{"product_id":"memoirs-of-a-leavisite-the-decline-and-fall-of-cambridge-english-9781846318894","title":"Memoirs of a Leavisite: The Decline and Fall of","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the second half of the last century, the teaching of English literature was very much influenced and, in some places, entirely dominated by the ideas of F. R. Leavis.  What was it like to be taught by this iconic figure? How and why did one become a Leavisite? In this unique book, part memoir, part study of Leavis, David Ellis takes himself as representative of that pool of lower middle class grammar school pupils from which Leavisites were largely recruited, and explores the beliefs of both the Leavises, their lasting impact on him and why ultimately they were doomed to failure.  At the heart of this book are questions about what English should and can be that are by no means finally settled.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA beautifully written, engaging and informative work ... It gives vivid and witty accounts of both F.R. and Q.D. Leavis’s fraught and often fractious relationships with colleagues and contemporaries, but the tone is never malicious or one-sided. Above all, it is a book about the role that literature might play in a life.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eLaura Marcus\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI also enjoyed David Ellis's \u003cem\u003eMemoirs of a Leavisite\u003c\/em\u003e (Liverpool University Press), an autobiography that, while providing first-hand evidence of Leavis's influence on university English departments the world over, distinguishes itself from many a work by Leavisite hands by its note of self-deprecation.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eD. J. Taylor, \u003ci\u003eTimes Literary Supplement 'Books of the Year 2013'\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e * Times Literary Supplement 'Books of the Year 2013' *\u003cbr\u003eI loved two works of non-fiction that could have been written just for me - Alwyn W Turner's \u003cem\u003eA Classless Society\u003c\/em\u003e and David Ellis's \u003cem\u003eMemoirs of a Leavisite\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eLeo Robson, \u003ci\u003eThe New Statesman, 'Books of the Year 2013'\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e * The New Statesman, 'Books of the Year 2013' *\u003cbr\u003eA personal memoir cannot pretend to be an easy introduction to the study of literature; yet the modest frankness with which he shows his colours, with no attempt to disguise personal preferences and standards (rather too cheerful to be strictly “Leavisian”), makes this “confession” a richly rewarding joy to read.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eArchive fur das Studium der neueren Sprachen und Literaturen\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePreface\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e1. Holloway\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e2. First Impressions\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e3. Sanctimonious prick?\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e4. Close reading\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e5. Time out\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e6. QDL\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e7. Class\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e8. Politics\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e9. France\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e10. The Richmond lecture\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e11. Loose end\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e12. Research\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e13. Theory\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e14. Australia\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e15. Shakespeare, Stendhal and James Smith\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e16. Teaching in the UK\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e17. Lawrence\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e18. …and Eliot\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e19. Epilogue\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAcknowledgements\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBibliography\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eIndex\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Liverpool University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51042991341911,"sku":"9781846318894","price":40.82,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9781846318894.jpg?v=1750956560","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/memoirs-of-a-leavisite-the-decline-and-fall-of-cambridge-english-9781846318894","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}