The 1913 International Exhibition of Modern Art (or Armory Show) marked a turning point in the history of American art and culture. Organized by a small group of American artists and presented in the huge space of the 69th Regiment Armory in New York City, this ambitious exhibition of 1,400 works was the moment when the American public was introduced to European avant-garde art. This outstanding interdisciplinary volume re-examines the exhibition and its historical and cultural context. It includes over thirty essays by eminent scholars across diverse fields to evoke the wider social, political, and economic climate during the 1913 show.

When Athenians suffered the shame of having lost a war from their own greed and foolishness, around 404 BCE the public’s blame was directed at Socrates, a man whose unique appearance and behavior, as well as his disapproval of the democracy, made him a ready target. Socrates was subsequently put on trial and sentenced to death. However, as René Girard has pointed out, no individual can be held responsible for a communal crisis. Plato’s Apology depicts Socrates as both the bane and the cure of Greek society, while his Crito shows a sacrificial Socrates, what some might consider a pharmakos figure, the human drug through whom Plato can dispense his philosophical remedies. With tremendous insight and satisfying complexity, this book analyzes classical texts through the lens of Girard’s mimetic mechanism.

William Blake is one of Britain's most fascinating and groundbreaking poets, as well as a renowned painter, engraver, radical, and mystic. Although Blake was dismissed as an eccentric by his contemporaries, his powerful and richly symbolic poetry has been a fertile source of inspiration to the many writers and artists who have followed in his footsteps. Collected here are some of the finest of Blake's works—including the complete poems from the famous Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience—together providing a singular picture of this unique genius.

Writer and religious rebel, William Blake sowed the seeds of Romanticism in his innovative poems concerning faith and the vision that inspired him throughout his remarkable life. Whether describing his own spirituality, the innocence of youth, or the corruption caused by mankind, his writings depict a world in which spirits dominate and the mind is the gateway to Heaven. Presenting many of Blake's major works in their complete texts, alongside extensive passages from such poems as 'Jerusalem' and 'The Gates of Paradise,' this collection spans his entire poetic life, from the exquisite lyrics of Poetic Sketches to Songs of Innocence and Experience—a compelling exploration of good and evil. Together, they illuminate a self-made realm that has fascinated artists and poets as diverse as Wordsworth, Coleridge, Yeats, and Ginsberg. This is the perfect introduction to Blake's unforgettable poetry.

• Introduction discusses Blake's life and career, his reputation, and the major themes of his work, and explores the relationship between the poetry and the illustrations
• Includes a chronology, suggestions for further reading, and explanatory notes