内容简介
From the incredible wizadry of Merlin to the passion of Sir Lancelot, these tales of Arthur and his knights offer epic adventures with the supernatural as well as timeless battles with out own humanity.
作者简介
Scholars have determined that there were at least six Thomas Malorys alive in the 1400s when Le Morte d'Arthur was written. Considerable evidence points to the likeliest author as one Sir Thomas Malory or Maleore of Newbold Revell in Warwickshire, who was born in the first quarter of the fifteenth century. A member of the gentry, he became a soldier in the service of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, with whom he fought in the siege of Calais in 1436. In records of the period he is accused of various crimes--including armed robbery, attempted murder, and rape--and he is said to have executed several dramatic escapes from prison.
Several things about Malory seem indisputable. As in Arthur's time when post-Roman Britain was in a state of fierce tribal war, he lived in an age of great unrest. Europe was still recovering from the Black Plague and a century of war. In England, two powerful families fought for the throne. Although he may have been a scoundrel, Malory was also, it seems clear, a man of ideals who believed in courage and loyalty, and who mourned the passing of chivalry. Incarcerated for long periods, he had many hours to fill his imagination with French romances and tales of chivalry, volumes of which were readily at hand. It is thought that Le Morte d'Arthur was written during his imprisonment.
Malory referred to himself as a 'knight-prisoner.' With a military man's passion for the details of conquest, a prisoner's sense of injustice, and a penitent's desire for redemption, he dedicated himself wholeheartedly to this retelling of the Arthurian legends. Sir Thomas Malory died, it is presumed, around 1471.
Robert Graves is considered to be one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. He wrote more than 100 books, including Goodbye to All That, I, Claudius, and The White Goddess. Scott Ashley is a lecturer in history at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Christopher Cannon, Fellow of Girton College and University Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of English, University of Cambridge
前言/序言
好的,以下是根据您的要求撰写的一份图书简介,内容不涉及《Le Morte D'Arthur: King Arthur and the Legends of the Round Table 亚瑟王之死和圆桌骑士传奇》这本书的具体内容,旨在详细介绍其他主题的图书。 --- 书名:《失落的伊甸园:中古炼金术与神秘学探秘》 作者: 艾莉丝·范德比尔特 页数: 约 620 页 出版日期: 2023 年秋季 简介: 在人类文明的漫长历史中,总有一些思想与实践,如同隐秘的河流般流淌,影响着科学、哲学与艺术的发展。本书深入探究中世纪晚期至文艺复兴早期,欧洲大陆上一股引人入胜的精神潮流——炼金术与神秘学。这并非是一部简单的历史编年史,而是一次对人类求知欲深层驱动力的细致剖析,旨在揭示隐藏在铅汞转化与“贤者之石”传说之下的,是怎样一个复杂的知识体系与精神世界。 我们习惯于将炼金术视为对黄金的痴迷,或视为现代化学的原始雏形。然而,这种观点极大地简化了其内在的丰富性与复杂性。《失落的伊甸园》试图超越这种狭隘的定义,将炼金术置于其所处的文化、宗教与哲学语境中进行考察。本书的核心论点在于:炼金术士们所追求的“大业”(Magnum Opus),远不止于物质上的转化,更是一场深刻的内在精神净化与宇宙和谐的追寻之旅。 全书分为四个主要部分,逻辑递进,层层深入。 第一部分:起源的迷雾与哲学的根基 本部分追溯了西方炼金术思想的源头。我们首先考察了古希腊哲学,特别是亚里士多德的“四元素说”(土、气、火、水)是如何被早期亚历山大港的赫尔墨斯主义者所吸收和改造的。随后,我们将目光投向伊斯兰黄金时代,阿拉伯学者如贾比尔·本·哈扬(Geber)对实验技术和理论框架的重大贡献。书中详尽分析了“物质的统一性”这一核心信念如何成为所有炼金实践的理论基石——即万物皆由同一基本物质构成,可以通过特定的媒介(如哲学之石)进行完善或转化。我们审视了早期文本中常见的隐晦语言,如“硫磺-汞理论”,并试图解读这些看似神秘的符号背后所蕴含的对物质世界深层结构理解的尝试。 第二部分:实践的艺术与实验室的秘密 这一部分将读者带入中世纪的作坊与隐秘的实验室。范德比尔特博士凭借对大量罕见手稿和实验记录的细致研究,重构了炼金士们日常进行的操作流程。我们探讨了从“焦枯”(Calcination)到“凝固”(Coagulation)的经典七步循环,并分析了诸如蒸馏、升华、溶解等关键技术的演变。然而,重点不在于复制这些实验,而在于理解这些物质操作与象征意义之间的双向互动。例如,加热与冷却、氧化与还原,在炼金士的认知中,往往对应着灵魂与肉体的斗争,或善与恶的对抗。我们还特别关注了印刷术普及后,炼金术知识传播的扩散和规范化过程,以及早期印刷本中大量精美插图的象征意义。 第三部分:十字路口上的神秘学:宗教、占星与魔法 炼金术从未孤立存在,它是中世纪广阔神秘学图景的一部分。《失落的伊甸园》用大量篇幅论述了炼金术与同时期其他隐秘学问的交织。书中详细分析了炼金术士如何整合占星学——特别是行星周期与金属的对应关系(金对应太阳,银对应月亮等)——来指导他们的实验时间。更具争议性的是,本书深入探讨了炼金术与基督教神学的紧张而又复杂的对话。许多炼金士将“大业”视为一种对“创世之初的完美状态”的回归,将提炼物质的过程视为对自身灵魂的救赎与上帝恩典的体验。我们审视了那些试图将赫尔墨斯思想与《圣经》文本强行调和的尝试,以及由此引发的教会内部的争论。 第四部分:从物质到精神的飞跃与启蒙的阴影 本书的最后部分聚焦于炼金术向现代科学转型的临界点。我们探讨了像罗伯特·博伊尔(Robert Boyle)这样的早期化学家如何既批判性地继承了炼金术的实验方法,又彻底抛弃了其形而上学的框架。书中分析了炼金术从追求“永生药剂”(Elixir of Life)和“贤者之石”的物质目标,逐渐转向对更抽象的“内在转化”和“心灵哲学”的探索。在这一过程中,炼金术士们的知识遗产是如何通过共济会、玫瑰十字会等秘密社团得以延续的,并对后世的浪漫主义运动和深层心理学(如荣格的集体无意识理论)产生了难以磨灭的影响。 《失落的伊甸园》的独特价值 本书的价值在于其跨学科的综合性。作者范德比尔特博士不仅精通中世纪拉丁文与希腊文文本的解读,同时对化学史和哲学史有着深刻的洞察。她避免了将炼金术士描绘成迷信的傻瓜,而是将他们视为那个时代最勇敢的知识探索者——他们试图用理性和经验去理解宇宙的宏大奥秘,尽管他们的工具和语言充满着诗意与象征。阅读本书,读者将踏上一段穿越中世纪思想的史诗旅程,理解在科学与信仰的边界地带,人类心智如何构建出最为宏伟、也最为隐秘的知识体系。这是一部献给所有对历史的幽暗角落、人类求知欲的终极极限感兴趣的读者的杰作。 ---