Yale Bulletin and Calendar

February 27, 2004|Volume 32, Number 20

The new volume of "The Papers of Benjamin Franklin" follows his exploits during five months in 1782, when he negotiated a peace agreement with Great Britain.

Yale Books in Brief

The following is a list of books recently or soon-to-be published by members of the Yale community. Descriptions are based on material provided by the publishers.

To submit information about books for this column, send e-mail to opa@yale.edu.

A Baedeker of Decadence: Charting a Literary Fashion, 1884-1927
George C. Schoolfield, professor emeritus of German and Scandinavian literature
(Yale University Press)

Through close readings of diverse turn-of-the-century writers, George Schoolfield sheds new light on the intellectual kinship of these authors and on the ingredients, themes, motifs and preconceptions that characterized "decadent" literature. "A Baedeker of Decadence" presents an international col- lection of 32 works of literary decadence written between 1884 and 1927 and offers commentary on the many strands of this literary and cultural phenomenon. Among the authors represented in the book are George Moore, Gabriele D'Annunzio, August Strindberg, Oscar Wilde, Stanislaw Przbyszewski, Rainer Maria Rilke, Bram Stoker and Thomas Mann. Their novels and novellas share various characteristics of decadent literature, including protagonists who were fragile, refined, self-absorbed and preoccupied with a trivially exquisite aesthetic.

The Papers of Benjamin Franklin, Volume 37:
March 16 through August 15, 1782
Edited by Ellen R. Cohn, editor of The Papers of Benjamin Franklin and senior research scholar in history
(Yale University Press)

This new volume of "The Papers of Benjamin Franklin" encompasses five months of his life during 1782. Between March and August of that year, Franklin mastered what is considered one of the greatest challenges of his career by establishing the framework for a peace agreement with Great Britain. The negotiations required mollifying the French while satisfying the British. In the negotiations, Franklin demonstrated his unswerving confidence in the rectitude and ultimate triumph of the American cause and his aptitude for diplomacy by creating contrasting impressions for different audiences.

The Law As It Could Be
Owen Fiss, Sterling Professor of Law
(New York University Press)

In "The Law As It Could Be," Owen Fiss surveys the legal terrain between the landmark cases of Brown v. Board of Education and Bush v. Gore to reclaim the legal legacy of the civil rights movement. He argues for a vision of judges as instruments of public reason and of the courts as a means of shaping society in the image of the Constitution. In the book -- which includes an introduction by the author and contextual introductions for each piece -- Fiss covers such topics as the use of the injunction to restructure social institutions, and contends that the role of the judge has been misunderstood and that Bush v. Gore was not the constitutional crisis some have claimed.

Spiritual Bankruptcy: Tapping Into Your Faith Will Awaken That Dormant Place
Trina E. Lucky, referral coordinator, Department of Surgery
(1stBooks)

In "Spiritual Bankruptcy: Tapping into Your Faith Will Awaken That Dormant Place," Trina E. Lucky -- a Sunday school teacher who attended the Trinity College Bible Institute -- asserts that all believers have a God-given measure of faith within that simply needs to be tapped into in order to be exercised. Referencing a comment from the Bible's Book of James that "our faith is on trial," Lucky says that people need to be reminded of this daily, and asserts that by praying a prayer of belief, they can begin a deeper relationship with God. In the book, Lucky recounts some of her life experiences and relates these to her personal faith journey.

T H I SW E E K ' SS T O R I E S

Peter Salovey appointed as next dean of Yale College . . .

New office to promote the University's international initiatives

Study shows drop in effectiveness of chicken pox vaccine

Yale-led coalition helps bring Delta Air Lines to Tweed

Squash team's latest victory is 'the ultimate payoff'

Medical student shares her tales in award-winning column

Law student to work on criminal justice project as Soros Fellow

Epidemiologist Casals-Ariet dies; discovered relationships of viruses

Yale Rep announces event change

Harshav receives Koret Jewish Book Award

Yale Books in Brief

Campus Notes