Nightwalking: A Nocturnal History Of London

Author: Matthew Beaumont (University College, London)

Stock information

General Fields

  • : $22.00 AUD
  • : 9781784783785
  • : Verso Books
  • : Verso Books
  • :
  • : 0.367
  • : January 2016
  • : 21.99
  • : April 2016
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  • :
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : Matthew Beaumont (University College, London)
  • :
  • : Paperback / softback
  • : 1606
  • :
  • : en
  • : 288
  • :
  • :
  • :
  • :
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Barcode 9781784783785
9781784783785

Description

In Nightwalking Matthew Beaumont recounts an alternative history of London-populated by the poor, the mad, the lost, the vagrant and the noctambulant. He shines a light on the shadowy perambulations of poets, novelists and thinkers: Chaucer and Shakespeare; William Blake and his ecstatic peregrinations and the feverish ramblings of opium addict Thomas De Quincey; and, among the lamp-lit literary throng, the supreme nightwalker Charles Dickens. We discover how the nocturnal city has inspired some and served as a balm or narcotic to others.

Reviews

One of the most brilliant of the younger generation of English critics. Terry Eagleton Nothing less than a grand unifying theory of the counter-enlightenment. Will Self Praise for "Restless Cities" A culturally and historically rich illumination of the city in all its complexity. "Icon" A richly alternative guide to city living. "Metro" A gem of a book, by turns inspiring, shocking and consistently intelligent. "Scotland on Sunday" Bold and admirable. PD Smith, "Guardian" Fresh and piquant observations about aspects of modern living. "Time Out London""

Author description

Matthew Beaumont is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of English at University College London. He is the author of "Utopia Ltd.: Ideologies of Social Dreaming in England 1870-1900" (2005), and the co-author, with Terry Eagleton, of "The Task of the Critic: Terry Eagleton in Dialogue" (2009). He has also edited "Restless Cities" (2010). He lives and walks in London.