<h5 style="text-align: center">“A good reader, a major reader, and active and creative reader is a rereader.”</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-<a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/vladimir-nabokov">Vladimir Nabokov</a></h5>
There's really nothing like cracking open a good book.
Nearly half a millennium since their advent, novels continue to be one of the most popular technologies for literary storytelling. Broadly defined, a novel is a book-length work of fiction, usually bound in paper (though increasingly digitized), and while the discipline of novel writing is correctly characterized as the creation of imaginative book-length narrative fiction, the term novel is often applied to works that incorporate aspects of other genres, such as poetry, reportage, memoir, even <a href="https://youtu.be/jSbWW7ImsGM">autofiction</a>. 
The word novel comes from the French “nouvelle,” meaning new—and the genre itself is directly descended from the tradition of medieval courtly romances on the one hand, and epic poetry on the other. 
Many trace the first novel in the western tradition to <a href="https://timesarrow.org/work/the-history-and-adventures-of-the-renowned-don-quixote">The Ingenious Hidalgo, Don Quixote de la Mancha</a>, written by Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes, the first volume of which appeared in 1605, and the second of which appeared, after an imposter follow-up novel surfaced, forcing Cervantes’ hm in 1615. 
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418125210/animals-bird-01.svg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-39697 aligncenter" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418125210/animals-bird-01.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>
While many exemplary novels are still produced today, as an artform in conversation with an engaged with a responsive reading public, the novel reached its highwater mark in the hundred years from the mid-19th to the mid-20th centuries. That period saw a flourishing of master practitioners, from <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/charles-dickens">Charles Dickens</a>, <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/george-eliot">George Eliot</a>, and <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/anthony-trollope">Anthony Trollope</a> in England, to <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/honore-de-balzac">Honoré de Balzac</a>, Stendhal and <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/victor-hugo">Victor Hugo</a> in France, to <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/fyodor-dostoevsky">Fyodor Dostoevsky</a> and <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/leo-tolstoy">Leo Tolstoy</a> in the Russian tradition. 
Novels may be divided into many sub-genres, from literary novels, to historical novels, from romance novels, to spy novels, to crime novels, to detective novels. Each age brings forth its own innovators and practitioners, contributing to our understanding of the artform and expanding its potential. 
In our time, novels are one of the primary source materials for the modern TV and film industries, providing rich tableaux for episodic for feature length cinematic work. It's a constant struggle for many readers out there to get to the book first, before the film adaptation has had a chance to leave its imprint on the imagination. From Game of Thrones to Big Little Lies to <a href="https://timesarrow.org/work/all-the-light-we-cannot-see">All the Light We Cannot See</a>, so much of American popular TV culture has begun with a riveting novel.

Novels

<h5 style="text-align: center">“If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry.”</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-<a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/emily-dickinson">Emily Dickinson</a></h5>
A poem is more than an after-dinner mint.
Poetry is the central language of human civilization, and thus the form of art that affirms our deepest humanity: all other forms of imaginative literature spring from it; it is the core genre and the principal modality of linguistic art. What today we call poetry largely consists of short, voice-driven lyrical poems, although these may encompass a variety of styles, but the roots and history of poetry range across many widely disparate traditions and types.
Some of humanity’s earliest extant poetry, descended both from the oral and written traditions, are epic poems. While today we often use the word epic to describe something wonderfully impressive, e.g. “Dude, that kickflip was totally epic!”—at its foundation the epic is correctly used to describe a long, heroic narrative poem, which usually deals with certain great themes, such as the founding of a city or a civilization. One of the most notably epic poets, whose work grew out of the oral tradition and was eventually written down, was the legendary ancient Greek poet, Homer, who produced two epic poems that are read, relished, and studied to this day: <a href="https://timesarrow.org/work/the-iliad-of-homer">The Iliad</a> and <a href="https://timesarrow.org/work/the-odyssey-by-homer-2">The Odyssey</a>.
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418125551/animals-cat.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39698" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418125551/animals-cat.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>In the past three thousand years, poetry has gone through many changes, evolutions, innovations, reversions, and expansions. Tracking the history of poetry is a fantastic way to track the history of human thought and social change. Some of humanity's most exemplary and transformational moments were both called for by its poets and described and deepened by their work. One important example of this is the Romantic Movement, which flourished from the late 18th century to the late 19th century. Romanticism, as its often called, not only reflects a major shift in the literary, artisitic, and musical culture of the West, but instantiates and helped to propagate important shifts in how the individual was seen vis à vis society at large. This had enormously, world-changing impacts politically, and the work of poets such as <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/william-blake">William Blake</a>, <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/william-wordsworth">William Wordsworth</a>, <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/george-gordon-lord-byron">Lord Byron</a>, and <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/percy-bysshe-shelley">Percy Bysshe Shelley</a> helped to define this period of social and political change, flowing from the two major democratic revolutions at the end of the 18th century: the French Revolution and the American Revolution.
Poetry represents the high art of the written word—its most compressed, impactful, nuanced, and potent usages in any language. Mastering poetry is thus a high art, akin to painting, music, drama, or dance. When one composes poetry, knowingly or inadvertently, the poet conjures a constellation of previous ideas and phraseology. Thus, since they must “tango” with the great thinkers and writers of the past, great poets almost universally begin (and continue) their careers, as great readers of poetry.
As a genre, poetry can be expressed and published in a variety of ways. It can readily be learned by heart and recited by individuals. It can be published in magazines or in book form, and it can also be included within other literary forms, adding dimensionality to literary works such novels and plays. And poetry obviously has a deep and longstanding relationship with song, which might be thought of as a common ancestor with the contemporary poetic tradition.

Poetry

<h5 style="text-align: center">"The play's the thing..."</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-<a href="https://timesarrow.org/work/hamlet">Hamlet</a></h5>
Without conflict there is no drama, the word the ancient Greeks used to describe their theatrical art. In 5th century BCE Athens, theater was not merely an entertainment, but a civic institution.  The annual City Dionysia Festival was a city-wide contest, best understood as a cross-pollination of literary competitiveness, catharsis, high Pagan religion, mythology, and law. Thus one of the great gifts that theater gives us is a propulsive narrative art based in character and conflict. In addition to leaving us with many magnificent and enduring exemplars of the genre, the Greeks bequeathed us its two primary modalities, its masks of drama: comedy and tragedy.
While the collapse of the Classical Age significantly curtailed the writing and practice of the theatrical arts in the western world, during the Medieval period, the development of Morality plays, whose action reflected a simplified explication of mankind’s ethical dilemmas, and which were typically populated with characters named “Vice,” “Sloth,” “Cheerfulness,” “Avarice,” and the like, brought stage work back to western consciousness and prompted the development of the early Modern stage. <a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418125827/animals-fox.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39699" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418125827/animals-fox.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>
By the Elizabethan era, the playing of plays had become a tacitly accepted, if rather blue form of civic entertainment, while the public found great pleasure in it, and many thespians heard the call of the stage and the quill, actors tended to be grouped in with brigants and prostitutes, as part of the underbelly of London life, and in fact, during this time no theaters were allowed to be built within the “City of London,” an area which may be thought of as a tight circle in the center of London that dated back to the Roman times, and indeed, which was proscribed by the remnants of ancient Roman walls, when the city was known by its original name, Londinium.
Theater-making in the western world would be forever changed in the latter part of Elizabeth’s reign with the rise and maturity of two incredible stage writers, born in the same year, 1564, Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare. Marlowe, a writer of immense power and insight whose subject matter and great dramatic monologues shifted the sense for what was possible in theatrical arts, found as much drama, shall we say, in his personal life as he found on stage. After a white hot early career for which he would later be acknowledged as one of the great progenitors of humanism, Christopher “Kit” Marlowe was killed in a tavern, a victim of a stabbing wound to the eye (incidentally, his death is shrouded in great controversy, as Marlowe likely worked as a clandestine spy for Her Majesty’s government). He was only twenty-nine years old. His great and enduring achievements, including several wonderful <a href="https://timesarrow.org/work/the-passionate-shepherd-to-his-love/chapter/1/the-passionate-shepherd-to-his-love">poems</a>, include the plays Edward II, Tamburlaine the Great, The Jew of Malta, and Doctor Faustus.
This brings us to <a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/william-shakespeare">William Shakespeare</a>, the surpassing poet and dramatist of the Modern era. That's right: Shakespeare was a Modern.

Plays

<h5 style="text-align: center">Fiction, n., from the Latin fictio: shaping. </h5>
Most of our inherited literary genres belong to what we might call a parent genre, an Ur-genre, an organizational framework or umbrella term under which all the other little baby subgenres can seek comfort and solace from…the rains of time. Anyway. For short stories and novels written in prose, the parent genre is a word you likely hear all the time: Fiction.  
Literary fiction is a modality of imaginative literature that seeks to explore what the band R.E.M. once called “life’s rich pageant.” Fiction’s materia prima are the complexities of human existence, plumbed with carefully crafted language, an emphasis (usually) on character development, and on the achievement of thematic depth and resonance.
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418130109/animals-goose.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39700" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418130109/animals-goose.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>

Fiction

<h5 style="text-align: center">"If by some fiat I had to restrict all this writing to one sentence, this is the one I would choose: The summit of Mt. Everest is marine limestone."</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-John McPhee</h5>
It’s an odd, although altogether common practice in life to define things by what they are not. Antimatter seems to occupy some mirror image, or negative capability in relation to observable matter. Antarctica, occupies the pole opposite to that of the Arctic. The philosophy of non-violence takes as its core tenet a refusal to conduct physical violence in pursuit of one’s aims. Likewise nonfiction is a literary genre which has developed by aiming to tell you what it’s not it’s not fiction, meaning it’s not “made up” and yet, in the past fifty years, there has been a huge blossoming of what’s been called creative nonfiction. 
So how can we draw the line between what’s creative, shaped, and molded by a writer’s hand, and what is objectively true, purporting to be nonfiction, on the other?
In fact, there are many shades of understanding to this question. Part of this will bleed into questions of legality (what happens, for example, if a writer takes liberties with the life stories and identities of actual people?) Part of this will have to be looked at as part of an ongoing evolution. Different books have different goals, and take different forms to reflect those goals. 
A longform investigative journalism piece written for a marquee magazine can certainly qualify as nonfiction, but increasingly, so can a memoir, even if a great deal of the contents are not fact-checked in the conventional way we demand a piece of journalism be. 
So what do we even mean when we use the term nonfiction? 
Well, let’s start by laying it out as plainly as possible. 
Generally speaking, these days, when we talk about nonfiction literature, we’re talking about informative writing—a deep dive into a real world subject of some kind that retains a strong authorial voice. In this sense, the author is usually not “an invisible hand” or an objective force outside the confines of the story (although this would also constitute a legitimate practice), rather the author becomes our guide through this issue, and in many cases, the author will play a direct, firsthand role in the development of the story, inserting herself into the action, shaping it, and being shaped by it in return. A great example of this would be Demon Camp by Jennifer Percy or Brothers on Three by Abraham Streep. 
Now we’ve come to that all important word: shaping. 
We might recall in our discussion of the genre of fiction that fiction derives etymologically from the Latin word fictio, meaning, quite literally, to mold or shape. When we think of fiction we tend to think of imaginative literature, an invented story with imagined characters, couched somewhere on the spectrum between the poles of realism and fantasy, and yet transmitting through the narrative some relatable modicum of truth, beauty, and wisdom—some key or insight into understanding a little bit more about who we are and what it means to be alive. 
In truth, there have been forms of nonfiction writing in the world since the moment humanity began to make records of any kind. Although, in humanity’s deep past, we might think of many of the now distinct literary genres as having been merged (mythology and history share a common ancestor in many cultures, for example, as do nonfiction and, say, mathematical tabulation) nonfiction had not yet matured and developed into anything like the genre which we now find in bookstores or at your local library. <a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418130307/animals-hog.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39701" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418130307/animals-hog.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>
Many trace humanity’s earliest evidence of writing to the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia, and the development of cuneiform, where texts were written on clay tablets. In ancient China, oracle bones, used for divination ceremonies, also saw the development of what we might call proto-classical Chinese. 
These early works often documented historical events, religious beliefs, scientific observations, and philosophical ideas. Athenian General Thucydides created a major landmark in the advent of historiography in the composition of his magisterial work, History of the Peloponnesian War, in which, unlike in the work of his great forebear, Herodotus, Thucydides made it his explicit aim only to make record of those events and narratives in the war for which there was vouchsafed or verifiable evidence, thus decoupling this burgeoning genre of history from its ancient twin, mythology.  
During the Medieval period in Europe, nonfiction flourished, though it largely took the form of  theological writing and philosophy. Monastic scribes played a key role in the preservation of ancient texts and in many cases the creation of new ones. Many monasteries actually had rooms called scriptoria (singular: scriptorium) dedicated to preserving and copying manuscripts by hand; these included works of history, theology, and natural sciences. In many cases, European monasteries became storehouses for some of the treasure of the ancient world. As outlined in Stephen Greenblatt’s important Pulitzer Prize winning work of nonfiction, The Swerve, Lucretius’s seminal work De Rerum Natura (On the Nature of Things) was recovered in one such German monastery, and the recovery of this work was a key development in the development of the Renaissance period. Renaissance is a word derived from French, meaning “re-birth,” and it alludes to the rebirth of the ideas and art of classical antiquity, which had been largely forgotten by popular culture during what are often, and somewhat erroneously, called The Dark Ages.
Other prominent nonfiction works of this era include "The History of the Church" by Eusebius of Caesarea, Summa Theologica by Thomas Aquinas, and "The Divine Comedy" by Dante Alighieri, which documented his religious and philosophical views.
Renaissance and Enlightenment: The Renaissance and Enlightenment periods witnessed a surge in nonfiction writing as the pursuit of knowledge and scientific inquiry gained prominence. Renowned scholars and philosophers like Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo Galilei, and Isaac Newton made significant contributions to various fields of study, and their works on art, astronomy, and physics advanced the genre of nonfiction. Other notable nonfiction works of this era include "Novum Organum" by Francis Bacon, "Leviathan" by Thomas Hobbes, and "Encyclopédie" edited by Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d'Alembert.
The 18th and 19th centuries gave rise to a further taxonomy of nonfiction genres, with the codification such as subgenres as biographies, memoirs, travelogs, and non-technical scientific tracts. Key works such as The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, and On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin not only contributed to and expanded what was possible in the genre of nonfiction, but helped give rise to a culture of reading for non-specialists that was in tune with a growing middle class democratic citizenship.
A Time’s Arrow we sometimes jokingly refer to this as the myth of the general reader. 
The late 19th and early 20th centuries also saw the rise of journalism and investigative reporting, with writers like Upton Sinclair addressing social and political issues through his many pamphlets and books.
To bring us full circle, the 20th century witnessed a significant expansion of nonfiction writing, with advancements in technology, increased access to information, and the development of the modern magazine industry. Nonfiction genres such as historical narratives, biographies, self-help books, and memoirs gained widespread popularity and had begun winning literary prizes. Popular works of nonfiction such as Silent Spring by Rachel Carson, The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan, and Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari in part exemplify the diverse range of nonfiction writing even within the realm of science writing in the last few decades alone.
In recent years, nonfiction has come to mean more than simply books and articles. It has adapted to changing societal and technological trends. The genre now encompasses a wide range of formats, including podcasts and documentary films on the web, where many voices, opinions, and viewpoints can interact without the traditional gate-keeping on information that had been prevalent for time immemorial. There’s a great deal to parse through in this Chaotic, internet-driven, “Information Age” of ours, but what sits as a core tenet of nonfiction is one simple word, which I urge you to take to heart: verifiability.
Happy reading.

Non-fiction

<h5 style="text-align: center">Essay, n., from the French essayer – to attempt</h5>
We all know a thing or two about essay writing, and for better or worse, our experience of essays at school can have a monumental impact on how we look upon the genre, and the history of the genre, as a whole. Perhaps we’ve gotten some positive feedback, and we feel like we’re pretty good at putting an argument together cogently on paper. Perhaps essay writing has always been a drag, and you find yourself wondering what the point of it all is. 
What I want you to understand is that essay writing constitutes one of the most impactful and cogent expressions of idea transmission ever invented. A great essay can change culture, it can change politics, it can change the world. 
Like many of our other literary forms, the essay has a rich and varied history that spans centuries, encompassing a wide range of styles, themes, and approaches. From its origins in ancient philosophical and literary traditions to its evolution into a prominent form of expression in modern times, the essay has played a significant role in shaping human thought and culture. 
Let’s dig a bit deeper. 
The origins of the essay can be traced back to ancient civilizations such as Greece and Rome, where philosophers and scholars engaged in critical thinking and reflection on various topics. Philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle wrote dialogues and treatises that explored fundamental questions of ethics, politics, and metaphysics, laying the groundwork for early forms of the essay. However, it was Michel de Montaigne whom I like to think of as the Granddaddy of the Modern Essay. 
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418130932/animals-horse.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39702" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418130932/animals-horse.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>
Montaigne was from Bordeaux, and he lived on and managed his family estate. In the 16th century, he began writing about various aspects of his life in a wise, snappy, insightful, and deeply humane way. It was a formula that would work out for him. Montaigne's essays were introspective, and reflective—in them we find one man taking a deep and honest look at different aspects of the world around him; he tackled a wide range of subjects, from friendship to solitude to lying, to the nature of experience and human nature itself. Montaigne's Essays are great bedside reading, and although they are heavy enough to keep the papers from rustling around on your desk, or to prop the kitchen door open, I suggest trying them out on your lap beneath the light of a lamp, preferably with a cup of tea and a plate of homemade cookies, if that’s your sort of thing. 
During the Renaissance and Enlightenment periods, the essay genre gained further prominence, with writers such as Francis Bacon, Samuel Johnson, and Jonathan Swift contributing to its evolution, sometimes in a purely erudite mode, sometimes to pursue the literary criticism, other times as scathing satire and social commentary. 
The essay could do it all. It could absorb and reflect back the personality of its practitioner.
Bacon's essays, published in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, were known for their pithy aphorisms and practical wisdom, exploring various aspects of human knowledge and experience. Johnson's essays in the 18th century were known for their moral and ethical reflections, while Swift's satirical essays critiqued societal norms and political institutions of his time.
In the 19th century, the essay continued to mature, and American authors such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau employed it for their hybrid intellectual-educational-spiritual style. Emerson's eternal essays, the heights of which include "Self-Reliance" and "Nature," emphasize individuality, and use the form to make nuanced statements about the self and society and art. Thoreau's brand of essay writing, particularly in his work Walden, reflects on his experiences living simply and close to nature, advocating for a more mindful and intentional way of living. Both of these authors have been read continually, up to and including the present day.
In the 20th century, the essay genre further diversified and expanded its scope, with writers like Virginia Woolf, George Orwell, Joan Didion, and James Baldwin making significant contributions. Woolf's essays explored feminist and gender issues, while Orwell's essays critiqued social and political injustices. Baldwin's essays delved into the African-American experience, race relations, and the struggle for civil rights.
Next time you’ve got to write an essay for school, remember that, as long as you play within the set of parameters your teacher and the assignment call for, the essay can be an incredible opportunity for self-expression and self-actualization. Happy reading.

Essays

As with lyrical poems, we return to the short story time and again for the particular (if hugely varied) effects it can produce for us: a single, unified glimpse into life, which is often accompanied with a singular epiphany, whose meaning rises from the page like a powerful note of music.

Short stories have a wonderful utility in being...short. Unlike most novels or novellas (with key exceptions) they can usually be read in one sitting. At their best, they give the reader an integrated aesthetic experience, taken down in a single gulp like a restorative glass of water after a long drought. It's also worth mentioning that short stories are a truly vital platform for emerging writers to showcase their talent.

Short stories provide the grounds to explore a definitive scale of action or experience. Unlike novels, which must encapsulate a story of some range and breadth, and which usually contain within them many subplots and complementary stories, short fiction burrows into a singular motif and provides readers with a highly memorable and distinctive exclamation point regarding its mood or message.

Within this basic framework, however, the sky is the limit.

Some of the most enduring examples of short fiction include <a href="https://timesarrow.org/work/the-tell-tale-heart">"The Tell-Tale Heart"</a> by Edgar Allan Poe, which explores themes of guilt and madness in a chilling tale of murder; "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson, which examines the dangers of blind adherence to tradition; and "A Good Man is Hard to Find" by Flannery O'Connor, which delves into the complexities of faith, morality, and violence. Much to discover here. Happy reading!<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418133450/animals-ram.svg">
<img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39707" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418133450/animals-ram.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>

Short Stories

<h5 style="text-align: center">“The past is never dead. It isn’t even past.” </h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-William Faulkner </h5>
Ah, history. Surely, your favorite subject. 
History, also known as historical writing or historiography, encompasses a diverse and complex body of writing, filmmaking, and audio recording that seeks to study and interpret the past. It is a discipline that has been transformed across time, in no small part by certain of the exemplary figures whose work has stood the test of time; history as we’ve come to understand it has also shaped by the intellectual, cultural, and societal changes of different eras—and in many cases by historical events, themselves. 
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418131155/animals-rabbit-2.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39703" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418131155/animals-rabbit-2.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>

History

<h5 class="b-qt qt_107157" style="text-align: center">No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.</h5>
<h5 class="bq_fq_a" style="text-align: center">-Heraclitus</h5>
When many of us older folk were going through school, the subject of philosophy had a profound romance to it. Philosophy was a byword for a life of the mind, and it suggested the adventure of a lifetime, an ongoing quest for the deepest treasures of human experience. Importantly, it wasn’t for everybody: the pursuits of philosophy were (it seemed to me) purpose-made for a select cadre of rare minds, those who could engage in the deep and often abstract mental gymnastics required to think it all through. Philosophy was more than just some ideas some old guys had back in the day, it conjured an image for me of intellectual pugilism, combined with a powerful hankering for wisdom: truth, beauty, and the good. That was the key part – the great ideas often had to be wrestled back down to earth and instantiated in one’s life. That was the real beginning of wisdom: it wasn’t merely erudite or academic mumbo-jumbo: it was the wager of a life! That was the province of philosophy to me, and I have many great teachers to thank for planting the idea so powerfully. And what incredible figures populated the philosophical landscape!
Immanuel Kant, Arthur Schopenhauer, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Friedrich Nietzsche, Hannah Arendt (many of them spoke German as a first language, you may have surmised). But we also have the French – René Descartes, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and the British, too – J.S. Mill, Adam Smith, John Locke, David Hume. The. List. Goes. On. 
Let’s not forget the philosophical novelists, as innumerable as the stars, and many of them incidentally also German-language authors, such as Geothe, Thomas Mann, Robert Musil, and my personal favorite (from the German tradition), Hermann Hesse. There were countless others, naturally, from all language traditions, and it spoke to the great adventure we’d take together, if asynchronously, the Call of the Adventure to Wisdom.
<img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39704" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418131320/animals-ox.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />
So what is philosophy?
Philosophy as we understand it today in the west (which is not a geographical term, but a set of institutions including rule of law, which span the globe) continues from the Greek tradition set down in classical antiquity. Etymologically, philosophy means the love of wisdom. 
Before we begin engaging in the long arc of western philosophy (and we'll also richly immerse ourselves in the history of eastern philosophy, and how the two major traditions intersect), it's useful perhaps to imagine ourselves back in time several millennia to an idyllic, and perhaps legendary, period before there was an enormous intellectual infrastructure already in place. The Academy, after all, has a starting point in time.
It was created by Plato in 387 BCE.
In this hypothetical context, before the creation of the Academy, there would still have been intellectual tropes, there would certainly have been a wealth of stories; we know for certain there was Homer, we know there was a rich mythological tradition that blended natural inquiry with a set of beliefs about the world. We know, too, that there were notable pre-Socratic philosophers, such as Parmenides and Democritus, who sought to understand the underlying principles and elements of the universe, proposing theories such as the concept of a single, underlying substance or the idea of constant change as the fundamental nature of reality. These thinkers set the framework into which Socrates, then Plato, and then Aristotle arrived and developed certain categories in the western intellectual tradition which persevere to this day.
If we allow ourselves, usefully, I hope to imagine back to this hypthothetically indeterminate intellectual age, there would have been no set, fractionated and taxonomized differences between the pursuit of wisdom, the rigors of philosophy, or what we'd come to call (much later) science.  If we can imagine a world without intellectual baggage, perhaps we can catch a glimpse of the early days of what philosophy might have meant, and what humankind initially cherished about this pursuit. It would have been a matter of survival, determining what was true, lasting, and enduring, but it would have been not merely a matter of life or death; it had to do with the quality of the life being lived, and the quality of the deaths they died.
Socrates shifted the focus of philosophy from the study of nature to the examination of human ethics and morality. He emphasized the importance of critical thinking, self-examination, and the pursuit of truth through dialogue and questioning. Plato, who was a student of Socrates, founded the Academy in Athens in part to develop his metaphysical and epistemological theories, including the concept of ideal forms, the theory of knowledge as recollection. Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" is another enduring and provocative anecdote in the history of human thought. Aristotle, who was in turn Plato's student, emphasized empirical observation, logic, and the concept of virtue ethics.

<h5 class="b-qt qt_326751" style="text-align: center">Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.</h5>
<h5 class="bq_fq_a" style="text-align: center">-Maimonides</h5>
During the Middle Ages, western philosophy was heavily influenced by Christian theology, as philosophers sought to reconcile the teachings of the Church with the philosophical ideas of the ancient Greeks. Figures such as Augustine of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas sought to synthesize Christian doctrines with the philosophy of Plato and Aristotle, developing theories on topics such as the nature of God, the problem of evil, and the relationship between faith and reason.
The Renaissance period saw a revival of interest in humanism and the rediscovery of classical Greek and Roman texts, leading to a shift towards secular and human-centered philosophy. Renowned philosophers such as Niccolò Machiavelli, Michel de Montaigne, and Francis Bacon explored ideas about politics, ethics, and knowledge, advocating for the primacy of reason and human autonomy.

<h5 class="b-qt qt_162734" style="text-align: center">The discipline of desire is the background of character.</h5>
<h5 class="bq_fq_a" style="text-align: center">-John Locke</h5>
The Enlightenment, a philosophical and intellectual movement that emerged in the 17th and 18th centuries, marked a significant shift in Western philosophy towards reason, science, and individualism. Influential philosophers of this period, such as René Descartes, John Locke, and Immanuel Kant, developed theories on epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and political philosophy that continue to shape modern Western thought.
Descartes famously declared "Cogito, ergo sum" (I think, therefore I am), emphasizing the primacy of human reason as the foundation of knowledge. Locke proposed the idea of the "tabula rasa," the notion that the human mind is a blank slate at birth, and all knowledge is acquired through sensory experience. Kant, on the other hand, sought to reconcile rationalism and empiricism, developing his philosophy of transcendental idealism that explored the limits of human reason and the nature of reality.

<h5 style="text-align: center">“The truth knocks on the door and you say,‘ Go away, I’m looking for the truth,′ and so it goes away.”</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance</h5>
The 19th and 20th centuries saw the emergence of various philosophical movements that challenged traditional Western philosophical ideas and expanded the scope of philosophical inquiry. Friedrich Nietzsche, known for his proto-existentialist ideas, critiqued traditional morality, religion, even the concept of truth, itself advocating for the individual's pursuit of self-actualization (Übermensch) and the rejection of societal norms. In this sense, for Nietzsche, art became mankind's central calling. 
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419155435/landscape-trees-01.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39781" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419155435/landscape-trees-01.svg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a>
<h5 style="text-align: center">Eastern Philosophy</h5>
Eastern philosophy, rooted in the rich cultural and intellectual traditions of Asia, has a long and diverse history that spans across different regions, religions, and philosophical systems. From deep antiquity unto the modern era, eastern philosophy has contributed to profound insights and perspectives on the nature of reality, the human condition, ethics, and spirituality.
The history of eastern philosophy begins in ancient India, with the emergence of philosophical ideas found in the Vedas, the oldest sacred texts of Hinduism. The Vedas contain philosophical hymns, rituals, and metaphysical concepts that explore the nature of existence, the self, and the ultimate reality known as Brahman. One of the early philosophical schools in India was Nyaya, which developed a system of logic and epistemology to understand the nature of knowledge and reality.
Another significant school of Indian philosophy, which has broken off into many tributaries and points of intersection with western culture, is Yoga, which emphasizes spiritual practices and meditation as a means to attain self-realization and liberation from suffering. The Bhagavad Gita, a seminal text of Hindu philosophy, expounds on the concept of dharma, karma, and the path to self-realization through action, knowledge, and devotion.
Buddhism, founded by Gautama Buddha in the 5th century BCE, originated in India and later spread across Asia, becoming one of the most influential philosophical systems in Eastern philosophy. Buddhist philosophy centers on the Four Noble Truths, which address the nature of suffering, its causes, and the path to liberation from suffering known as the Eightfold Path. Buddhist philosophy emphasizes mindfulness, meditation, and the cultivation of ethical conduct, wisdom, and compassion as the means to achieve enlightenment and liberation from the cycle of birth and death.
Chinese philosophy has a long and diverse history, with Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism as its major traditions. Confucianism, founded by Confucius in the 5th century BCE, focuses on social ethics, moral values, and the importance of family and social harmony. Confucius emphasized the cultivation of virtue, filial piety, and the development of moral character as the means to achieve a just and harmonious society.
Taoism, attributed to the legendary figure Laozi, emphasizes the concept of the Tao, which represents the natural way or the underlying principle of the universe. Taoist philosophy advocates for spontaneity, non-action, and living in harmony with nature, embracing simplicity, and cultivating the inner self.

<h5 style="text-align: center">If you are unable to find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-Dogen</h5>
Japanese philosophy has been influenced by both Chinese and Indian philosophical traditions, as well as its own unique cultural heritage. Zen Buddhism, also known as Chan in China, is a significant philosophical and spiritual tradition in Japan that emphasizes the direct experience of reality through meditation, mindfulness, and non-conceptual awareness. Zen philosophy emphasizes the direct transmission of enlightenment beyond words and concepts, and the importance of mindfulness in everyday actions and practices.
In the modern era, eastern philosophy continues to evolve and adapt to the changing cultural and intellectual landscape. Contemporary Eastern philosophers, such as Jiddu Krishnamurti, Nishida Kitaro, and Aurobindo Ghose, have made significant contributions in areas such as metaphysics, ethics, and spirituality. These philosophers have explored themes such as the nature of consciousness, the interconnectedness of all things, and the integration of Eastern and western philosophical ideas.

Philosophy

<h5 style="text-align: center">"Criticism talks a good deal of nonsense, but even its nonsense is a useful force. It keeps the question of art before the world, insists upon its importance, and makes it always in order."</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-<a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/henry-james">Henry James</a></h5>
In the Western tradition, literary criticism begins (and in some sense ends) with Aristotle's Poetics, written in the 4th century BCE. That treatise lays out his theories on drama and the principles of literary composition. Aristotle examines the elements of tragedy and defines the three unities of time, place, and action. His ideas on character development, plot, and language continue to influence literary criticism to this day.
&nbsp;
In a nutshell, literary criticism is the analysis and evaluation of literature, including poetry, fiction, drama, and nonfiction. It involves examining the literary work's themes, characters, language, and other elements to better understand its meaning, cultural context, and aesthetic qualities.
&nbsp;
In the Renaissance, literary criticism took on a new importance, as scholars sought to revive classical ideals of literature and language. Italian humanist and poet Petrarch and English writer Sir Philip Sidney wrote influential treatises on poetry and drama, emphasizing the importance of moral values and aesthetics in literary works.
In the 18th century, the rise of the novel as a popular literary form led to new forms of criticism. The great Samuel Johnson's literary periodicals The Rambler and The Idler both heavily featured criticism, and Johnson's Lives of the Poets remains a classic work of literary biography and critical analysis.
In the 19th century, the Romantic movement challenged traditional literary criticism, emphasizing the emotional power of literature over its formal structure. This led to a new focus on the individual author and the biographical context of their work. Critics such as Matthew Arnold and Walter Pater emphasized the importance of aesthetic values in literature.
In the 20th century, literary criticism became increasingly diverse and interdisciplinary, drawing on fields such as psychology, sociology, and feminism. Notable literary critics of the modern era include T.S. Eliot, Northrop Frye, Harold Bloom, and Roland Barthes.
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418134427/animals-ox-plough.svg">
<img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39711" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230418134427/animals-ox-plough.svg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a>

Criticism

<h5 style="text-align: center">"Teach your children well..."</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-Crosby, Stills, Nash &amp; Young</h5>
&nbsp;
How absolutely splendid and varied the world of children's literature has become. Many of us have been lucky enough to encounter and fall in love with books before we even learned how properly to read! Such is the beauty of a life linked to storytelling, literary, oral, or otherwise.

Broadly speaking, children's literature refers to books and other written works that are intended for children and young adults. These works can take many forms, including picture books, chapter books, middle-grade novels, and young adult fiction.

One of the earliest exemplars of children's literature is Aesop's Fables, which date back to ancient Greece. These stories, which feature animal characters and teach moral lessons, have been popular with children for centuries.

In the late 19th century, writers such as Lewis Carroll and J.M. Barrie created some of the most exhilarating and enduring works of children's literature. Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass are beloved for their imaginative worlds and nonsensical wordplay, while Barrie's Peter Pan is now an iconic work.

In the 20th century, children's literature continued to evolve and diversify. Authors such as Dr. Seuss, Maurice Sendak, and Shel Silverstein created books that pushed the boundaries of traditional storytelling and appealed to children's sense of humor and wonder, while J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series have become the best-selling and among the most beloved books in human history.
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419144617/objects-7th-century-quill-5.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39760" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419144617/objects-7th-century-quill-5.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>

Children's Literature

<h5 style="text-align: center">"Up to a point every man is what he thinks he is."</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-F.H. Bradley</h5>
The genre of memoir is a type of autobiographical writing that focuses on a particular period or theme in the author's life. Memoirs are usually written in the first person and often involve personal reflections and insights into the author's experiences, emotions, and relationships. In recent decades, the concept has become intermeshed with autofiction, a variety of novel writing centered on representing the life of the author.

Unlike an autobiography, however, which typically covers an author's entire life, a memoir may focus on a specific event, period, or aspect of the author's life. Memoirs can cover a range of topics, from family history and childhood memories to travel adventures, political or social commentary, and struggles with addiction, illness, or trauma.

Memoirs often blend elements of personal narrative, historical context, and cultural commentary to create a unique and compelling story. They can be written in a variety of styles, from straightforward chronological accounts to more experimental or literary approaches that incorporate elements of fiction or poetry.

Notable recent examples of memoirs include Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt, The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, Educated by Tara Westover, and Becoming by Michelle Obama. Memoirs can offer readers a powerful and intimate glimpse into the lives of others, while also shedding light on universal themes of love, loss, resilience, and growth.
&nbsp;

<img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39458" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230413173130/objects-tome-3-1.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />

Memoir

<h5 style="text-align: center">"Faith is under the left nipple."</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-Martin Luther</h5>
The religious impulse is not uncommon across the eons of human civilization, and no surprise. If we understand the word religion based on its Latin origin we arrive at re-ligio: a linking back of the self to its presumed origin.
Put plainly, religious writing refers to any text or literature that has religious or spiritual themes, often considered as sacred or inspired by a divine source. Examples of religious writing include the Bible, the Quran, the Bhagavad Gita, the Tao Te Ching, and many others.
On the other hand, theology refers to the systematic study of religious beliefs, practices, and concepts. It involves analyzing and interpreting religious texts, doctrines, and traditions to understand the nature of God, the universe, and human existence. Theology often uses religious writing as its primary source material, but it also draws on other disciplines such as philosophy, history, and sociology.
While religious writing provides the primary source material for theological study, the two are distinct in their approach. Religious writing, generally speaking, focuses on conveying spiritual messages and guidance to believers, while theology seeks to critically analyze and interpret these messages to gain a deeper understanding of religious beliefs and practices.
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419190624/characters-7th-century-caedmon.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39787" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419190624/characters-7th-century-caedmon.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>

Religious Writing

<h5 style="text-align: center">"I cling to my imperfection, as the very essence of my being."</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-Anatole France</h5>
Autobiography is one of the most incredible genres we have: the best of them provide a remarkable window into a celebrated life and help the readers understand what the subjective experience of their life was like, along with the lessons and wisdom that they've picked up along the way.
Defined succintly, autobiography is a form of life writing, or biography, where the subject of the book is also its author.
It is a form of self-narrative that often includes personal experiences, memories, and reflections that have shaped the author's life.
Autobiographies can vary widely in style, from straightforward and factual accounts of the author's life, to more literary and experimental forms that incorporate poetry, fiction, autofiction, or philosophical musings.

Autobiography

<h5 style="text-align: center">"Extreme hopes are born of extreme misery."</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center">-<a href="https://timesarrow.org/author/bertrand-russell">Bertrand Russell</a></h5>
Speeches are a unique form of oral (spoken) communication that involve the delivery addressing an audience for a specific occasion. Speeches take a variety of forms: some are formal addresses made by, say, political or business leaders, others are more informal addresses given at weddings, graduations, and other social events. They help to acknowledge, review, and lock in certain moments of our lives. They can help us come to terms with past events and allow groups of people to achieve a repaired or common vision regarding a given topic.
The history of delivering speeches dates back to antiquity, when public speaking was an absolutely vital skill for politicians, as well as philosophers, and other public figures. In ancient Greece, for example, public speaking was considered an art form, with orators like Demosthenes and Cicero renowned for their eloquence and persuasive powers.
Across the centuries, speeches have continued to play a central role in shaping public opinion and influencing events. In the United States, for example, famous speeches like Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech are remembered as key moments in the country's history.
Today, speeches remain a regular, even yearned for, form of communication. With the rise of digital media, speeches can now be instantaneously delivered to audiences around the world, making them an even more powerful tool for shaping public opinion and influencing global events.

Speeches

<div class="gBoaXb">
<div class="kVF6d">
<div class="MiCl6d">
<h5 class="c8d6zd xWMiCc" style="text-align: center">bi·og·ra·phy, <i style="font-family: var(--heading--font-family);font-size: var(--heading--font-size-h5);font-weight: var(--heading--font-weight-strong);letter-spacing: var(--heading--letter-spacing-h5);background-color: var(--global--color-background);color: var(--global--color-primary)">noun.</h5>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="vmod">
<div class="vmod" data-topic="">
<h5 class="lW8rQd" style="text-align: center"><span style="font-family: var(--heading--font-family);font-size: var(--heading--font-size-h5);font-weight: var(--heading--font-weight-strong);letter-spacing: var(--heading--letter-spacing-h5);background-color: var(--global--color-background);color: var(--global--color-primary)">an account of someone's life written by someone else.</h5>
<div class="vmod">
<div class="thODed">
<div class="LTKOO sY7ric" data-topic="">
<div class="LTKOO sY7ric">
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">Biography, as a literary genre, traces its roots back to antiquity. The earliest known biographies can be found in ancient Greece, where works like those by Xenophon on Agesilaus II or, more notably, Plutarch's Parallel Lives, which juxtaposed Greek and Roman figures, set the foundation. However, these works were more about public deeds and moral lessons than intimate personal details.</div>
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left"></div>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">The genre evolved significantly through the Middle Ages with hagiographies, which were biographies of saints focusing on their spiritual journeys and miracles, often serving religious purposes. The Renaissance marked a shift towards secular biographies with figures like Giorgio Vasari, whose Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects (1550) is considered one of the first art histories, blending biography with critique and celebration of human achievement.</div>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">Modern biography, emphasizing the whole life and personal intricacies, began to take shape in the 18th century with Samuel Johnson's Life of Mr Richard Savage (1744), where he introduced the concept of examining the subject's character through their own writings and actions. The 19th and 20th centuries saw a boom in biographical writing, influenced by a growing public interest in the lives of both the famous and the infamous.</div>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">Have a Gander at a few Well-Known Practitioners:</div>
<ul dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Plutarch - Known for Parallel Lives, his work has influenced countless biographers.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">James Boswell - His Life of Samuel Johnson (1791) is often cited as the greatest biography in the English language for its in-depth personal depiction.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Lytton Strachey - His Eminent Victorians (1918) challenged the hagiographic tradition with a more critical, sometimes satirical, approach.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Robert Caro - Famous for his monumental biographies on Robert Moses and Lyndon B. Johnson, exemplifying exhaustive research and narrative depth.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Ron Chernow - His biographies, such as Alexander Hamilton and Grant, have had significant cultural impacts, including inspiring the Broadway musical "Hamilton."</div></li>
</ul>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">Take a Dive into the Sub-Genres of Biography:</div>
<ol dir="ltr" style="text-align: left" start="1">
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Autobiography - Written by the subject themselves, providing a first-person narrative. Check out: The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, where Franklin reflects on his life and principles.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Memoir - A subset of autobiography, focusing on a particular aspect or period of the author's life rather than the whole. Check out: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, which centers on her childhood and adolescence.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Hagiography - Historically religious, focusing on saints' lives, now extends to secular figures viewed through an adulatory lens. Check out: The Life of Saint Francis by St. Bonaventure.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Psychobiography - Uses psychological theories to analyze the subject's life. Check out: Erik Erikson's Young Man Luther: A Study in Psychoanalysis and History.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Intellectual Biography - Focuses on the development of the subject's ideas or contributions to their field. C<span class="css-1jxf684 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-poiln3 r-b88u0q" style="font-family: var(--list--font-family);background-color: var(--global--color-background);color: var(--global--color-primary);font-size: var(--global--font-size-base)">heck out:<span class="css-1jxf684 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-poiln3 r-1wl4xqv" style="font-family: var(--list--font-family);background-color: var(--global--color-background);color: var(--global--color-primary);font-size: var(--global--font-size-base)"> Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Group Biography - Examines a group of people connected by a common theme or era. Check out: The Metaphysical Club by Louis Menand, exploring the intellectual history of pragmatism.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Pathography - Concentrates on the subject's illness or personal struggles, often from a medical or psychological perspective. Check out: An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison, detailing her experience with bipolar disorder.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Fictionalized Biography - Blends fact with fiction for narrative purposes, often when historical records are sparse. Check out: The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone, about Michelangelo.</div></li>
</ol>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">Biography as a genre continues to evolve, adapting to new forms of storytelling, media, and an ever-growing interest in personal narratives, reflecting both the diversity of human experience and the continuous quest to understand it.
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39458" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230413173130/objects-tome-3-1.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />

Biography

<div class="gBoaXb">
<div class="kVF6d">
<div class="MiCl6d">
<h5 class="c8d6zd xWMiCc" style="text-align: center">rhet·o·ric, noun</h5>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="vmod">
<div class="vmod" data-topic="">
<div class="lW8rQd">
<h5 class="xpdxpnd" style="text-align: center" data-mh="-1" aria-hidden="true">1. the art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing, especially the use of figures of speech and other compositional techniques.</h5>
The art of rhetoric is the practice of persuasive speaking or writing. It is the skill of using language effectively to convince, inform, or entertain an audience. The art of rhetoric has a long history, dating back to ancient Greece, where it was considered one of the most important skills for public speakers and politicians.
Rhetoric involves using various techniques to appeal to an audience, including:

<ol style="text-align: left">
 	<li>Logos: Using logical arguments and evidence to support a claim.</li>
 	<li>Pathos: Appealing to the emotions of the audience to elicit a particular response.</li>
 	<li>Ethos: Establishing credibility and trustworthiness with the audience.</li>
 	<li>Style: Using language creatively and effectively to engage and entertain the audience.</li>
 	<li>Structure: Organizing ideas in a clear and compelling way to help the audience understand and remember the message.</li>
</ol>
The art of rhetoric is still relevant today, as people continue to use persuasive communication to influence others in many different contexts, including politics, advertising, and business. It is a valuable skill for anyone who wants to be an effective communicator, whether in public speaking, writing, or everyday conversation.
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419183251/characters-11th-century-william-the-conqueror-2.svg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39786" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419183251/characters-11th-century-william-the-conqueror-2.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>

</div>
</div>
</div>

Rhetoric

Historical Fiction

<div class="gBoaXb">
<div class="kVF6d">
<div class="MiCl6d">
<h5 class="c8d6zd xWMiCc" style="text-align: center">jour·nal·ism, noun</h5>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="vmod">
<div class="vmod" data-topic="">
<div class="lW8rQd">
<h5 class="xpdxpnd" style="text-align: center" data-mh="-1" aria-hidden="true">the activity or profession of writing for newspapers, magazines, or news websites or preparing news to be broadcast.</h5>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">Journalism, as a distinct practice, has its roots in ancient civilizations but became more formalized with the advent of the printing press in the 15th century. </div>
<ul dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Early Beginnings: In ancient Rome, "Acta Diurna" (Daily Acts) were written records of events, akin to newsletters. In China, the Tang Dynasty saw the production of "tipao," or "palace bulletins."</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">The Printing Press: Johannes Gutenberg's invention in 1450 revolutionized how news was disseminated. By the 17th century, Europe saw the emergence of the first newspapers like the "Relation aller Fürnemmen und gedenckwürdigen Historien" in Germany.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Newspapers in the Modern Sense: The 18th century brought newspapers like The London Gazette and The New York Gazette, which were more frequent and aimed at a broader audience. This era also saw the rise of journalism's role in political discourse, particularly during the American and French Revolutions.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">The Penny Press: In the 19th century, the advent of the penny press in the U.S. made newspapers accessible to the masses, with papers like The New York Sun and The New York Herald focusing on crime, human interest stories, and local news.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">The Rise of Objectivity: By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the concept of journalistic objectivity began to take hold as a reaction to the sensationalism of yellow journalism. This period also saw the professionalization of journalism, with the establishment of journalism schools.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Broadcast Journalism: The 20th century introduced radio and television, expanding journalism into new mediums. Edward R. Murrow's work during WWII and later on CBS is emblematic of broadcast journalism's impact.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Digital Age: The late 20th and early 21st centuries have seen journalism adapt to the internet, with the rise of online news, blogs, social media, and citizen journalism, challenging traditional models of news gathering and dissemination.</div></li>
</ul>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">A Few Well-Known Practitioners:</div>
<ul dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Joseph Pulitzer - Pioneered modern journalism practices, gave his name to the Pulitzer Prize.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Walter Cronkite - Known as "The Most Trusted Man in America" for his CBS Evening News broadcasts.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Edward R. Murrow - His radio broadcasts from London during WWII and later television work set standards for broadcast journalism.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein - Their investigation of the Watergate scandal for The Washington Post is a landmark in investigative journalism.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Nellie Bly - An investigative journalist known for her exposés on social issues, including her famous stint in an asylum.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Ida B. Wells - A pioneering African-American journalist who documented lynching in the South.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Christiane Amanpour - Renowned for her conflict reporting and her role at CNN.</div></li>
</ul>
Consider These Exemplary Moments:

<ul dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">The Pentagon Papers (1971) - Published by The New York Times and The Washington Post, revealing government lies about the Vietnam War, showcasing the power of the press in democracy.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Watergate Scandal - The Washington Post's coverage by Woodward and Bernstein, leading to President Nixon's resignation, highlighted journalism's role in political accountability.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">Murrow's "See It Now" Episode on McCarthy - Edward R. Murrow's critique of Senator Joseph McCarthy’s anti-communist tactics in 1954 is often cited as a moment when journalism helped turn public opinion.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">The Boston Globe's Spotlight Team - Their investigation into child abuse within the Catholic Church, which won a Pulitzer Prize and was later dramatized in the film "Spotlight," exemplifies modern investigative journalism.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">WikiLeaks and the Chelsea Manning Leaks - While controversial, the publication of classified documents by WikiLeaks in 2010 brought new dimensions to the discussion on transparency, government secrecy, and press freedom in the digital age.</div></li>
 	<li>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41" dir="ltr">The New Yorker's Coverage of Social Issues - From long-form journalism on topics like race, poverty, and politics, The New Yorker has set standards for in-depth, narrative journalism.</div></li>
</ul>
<div class="css-146c3p1 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-37j5jr r-a023e6 r-rjixqe r-16dba41 r-1adg3ll" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left">Journalism today faces new challenges with issues like fake news, the erosion of traditional revenue models, and debates over objectivity versus advocacy. Yet, it remains a vital pillar of democracy, committed to informing the public, holding power accountable, and giving voice to the voiceless.</div>
<a href="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419182322/objects-pointing-hand.svg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-39785 aligncenter" src="https://times-arrow-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/20230419182322/objects-pointing-hand.svg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>

</div>
</div>
</div>