Presence Of Books Research Articles

Manuscripts and Fragments: Slovenian Territory in the Carolingian Era

The territory of present day Slovenia was during the Carolingian era -especially if we have in mind the presence of books, languages, writing styles and religious experiences -confronted with three streams. There is the important impact of St.Methodius: with a new alphabet, Glagolitic one, and with texts in vernacular language it became an opposition against the Latin tradition, due to the favorable attitude of Pannonian duke Kocelj, and consequently in some localities Latin language and lettering at least temporarily lost their positions. On the other hand, there are different witnesses of Irish missionary activities. Of special Importance are monuments, dating cca. 1000 (esp. the so-called Monumenta Frisingenia and Letania norica. Next to these there are testimonies of intense impact and pressure from the Salzburg archbishopric on the territory of Carniola and Carantania.

Reflections on Southern Intellectuals

. . . the awakening we were to experience, or to have jolted into us, or to undergo by some more subtle chemistry . . . [was] something more basic and simple. This was the acceptance of ideas themselves as something worth living by . . . not of discovering certain books, but the simple presence of books ... we at eighteen or nineteen were only barely beginning to learn that there were ideas, much less ideas to arouse one from one's self.1

Literary socialization in the family: A state of the art

The present article reviews the research on family influences upon literary socialization. Although the information available is fragmented and scattered over a number of disciplines, it is nevertheless possible to outline some generally favourable factors in the emergence of literary competence and literary motivation. Positive influences concern material provisions (such as the presence of books in the household) or parental attitudes toward literature. More important still are the interactions relating to literature and the way they are embedded in the family's pattern of daily activities. Furthermore, quiet and coherence, as well as feelings of intimacy and security, being a prerequisite for the development of self-control, strongly favour the formation of positive attitudes and more appropriate skills in dealing with literature. The relationship between social class and families' literary climate, reported frequently in the literature, is discussed critically. The explanatory power of various theories turns out to be low. It is therefore proposed to analyse the existing data from a socio-historic framework, allowing a more adequate formulation of a theory of literary socialization bearing on the family's contribution.

The African-American Legacy in American Literature

Since their enforced and brutal emigration to North America about 400 years ago, African-Americans have forged rich and dynamic literary forms that today have become an important and unique aspect of American literature and culture. The sound literary qualities, interesting thematic range, and social significance of this variety of American literature notwithstanding, it has remained largely unknown to the general African-American reading public, including even students of literature. We are, of course, aware of the presence of books by and on African-Americans in our libraries and African-American literature courses in the curricula of African colleges and universities. But such books are generally limited to those of well-known authors, such as Langston Hughes, Richard Wright, and James Baldwin, and the courses are offered by only a few privileged institutions and even then on an irregular basis.' The aim of this article, then, is to help acquaint more AfricanAmerican readers, particularly students of literature, with the ways in which the meanings, beauty, and power of African-American literary creations have evolved to enrich American literature and culture. However, due to its time span, generic variations, stylistic complexity, and content range, it would be presumptuous and preposterous to attempt to treat the whole literature here. What follows, then, is a modest effort to review mainly African-American