P?rintele Dimitrie Bejan a r?mas ?n con?tiin?a posterit??ii drept unul din pu?inii martori p?timitori ai holocaustului comunist care a l?sat ?n urma sa o m?rturie scris? ce poart? amprenta unei autentice valori literare. Ca ?i celelalte c?r?i ale P?rintelui Bejan, Hotarul cu cet??i r?m?ne ?n cadrul memorialisticii, ?ns?, ?n paginile sale nu mai ?nt?lnim cutremur?toarele relat?ri zugr?vite ?n Oranki – Amintiri din captivitate. Aceast? carte este jurnalul c?l?toriei t?n?rului Dimitrie, membru al echipelor de cercetare sociologic? ale reputatului Dimitrie Gusti, trimis ?n Basarabia pentru a observa ?i consemna specificul locurilor. Mai mult dec?t simple ?nsemn?ri zilnice, Hotarul cu cet??i prezint? secven?e istorico-memorialistice, impresii de c?l?torie, observa?ii sociologice despre Basarabia perioadei interbelice.

Volumul trateaz? tema exilului ?n literaturile europene (cu predilec?ie cea rom?na, francez?, german? ?i rus?), constituind un manual indirect de literatur? axat, ?n special, pe tema exilului artistic. Scriitori ca, de pild?, Rainer Maria Rilke, Marina ?vetaieva, Nichita St?nescu, Nicolae Breban, Gabriela Melinescu s.a. fac parte – ?n percep?ia autoarei – din confreria ale?ilor meni?i s? reprezinte ?ara tinere?ii lor departe de grani?ele acesteia. Cartea se adreseaz? elevilor, studen?ilor, precum ?i publicului larg de cititori.

Cartea este rezultatul unor studii aprofundate intreprinse de autoare ?n domeniul stilurilor de via?? contemporane, rom?ne?ti dar ?i din alte p?r?i ale lumii. Cercetarea acestora a fost f?cut? intensiv mai ales ?n ultimii zece ani. La baza acestor texte stau, ?n primul r?nd, interven?iile hebdomadare ale autoarei la emisiunea Tenta?ii culturale de la Radio Rom?nia Cultural. Evident, ?n transformarea unor ?pastile“ radiofonice ?ntr-un volum de eseuri ?nchegate, structurate tematic ?i revizuite stilistic a fost parcurs? o cale lung?. Din bogata tematic? a lucr?rii, men?ion?m: ?ocurile cotidianului; pierderile pe care le implica adaptarea; cum au schimbat telefoanele mobile fa?a lumii; civiliza?ia str?zii (ieri ?i azi); cultura ?n autobuz; la bibliotec?, prin biblioteci; ?n pia??, la coada, la doctor; ?n c?l?torie, din c?l?torii; prin ora?e mari ?i mici; despre comis-voiajori, despre bac?i?; nun?i, botezuri, funeralii... Cartea este scrisa ?ntr-un stil simplu, accesibil ?i ludic. Se adreseaz? speciali?tilor ?n istorie social?, antropologie, psihologie de mas?, reform? social?, dar ?i publicului cultivat, ?n general.

Az út, ami hazavisz. Akik túlélték a halál pillanatát, azt mondják, pár másodperc alatt lepereg a szemük el?tt az életük. De csak ott, az utolsó pillanatban kristályosodik ki a lényeg, ám akkor általában már kés?. ?n negyven napot kaptam a sorstól, hogy végignézzem életem filmjét - még id?ben. Mint amikor a s?tétben váratlanul felkapcsolják a villanyt... Megismerhettem a lényeget... Zarándoklatra indultam, fájdalmas vezeklés lett bel?le. Egy olyan ?b?nért", amit nem is tudtam, hogy elk?vettem. Amit itt leírtam, nem a képzelet szüleménye. Legyalogoltam a nyolcszáz kilométert, és átéltem minden pillanatát. Remegtem a d?bbenett?l, amikor kézzel foghatóvá vált a csoda, és sírtam a zavarodottságtól, amikor nem értettem, mi t?rténik velem. Ha más meséli, amit ott átéltem, azt mondom, túl színes a fantáziája.

Homo brucans e o carte interdisciplinar?, multifa?etat?, de ?inut? preponderent hermeneutic?, axat? pe teme legate de interpretarea Vechiului ?i Noului Testament (eseuri pe Decalog, pe personalitatea Sf. Pavel sau pe semnifica?ia mitic? ?i religioas? a cenu?ei), pe R?zboiul Rece, Revolu?ia Rus? ?i Contracultura anilor ‘60 (eseuri despre decantarea mediatic? ?n Rom?nia a revoltelor studen?e?ti din anul 1968, futuri?ti, violen?a lui Lenin sau despre The White Negro al lui Norman Mailer), pe aspecte structurale ale literaturii rom?ne din perioada de dup? Revolu?ia din decembrie 1989 (teme de genul: impactul lui Silviu Brucan asupra mentalit??ii postrevolu?ionare, identitarul rom?nesc difuz pe Internet, dinamica genera?ional? a literaturii rom?ne, rolul dinamizator al lui Marin Mincu ?i Adrian Marino), pe psihoistorie (cu un portret al lui Loyd deMause ?i o radiografie a concep?iilor sale). ?n final, cartea se ?ncheie cu decantarea eseistic? a unei c?l?torii ?n India, prilej de evocare a personalit??ii lui Mircea Eliade.

Fluturele este o insect din ordinul Lepidoptera, termen ce provine din termenii grecesti lepis (coaj) si pteron (arip). Mai mult coaj dect miez. Acest ordin are aproximativ 165.000 de specii cunoscute care, n ciuda unei mari varieti de forme si culori, au o structur similar, mai toi fiind nscrii n uniunile scriitoriceti de pretutindeni. Printre azteci, fluturii sunt un simbol al sufletului sau ultima suflare a unui muribund. Un fluture care zboar printre flori reprezint sufletul unui rzboinic czut pe un cmp de lupt. ntr-adevr, rzboinicii se ntorc pe pmnt sub form de colibri sau fluturi care, de data aceasta, se apuc imediat de scris i nu mai suport vederea armelor. Eventual sapa o mai tolereaz, pentru a-i spa pe cei care nu le laud culorile, stilul i fandoselile. Curcanul, ns, este o pasre de talie mare, originar din America, domesticit cu premii literare nc din timpul aztecilor. n timpul mperecherii n vederea formrii gtilor literare, culoarea pielii capului i gtului devine albastru i rou aprins, masculul desfurnd coada n form de evantai. Femelele desfoar doar sunete guturale: glu-glu-glu! i recit cu gravitate ce le vine la ndemn, pe sub aripi. Specie hipersensibil, curcanii pot s sufere atacuri de cord sau de panic. n timpul unor teste ale avioanelor U.S. Air Force s-a constatat decesul a mai multor curcani din zon din cauza atacurilor cardiace. Remediul este aplicarea de laude i aplauze n zonele tumefiate. Fluturele-curcan este o specie ncruciat ce, paradoxal, nu tolereaz fluturii i curcanii pur-snge. Exist zvonuri c unele exemplare modificate genetic pot rezista fr s scrie chiar i 6 luni. Timp n care clocesc citind pe rupte. (tiri despre fluturi, curcani i hibrizi/stirileprotv.ro)“

Ce e un manechin? Un om-p?pu??, unu’ care se las? ?mbr?cat ?i dezbr?cat ?n v?zul lumii, o f?ptur? derutant?, un fel de paralitic ?ntr-un spital; nu mi?c?, nu vorbe?te dec?t ?nl?untrul s?u, ca ?ntr-un joc de-a v-a?i ascunselea: ?observi cum ??i fur vorbele cum ??i mut patul c?nd eram t?n?r? m? ?ndr?gosteam ?n mai acum m? ?ndr?gostesc ?n octombrie soarele meu bostanul meu doldora de semin?e orice ascunz?toare e o m?rturisire“. (Nora Iuga, iulie 2010)

FLUX PERMANENT Scene ?i secven?e cur??ate de resorturile sugestiilor automate sunt eroii poeticii Ioanei Geac?r. ?pe scaunul de la cinema las? dinadins trandafirul/ lumina se va stinge/ ?i doar lic?ririle dinspre ecran sau dinspre u?a deschis?/ ?i vor m?ng?ia genunchii“ (?Cinema“) astfel de imagini ale singur?t??ii aflate ?n permanent? rela?ie cu tot ceea ce este ?n jur lumineaz? noul volum al Ioanei Geac?r. P?n? ?i titlul c?r?ii sale de la Casa de Pariuri Literare func?ioneaz? dup? aceea?i dinaminc? a izol?rii ?n mijlocul lucrurilor. Singur?tatea unui titlu ??Recviem pentru nuca verde? e un titlu de poem care m? b?ntuie de c?teva zile ?i uite unde a r?s?rit! Am pus si eu un nuc l?ng? bloc, c??iva ar?ari, plopi, tei, dar nu s-a prins dec?t un m?r care s-a dovedit a fi dud ?n cele din urm?. Toate vr?biile din cartier m? iubesc.“ scria Ioana Geac?r ?n urm? cu 5 ani pe un site literar. ?ntre timp, titlul acela pare s? fi preluat controlul asupra unui ?ntreg volum de poezii. Un volum ?n care nu este niciun poem care s? fie explicit recviem ?i nici de nuci nu vine vorba dec?t ?n interiorul cuv?ntului ?siNUCIdere“ sau c?nd ?sinuciga?ul alege din libr?rie c?teva c?r?i de pus sub picioare“. Verde ?n ce prive?te, ?ns?, felurile ?n care apare culoarea ?verde“ ?n volumul de fa?? al Ioanei Geac?r se pot scrie pagini consistente. De la fluturele care ??i schimb? culoarea, la ?zidul crescut ca un mu?chi“ cu op?iuni de ?tergere ro?ii ?i verzi, sau la acoperi?urile sm?l?uite ?n acela?i poem (?printre ruinurile T?rgovi?tei“), ?n amestecul cromatic al trupurilor dintre blocuri, sau ?mirosul de verde“ din ?emo?ii ?n ghips“, ochiul ?ncol?cit ?i rochia mamei, acela?i motiv leag? stabilizeaz? traseul poetic parcurs ?n aceast? carte care ?ncepe cu ?the end“ ?i se ?nchide cu ?ziua abia a-nceput“, ?naintea finalului ?ioana deseneaz? raze la sf?r?itul caietului de poezii“. Poveste vs. prezen?a uman? Multe poeme din acest volum alterneaz? personalul ?i impersonalul, articolul nehot?r?t ?i m?rci ale posesivit??ii la distan?? de c?teva versuri. Dac? ar fi s? aleg un mecanism care s? fie responsabil pentru demersul poetic al Ioanei Geac?r acesta ar fi tocmai amendarea jocului literar gratuit. Fie c? preia desf??ur?ri nostalgice ori tablouri ale purit??ii, nara?iunile sunt pulverizate aici pentru a face loc unui contur uman: ?mi-e team?/ c? dac? z?mbesc fa?a mi se va descompune“ (?humpty dumpty“). ?ntr-un volum ?n care singurele cuvinte scrise cu majuscule sunt T?rgovi?te, Breughel cel B?tr?n sau Hieronymus Bosch ?i unde nu exist? nici m?car o singur? virgul?, reperele poeziei sunt puse la ?ncercare, iar ?ncercarea suprem? este leg?tura dintre elemente aparent disparate, dintre m?rci ale fragilit??ii ?i ipostaze brutale, o c?utare expresiv? ?n flux permanent.

Volum nominalizat la sec?iunea ?Critic?. Istorie ?i Teorie Literar?“ – Premiile ?Observator cultural“, edi?ia a VI-a, 2012 Lucrarea de fa?? pleac? de la ideea c?, odat? cu sf?r?itul anilor ‘60/?nceputul anilor ‘70, se configureaz?, ?n context rom?nesc, o mi?care poetic? cu caracter experimentalist, care se ?ndep?rteaz? de paradigmele modernismului, urm?nd modelul avangardelor interbelice. Principiul fundamental al unei asemenea poezii trebuie c?utat ?n pragmatica ?tiin?ei contemporane, c?ci ea presupune elaborarea unor ?axiomatici“ (concretizate ?n abord?ri teoretice, programe ?i manifeste artistice), urmat? apoi de investigarea, printr-o mi?care de extensie, a limitelor, de c?utarea obstinat? a noului, care se raporteaz? la propria sa ?axiomatic?“ ?n calitate de diferen??, de ?paralogie“, extinz?ndu-i limitele, dar ?i problematiz?nd-o, printr-un demers care e constructiv ?i deconstructiv totodat?, contestatar ?i autocontestatar ?n acela?i timp.

Un limbaj poetic direct, cu mesaje clare, ne?nv?luite ?n v?lurile dense ale figurilor de stil. Totul ?ns? aureolat de o feminitate sensibil?.?Nicoleta Popa scrie pentru c? nu poate altfel. ?i o face ?n regimul urgen?ei, f?r? brizbrizuri, f?r? menajamente, f?r? s?-i pese prea mult de ce zic cei din jur, fiindc? are ceva de m?rturisit. E detectabil chiar un sadism al adev?rului ?n versuri, necesar asemeni oxigenului ca s? r?m?n? un om ?ntreg. ??i analizeaz? condi?ia de femeie, vitupereaz?, se t?nguie, este fireasc?, nu plictise?te. Volumul de fa?? e mai cuminte dec?t anteriorul, sulfurosul Fragmente din inima mea. S? fie o etap? intermediar?, o trecere spre un alt palier al spunerii poetice? Nu m? ?ncumet la un r?spuns. Aceast? pite?teanc? e de re?inut ?n r?ndul poetelor care conteaz? ?n literatura rom?n?.“ (Alexandru Petria)?O seduc?toare feminitate sclipe?te prin versurile din spatele acestei coperte. Nu trebuie dec?t s? deschizi oriunde ?i o s? te sim?i sigur mi?cat. Dar nu trebuie s? deschizi dac? nu te sim?i preg?tit s? te la?i ?mbog??it de efluviile sensibilit??ii… de spiritul acestei poete. Aferim.“ (Stoian G. Bogdan).

Victor Marie Hugo was born on 26th February 1802 and is revered as the greatest of all French writers. A poet, novelist, dramatist and painter he was a passionate supporter of Republicanism and made a notable contribution to the politics of his Country.His life was paralleled by the immense political and social movements of the 19th Century. When he was two Napoleon was proclaimed Emperor but before he was eighteen the Bourbon Monarchy was restored.It was only with his Mother's death in 1821 that he felt confident enough to marry Adele Foucher, a relationship he had kept secret from his mother. Their first child was born inside a year but died in infancy. Leopoldine was born the following year, followed by three further siblings.Hugo published his first novel the year following year, Han d'Islande, (1823). Three years later his second, Bug-Jargal (1826).Between 1829 and 1840 he would publish five further volumes of poetry solidifying his reputation as one of the greatest elegiac and lyric poets of his time. His reputation was growing not only in France but across Europe.In 1841 he was elected to the Academie Francaise, cementing his position in the world of French arts and letters. Hugo also now began to turn his attention to an involvement in French politics.Elevated to the peerage by King Louis-Philippe in 1841 he spoke eloquently and at length against the death penalty and social injustice as well as passionately in favour of freedom of the press and self-government for Poland.When Napoleon III seized power in 1851, and established an anti-parliamentary constitution, Hugo openly declared him a traitor to France and began a long exile, based mainly in Guernsey.In exile, Hugo published his famous political pamphlets; Napoleon le Petit and Histoire d'un crime. Although the pamphlets were banned in France, they nonetheless made a strong impact there. His exile also seemed to have a creative impetus. He composed or published some of his greatest work including Les Miserables, and three widely honoured collections of poetry (Les Chatiments, 1853; Les Contemplations, 1856; and La Legende des siecles, 1859).In 1870 the Third Republic was established and Hugo finally returned home, where he was elected to the National Assembly and the Senate. That same year War erupted between France and Prussia and the French were badly beaten.With the end of the War Hugo began his campaign for a great valuation and protection for the rights of artists and copyright. He was a founding member of the Association Litteraire et Artistique Internationale, which led to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works.Victor Hugo's death on 22nd May 1885, at the age of 83, generated intense nation-wide mourning. Revered not only as a towering figure in literature, he was a statesman who had helped to shape the Third Republic and democracy in France.Index of ContentsDRAMATIS PERSONTIME: LONDON, 1553MARY TUDORFIRST DAYA MAN OF THE PEOPLESCENE:-Border of the Thames.SCENE ISCENE IISCENE IIISCENE IVSCENE VSCENE VISCENE VIISCENE VIIISCENE IXSECOND DAYTHE QUEENSCENE:-A Room in the royal apartment.SCENE ISCENE IISCENE IIISCENE IVSCENE VSCENE VISCENE VIISCENE VIIISCENE IXTHIRD DAYPART IWHICH OF THE TWO?SCENE:-Hall in the Interior of the Tower of London.SCENE ISCENE IISCENE IIISCENE IVSCENE VSCENE VISCENE VIIISCENE IXSCENE XTHIRD DAYPART IISCENE:-A Hall or Room into Which lead Two Staircases.SCENE ISCENE IIVICTOR HUGO - A SHORT BIOGRAPHYVICTOR HUGO - A CONCISE BIBLIOGRAPHY

Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM, was born in Kirriemuir, Angus the ninth of ten children on May 9th, 1860. From early formative experiences, Barrie knew that he wished to follow a career as an author. His family wished otherwise and sought to persuade him to choose a profession, such as the ministry. The compromise was that he would attend university to study literature at the University of Edinburgh. He graduated with an M.A. on April 21st, 1882. His first job was as a staff journalist for the Nottingham Journal. The London editor of the St. James's Gazette "e;liked that Scotch thing"e; in Barrie's short stories about his mother's early life. They also served as the basis for his first novels. Barrie though was increasingly drawn to working in the theatre. His first play, a biography of Richard Savage, was only performed once and critically panned. Undaunted he immediately followed this with Ibsen's Ghost in 1891, a parody of Ibsen's plays Hedda Gabler and Ghosts. Barrie's third play, Walker, London, in 1892 led to an introduction to his future wife, a young actress by the name of Mary Ansell. The two became friends, and she helped his family to care for him when he fell very ill in 1893 and 1894. Barrie proposed and they were married, in Kirriemuir, on July 9th, 1894. By some accounts the relationship was unconsummated and indeed the couple had no children. The story of Peter Pan had begun to formulate when Barrie became acquainted with the Llewelyn Davis family in 1897, meeting George, Jack and baby Peter with their nanny in London's Kensington Gardens. In 1901 and 1902, Barrie had back-to-back theatre successes with Quality Street and The Admirable Crichton. The character of "e;Peter Pan"e; first appeared in The Little White Bird in 1902. This most famous and enduring of his works; Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up had its first stage performance on December 27th, 1904. Peter Pan would overshadow everything written during his career. He continued to write for the rest of his life contributing many other fine and important works. Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM, died of pneumonia on June 19th,1937 and was buried at Kirriemuir next to his parents and two of his siblings.

Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was born on October 16, 1888 in a hotel bedroom in what is now Times Square, New York. Much of his childhood was spent in the comfort of books at boarding schools whilst his actor father was on the road and his Mother contended with her own demons. He spent only a year at University - Princeton - and various reasons have been given for his departure. However whatever his background and education denied or added to his development it is agreed amongst all that he was a playwright of the first rank and possibly America's greatest. His introduction of realism into American drama was instrumental in its development and paved a path for many talents thereafter. Of course his winning of both the Pulitzer Prize (4 times) and the Nobel Prize are indicative of his status. His more famous and later works do side with the disillusionment and personal tragedy of those on the fringes of society but continue to build upon ideas and structures he incorporated in his early one act plays. Eugene O'Neill suffered from various health problems, mainly depression and alcoholism. In the last decade he also faced a Parkinson's like tremor in his hands which made writing increasingly difficult. But out of such difficulties came plays of the calibre of The Iceman Cometh, Long Day's Journey Into Night, and A Moon for the Misbegotten. Eugene O'Neill died in Room 401 of the Sheraton Hotel on Bay State Road in Boston, on November 27, 1953, at the age of 65. As he was dying, he whispered his last words: "e;I knew it. I knew it. Born in a hotel room and died in a hotel room."e;

The village of Colonus, near Athens, was, in the year 495 BC, the birthplace of Sophocles. Sophocles place in Greek Tragedy is assured. His birth places him between the two other giants of Greek tragedy; schylus and Euripides. He was 30 years younger than schylus, the reigning master of drama and was fifteen years older than Euripides, who would, in turn, usurp Sophocles. Sophocles was a handsome and agile youth and selected, at the age of sixteen, to lead with dance and lyre the chorus which celebrated the triumph of Athens and its Allies over Persia at the battle at Salamis. Sophocles career as a dramatist was marked by a victory in competition with schylus, under exceptional circumstances. At the time the remains of the hero Theseus were being removed by Cimon from the isle of Scyros to Athens and, at the same time, a contest involving the two dramatists was being held. schylus was lauded at the time as the supreme dramatist but Sophocles was popular if inexperienced. The first prize was awarded to Sophocles, greatly to the disgust of the veteran schylus, who taking umbrage, soon afterward departed for Sicily. By all accounts Sophocles would now write and exhibit tragedies and satyric dramas for the next sixty years. The canon of his work varies to between 120 and 180 plays, naturally a number were fillers and not of his highest standard but the prodigious output is extraordinary. In the annual Dionysia, the number of first prizes he won is put at between eighteen and twenty-four, with many more second prizes. On this basis alone schylus and Euripides were left a long way behind. So far from being dulled with age and toil, his powers seem only to have assumed a mellower tone, a more touching pathos, a sweeter and gentler mode of thought and expression. Sophocles was spared the misery of witnessing the final overthrow of his country, dying, at the age or around 90 after a long life full of triumphs and honours, a few months before the defeat of Aegospotami brought the downfall of his beloved Athens. This naval Battle of Aegospotami took place in 405 BC and decisively determined the outcome of the Peloponnesian War. In the battle, a Spartan fleet under Lysander destroyed the Athenian navy. This effectively ended the war, since Athens could not import grain or communicate with its empire without control of the sea. There are only seven dramas of Sophocles that have survived. It can be argued that Sophocles and his works were the high-water mark of Athenian excellence. He is rightly lauded and we can only wonder at the splendours he wrote that are now lost to us.

George Etherege was born in Maidenhead, Berkshire, around 1636, the eldest of six children to George Etherege and Mary Powney. Little is known of much of his life and especially his early years. He was educated at Lord Williams's School and the next sighting of him is as apprentice to a lawyer before he himself began to study law at Clement's Inn, London, one of the Inns of Chancery. Thereafter conjecture attributes many things to him but none that can be confirmed as fact. However, after the Restoration to the throne of Charles II in 1660 he wrote his first comedy; The Comical Revenge, or, Love in a Tub, which also brought him to the attention of Lord Buckhurst, who later became the Earl of Dorset. The Comical Revenge was performed at the Duke's theatre in 1664 although other accounts say it was premiered at Lincoln's Inn Fields. It is written partly in rhymed heroic verse and contains several comic scenes that are refreshingly bright, especially in the context of other plays performed at the time. The verbal sparring between Sir Frederick and the Widow was a new departure for the stage and it worked brilliantly. An immediate success, it had followed much of the earlier traditions of theatre but had already begun to lay the foundations for what would become the comedy of manners. It gave him an immediate entree to a world of literary rakes, including Sir Charles Sedley, John Wilmot, the earl of Rochester and many of the roguish elements of the Court circle. He seemed easy-going and amiable and his nicknames seem to confirm this; "e;gentle George"e; and "e;easy Etheredge."e; Whether this rich life of gaudy pleasures hindered his writing or not it would be another four years before his next play would be finished and performed. In 1668 She Would If She Could, a comedy full of action, wit and spirit, came to the stage. Although it was also seen by others to be frivolous and immoral. However, the play does cement Etheredge's modern reputation as a powerful figure in English playwriting. The play dropped the romantic verse element to concentrate on flirtation for flirtations own sake. It was a radical departure. Unfortunately, it also flopped. It is said due to bad acting but the sudden movement away from the normal structure of a play may equally be the reason. Etheridge now departed on new adventures and between 1668 and 1671 Etherege resided in Constantinople as the secretary of the English ambassador, Sir Daniel Harvey. Returning once more to English shores he wrote the prologue for the opening, in 1671, of the new Dorset Garden Theatre. In 1676 his last and wittiest comedy, The Man of Mode; or, Sir Fopling Flutter, was brought to the stage. It was an immediate and over-whelming success. He was acclaimed. A writer being the sum of his own experiences it was widely believed that the play's characters paint comic pictures of several of his well-known contemporaries. Sir Fopling Flutter himself being a portrait of Beau Hewit, the reigning exquisite of the hour, Dorimant a reference to John Wilmot, the Earl of Rochester, and Medley a portrait of Etherege himself or fellow playwright and wit Sir Charles Sedley. Even the drunkard shoemaker was a real character, who made his fortune from being brought to public attention. After this brilliant success Etheredge retired from literature, and a few years later had lost much of his new fortune to gambling. Etherege was knighted in either 1679 or 1680 and went on to marry the wealthy widow Mary Sheppard Arnold. In March, 1685 he was appointed resident minister in the imperial German court at Regensburg. After three and a half-year's residence and the Glorious Revolution, he left for Paris to join James II in exile. He died in Paris, probably in late 1691, although the date and cause of death are uncertain.

Madame Bovary (1856) is the French novelist Gustave Flaubert's much-celebrated masterpiece that has been translated into more than forty languages in the world. It belongs to the realistic movement of fiction and has often been considered by critics as one of its most important foundational works. The book recounts the life story of Charles Bovary, a young man from northern France who has been brought up by his mother to become rather a simpleton. Charles is trained to be a medical doctor and then starts practicing his job. He first marries an elder woman that his mother chooses for him. While being married, he has an acquaintance with a beautiful young woman named Emma with whom he falls in love. He is given the opportunity to get closer to Emma and marry her after the death of his first wife. The story then becomes entirely focused on the character of Emma who soon gets bored of her marital status and starts to look for extramarital relations. She indulges in sexual adventures with two different partners while her husband never suspects anything. She even unsuccessfully attempts to elope with one of her lovers once. Madame Bovary commits suicide by the end of the narrative after having drowned herself in irredeemable debt. Charles, who cherishes her memory, discovers about her cheating only later and still tries to find her excuses before he dies himself.

The life of William Shakespeare, arguably the most significant figure in the Western literary canon, is relatively unknown. Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1565, possibly on the 23rd April, St. George's Day, and baptised there on 26th April. Little is known of his education and the first firm facts to his life relate to his marriage, aged 18, to Anne Hathaway, who was 26 and from the nearby village of Shottery. Anne gave birth to their first son six months later. Shakespeare's first play, The Comedy of Errors began a procession of real heavyweights that were to emanate from his pen in a career of just over twenty years in which 37 plays were written and his reputation forever established. This early skill was recognised by many and by 1594 the Lord Chamberlain's Men were performing his works. With the advantage of Shakespeare's progressive writing they rapidly became London's leading company of players, affording him more exposure and, following the death of Queen Elizabeth in 1603, a royal patent by the new king, James I, at which point they changed their name to the King's Men. By 1598, and despite efforts to pirate his work, Shakespeare's name was well known and had become a selling point in its own right on title pages. No plays are attributed to Shakespeare after 1613, and the last few plays he wrote before this time were in collaboration with other writers, one of whom is likely to be John Fletcher who succeeded him as the house playwright for the King's Men. William Shakespeare died two months later on April 23rd, 1616, survived by his wife, two daughters and a legacy of writing that none have since yet eclipsed.

The reality is that little is known of Aristophanes actual life but eleven of his forty plays survive intact and upon those rest his deserved reputation as the Father of Comedy or, The Prince of Ancient Comedy. Accounts agree that he was born sometime between 456BC and 446 BC. Many cities claim the honor of his birthplace and the most probable story makes him the son of Philippus of gina, and therefore only an adopted citizen of Athens, a distinction which, at times could be cruel, though he was raised and educated in Athens. His plays are said to recreate the life of ancient Athens more realistically than any other author could. Intellectually his powers of ridicule were feared by his influential contemporaries; Plato himself singled out Aristophanes' play The Clouds as a slander that contributed to the trial and condemning to death of Socrates and although other satirical playwrights had also caricatured the philosopher his carried the most weight. His now lost play, The Babylonians, was denounced by the demagogue Cleon as a slander against the Athenian polis. Aristophanes seems to have taken this criticism to heart and thereafter caricatured Cleon mercilessly in his subsequent plays, especially The Knights. His life and playwriting years were undoubtedly long though again accounts as to the year of his death vary quite widely. What can be certain is that his legacy of surviving plays is in effect both a treasured legacy but also in itself the only surviving texts of Ancient Greek comedy.

Philip Massinger was baptized at St. Thomas's in Salisbury on November 24th, 1583.Massinger is described in his matriculation entry at St. Alban Hall, Oxford (1602), as the son of a gentleman. His father, who had also been educated there, was a member of parliament, and attached to the household of Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke. The Earl was later seen as a potential patron for Massinger.He left Oxford in 1606 without a degree. His father had died in 1603, and accounts suggest that Massinger was left with no financial support this, together with rumours that he had converted to Catholicism, meant the next stage of his career needed to provide an income.Massinger went to London to make his living as a dramatist, but he is only recorded as author some fifteen years later, when The Virgin Martyr (1621) is given as the work of Massinger and Thomas Dekker.During those early years as a playwright he wrote for the Elizabethan stage entrepreneur, Philip Henslowe. It was a difficult existence. Poverty was always close and there was constant pleading for advance payments on forthcoming works merely to survive.After Henslowe died in 1616 Massinger and John Fletcher began to write primarily for the King's Men and Massinger would write regularly for them until his death.The tone of the dedications in later plays suggests evidence of his continued poverty. In the preface of The Maid of Honour (1632) he wrote, addressing Sir Francis Foljambe and Sir Thomas Bland: "e;I had not to this time subsisted, but that I was supported by your frequent courtesies and favours."e;The prologue to The Guardian (1633) refers to two unsuccessful plays and two years of silence, when the author feared he had lost popular favour although, from the little evidence that survives, it also seems he had involved some of his plays with political characters which would have cast shadows upon England's alliances.Philip Massinger died suddenly at his house near the Globe Theatre on March 17th, 1640. He was buried the next day in the churchyard of St. Saviour's, Southwark, on March 18th, 1640. In the entry in the parish register he is described as a "e;stranger,"e; which, however, implies nothing more than that he belonged to another parish.

Philip Massinger was baptized at St. Thomas's in Salisbury on November 24th, 1583.Massinger is described in his matriculation entry at St. Alban Hall, Oxford (1602), as the son of a gentleman. His father, who had also been educated there, was a member of parliament, and attached to the household of Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke. The Earl was later seen as a potential patron for Massinger.He left Oxford in 1606 without a degree. His father had died in 1603, and accounts suggest that Massinger was left with no financial support this, together with rumours that he had converted to Catholicism, meant the next stage of his career needed to provide an income.Massinger went to London to make his living as a dramatist, but he is only recorded as author some fifteen years later, when The Virgin Martyr (1621) is given as the work of Massinger and Thomas Dekker.During those early years as a playwright he wrote for the Elizabethan stage entrepreneur, Philip Henslowe. It was a difficult existence. Poverty was always close and there was constant pleading for advance payments on forthcoming works merely to survive.After Henslowe died in 1616 Massinger and John Fletcher began to write primarily for the King's Men and Massinger would write regularly for them until his death.The tone of the dedications in later plays suggests evidence of his continued poverty. In the preface of The Maid of Honour (1632) he wrote, addressing Sir Francis Foljambe and Sir Thomas Bland: "e;I had not to this time subsisted, but that I was supported by your frequent courtesies and favours."e;The prologue to The Guardian (1633) refers to two unsuccessful plays and two years of silence, when the author feared he had lost popular favour although, from the little evidence that survives, it also seems he had involved some of his plays with political characters which would have cast shadows upon England's alliances.Philip Massinger died suddenly at his house near the Globe Theatre on March 17th, 1640. He was buried the next day in the churchyard of St. Saviour's, Southwark, on March 18th, 1640. In the entry in the parish register he is described as a "e;stranger,"e; which, however, implies nothing more than that he belonged to another parish.

James Shirley was born in London in September 1596. His education was through a collection of England's finest establishments: Merchant Taylors' School, London, St John's College, Oxford, and St Catharine's College, Cambridge, where he took his B.A. degree in approximately 1618. He first published in 1618, a poem entitled Echo, or the Unfortunate Lovers. As with many artists of this period full details of his life and career are not recorded. Sources say that after graduating he became "e;a minister of God's word in or near St Albans."e; A conversion to the Catholic faith enabled him to become master of St Albans School from 1623-25. He wrote his first play, Love Tricks, or the School of Complement, which was licensed on February 10th, 1625. From the given date it would seem he wrote this whilst at St Albans but, after its production, he moved to London and to live in Gray's Inn. For the next two decades, he would write prolifically and with great quality, across a spectrum of thirty plays; through tragedies and comedies to tragicomedies as well as several books of poetry. Unfortunately, his talents were left to wither when Parliament passed the Puritan edict in 1642, forbidding all stage plays and closing the theatres. Most of his early plays were performed by Queen Henrietta's Men, the acting company for which Shirley was engaged as house dramatist. Shirley's sympathies lay with the King in battles with Parliament and he received marks of special favor from the Queen. He made a bitter attack on William Prynne, who had attacked the stage in Histriomastix, and, when in 1634 a special masque was presented at Whitehall by the gentlemen of the Inns of Court as a practical reply to Prynne, Shirley wrote the text-The Triumph of Peace. Shirley spent the years 1636 to 1640 in Ireland, under the patronage of the Earl of Kildare. Several of his plays were produced by his friend John Ogilby in Dublin in the first ever constructed Irish theatre; The Werburgh Street Theatre. During his years in Dublin he wrote The Doubtful Heir, The Royal Master, The Constant Maid, and St. Patrick for Ireland. In his absence from London, Queen Henrietta's Men sold off a dozen of his plays to the stationers, who naturally, enough published them. When Shirley returned to London in 1640, he finished with the Queen Henrietta's company and his final plays in London were acted by the King's Men. On the outbreak of the English Civil War Shirley served with the Earl of Newcastle. However when the King's fortunes began to decline he returned to London. There his friend Thomas Stanley gave him help and thereafter Shirley supported himself in the main by teaching and publishing some educational works under the Commonwealth. In addition to these he published during the period of dramatic eclipse four small volumes of poems and plays, in 1646, 1653, 1655, and 1659. It is said that he was "e;a drudge"e; for John Ogilby in his translations of Homer's Iliad and the Odyssey, and survived into the reign of Charles II, but, though some of his comedies were revived, his days as a playwright were over. His death, at age seventy, along with that of his wife, in 1666, is described as one of fright and exposure due to the Great Fire of London which had raged through parts of London from September 2nd to the 5th. He was buried at St Giles in the Fields, in London, on October 29th, 1666.