Description
Book SynopsisMark Akenside (1721-1770) was a medical doctor and literary man whose influence on the history of ideas was profound. The author recognises that there is a need to explore, re-evaluate and recognise the importance of Mark Akenside''s contribution to cultural history, in his own time and from a current perspective. Born the son of a butcher in Newcastle Upon Tyne in 1721 Mark Akenside was awarded a degree in medicine from Edinburgh and Leyden Universities. He settled in London in 1743 where he was successful both as a doctor and in medical research. Above all, he was the author of The Pleasures of Imagination 1744, an epic length poem in blank verse which broke many conventions of the time, exploring ideas about human perception and the natural world. Akenside had a European reputation and became a national celebrity. He was a major influence on first- and second-genera
Table of Contents
Foreword Preface Introduction Chapter One: Newcastle Scholar Chapter Two: A Radical Student and Satirist Chapter Three: Akenside the Lover and Medical Man Chapter Four: A Prometheus Unbound Chapter Five: Interlude I: A Collection of Odes Chapter Six: Towards Relativity and Subjectivity Chapter Seven: Musing and Conversations Chapter Eight: Poetic Colour Chapter Nine: Interlude II: The Inscriptions Chapter Ten: A Valediction and Conclusion Select Bibliography Index
