an author can come up with such a comprehensive book as this on his first try. This had it all, a great story, good characters, wonderful action and a quick pace. This is an exciting book. It really made me happy reading the book; it was like a great game of treasure hunt where you find everything. Each time I was ready for a plot twist, action of drama it was there. The characters just explode in your memory - you do not get them out of your head. Overall great effort.

The tape is a perfect complement for the book, it's also a good material to work on pronunciation.

The best tape for improving your English. Especially useful for English teahers.

This is a great novel. Very strange.

If you're a fan of Kenneth Burke, and you should be, you might still hate his one and only novel. It's addicted to rhetoric. And it won't apologize.

Far as I can tell, I'm one of maybe 2 or 3 people in the world who loved this novel. There's an incredible scene where the main character, who has run away from his wife and family, returns years later in the dark. He's seen her, but doesn't know what's happened. In the dark, he feels the nameplate over the doorbell. Too many letters for his name...too few for her maiden name. She's remarried. So he moves on.

Much of the book is about the language...and it's circa 1930s, and very "moment" oriented. It's very intellectualized, but somehow manages to be moving anyhow.