Showing titles in Poetry

Have you ever been to a King Lear performance with the impression of not having understood everything? It's normal. Shakespeare's plays are the most beautiful of the theatrical repertoire, but you cannot go to a Shakespeare play if you do not have a minimum prepared this show: understand the issues, characters, context, cultural or historical references is indispensable. The same is true if you intend to read a play by William Shakespeare: our summaries will help you better understand what you have read.

A sparkling translation that gives new life in English to Dante’s Vita Nuova, his transcendent love poems and influential statement on the art and power of poetry, and the most widely read of his works after the Inferno A Penguin Classic Dante was only nine years old when he first met young...

The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other Homeric epic. The Odyssey is fundamental to the modern Western canon; it is the second-oldest extant work of Western literature, while the Iliad is the oldest. Scholars believe the Odyssey was composed near the end of the 8th century BC, somewhere in Ionia, the Greek coastal region of Anatolia.

"On ne badine pas avec l'amour" est l'une des pièces les plus célèbres d'Alfred de Musset, et le premier de ses "proverbes". Ecrite en 1833, alors qu'il a tout juste vingt-trois ans, elle porte les traces de sa relation tumultueuse avec la romancière George Sand. Elle fait aujourd'hui partie des pièces Romantiques les plus jouées de par le monde, reprise par les metteurs en scène et les interprètes les plus prestigieux.

"Le Tartuffe ou l'Imposteur" est une comédie de Molière en cinq actes et en vers créée le 5 février 1669 sur la scène du Théâtre du Palais-Royal. Orgon est l'archétype du personnage de cour tombé sous la coupe de Tartuffe, un hypocrite et un faux dévot. Il est, ainsi que sa mère, Madame Pernelle, dupe de Tartuffe. Ce dernier réussit à le manipuler en singeant la dévotion et il est même parvenu à devenir son directeur de conscience. Il se voit proposer d'épouser la fille de son bienfaiteur, alors même qu'il tente de séduire Elmire, la femme d'Orgon, plus jeune que son mari.

"André Gide reste un isolé, inclassable, que son intransigeance morale a éloigné de toutes les chapelles. Cette impitoyable lucidité sans complaisance ne l'épargnait pas. Il dit de lui-même "A cet âge innocent où l'on voudrait que toute âme ne soit que transparence, tendresse et pureté, je ne vois en moi qu'ombre, laideur, sournoiserie." Son influence sur la jeunesse et les écrivains contemporains fut considérable. André Malraux l'a qualifié de "Contemporain capital"."

Homer is one of the most important figures in ancient Greek literature, believed to have lived in the 8th century BC. He is most famous for his epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey, which are considered to be the founding works of Western literature. The Iliad tells the story of the Trojan War, focusing on the hero Achilles, while the Odyssey recounts the adventures of the Greek hero Odysseus as he attempts to return home after the war. Both works are celebrated for their vivid storytelling, complex characters, and profound exploration of human nature.

The Satires comprises a collection of satirical poems by the Latin author Juvenal written in the second century CE. Juvenal wrote in the Roman tradition of “satura”, a formal literary genre composed in dactylic hexameter rather than just witty criticism in any format. In a tone and manner that ranges from irony to rage, Juvenal criticizes the actions and beliefs of his contemporaries.

"Sztuka kochania" autorstwa Owidiusza to jedno z najbardziej znanych dzieł traktujących o kunszcie miłosnym w historii. Poemat rzymskiego twórcy skierowany jest zarówno do mężczyzn, jak i kobiet. Przy pomocy pięknego języka odsłania on przed odbiorcą arkana wiedzy z zakresu uwodzenia, flirtu, fizycznego zbliżenia oraz utrzymania przy sobie "drugiej połowy".

A short section from Milton's epic poem, expressing how much sweeter the world is when you are with the one you love, read by Jenny Agutter.

L'un des plus rares plaisirs dont jouisse le comédien, est assurément d'interpréter une œuvre de Marivaux. L'art qui s'y révèle est, en effet, d'une essence unique, d'une originalité si authentique, que les annales de la comédie ne nous en offrent que peu d'autres exemples.

Las Rimas de Bécquer son hoy la más conocida de las colecciones poéticas del siglo XIX. Exponente de una lírica incómoda en el corsé romántico y casi modernista, estos poemas breves deben su liviandad a un esforzado trabajo de depuración estilística.

The poems in this collection, "Fairies and Fusiliers", appeared in 1918, after Robert Graves returned from World War I in his early 20s. The fairy poems are from the carefree happy days of childhood and make-believe recalled by a man who has lived the reality and horror of war. The poems of war are written only as one who has witnessed it can tell them.

Martial was a Latin poet from Hispania best known for his 12 books of Epigrams, published in Rome between A.D. 86 and 103, during the reigns of the emperors Domitian, Nerva and Trajan. In these short, witty poems, he cheerfully satirises city life and the scandalous activities of his acquaintances, and romanticises his provincial upbringing.

The secret of their identities has fueled debate for hundreds of years: Who are the nameless nobleman and the dark-haired mistress? And what did they do to inspire the creation of more than 150 deeply intimate poems? Whether William Shakespeare's sonnets are pure fiction or the lingering echo of an autobiographical account, this exquisitely written collection defied traditional love poem conventions to explore the many layers of romance, the dangers of lust, and the nuances of beauty.

Jamie Lee Curtis and JoBeth Williams star in this delightful Broadway hit which chronicles three Jewish sisters from Brooklyn as they gather in London to celebrate a birthday.

As the Enlightenment movement was gathering strength in the early 18th century, various challenges to established religious faith were launched. In response, a number of celebrated commentators produced defences of religion and morality, and among these was Alexander Pope, who was inspired to write "some pieces on Human Life and Manners." The result was a collection of poems in rhyming couplets, designated "Epistles", which were published in instalments.

Narrated in Middle English by J.B. Bessinger, Jr.

Rumí es posiblemente el erudito y poeta del mundo musulmán más conocido en Occidente. Con sus metáforas de la embriaguez, el jardín y el Amado, despliega ante nosotros la riqueza de la vida del místico que busca el amor y la unión con Divino. Su mensaje no podría estar más vigente. El poder evocador de sus poemas y las profundas enseñanzas morales y espirituales que contienen han hecho que actualmente sea el poeta místico más leído. Cada uno de nosotros está en un viaje interno, y este libro es una guía para ese viaje...

For nearly three thousand years, Homer’s Odyssey has captivated audiences with its tale of Odysseus’s perilous return journey after the Trojan War. In The Wisdom of the Odyssey, mythologist Phil Cousineau distills the epic into twenty-four chapters that mirror Homer’s original books and connect their lessons to our own lives. Listeners follow Odysseus through his ordeals and changes of heart, as he’s sustained not only by cunning and grit but by love for his wife, Penelope; his son, Telemachus; and his homeland, the island of Ithaka.