Gerard de Vries – författare

Bruno Latour is among the most important figures in contemporary philosophy and social science. His ethnographic studies have revolutionized our understanding of areas as diverse as science, law, politics and religion. To facilitate a more realistic understanding of the world, Latour has introduced a radically fresh philosophical terminology and a new approach to social science, ‘Actor-Network Theory’. In seminal works such as Laboratory Life, We Have Never Been Modern and An Inquiry into Modes of Existence, Latour has outlined an alternative to the foundational categories of ‘modern’ western thought Ð particularly its distinction between society and nature Ð that has major consequences for our understanding of the ecological crisis and of the role of science in democratic societies. Latour’s ‘empirical philosophy’ has evolved considerably over the past four decades. In this lucid and compelling book, Gerard de Vries provides one of the first overviews of Latour’s work. He guides readers through Latour’s main publications, from his early ethnographies to his more recent philosophical works, showing with considerable skill how Latour’s ideas have developed. This book will be of great value to students and scholars attempting to come to terms with the immense challenge posed by Latour’s thought. It will be of interest to those studying philosophy, anthropology, sociology, science and technology studies, and almost all other branches of the social sciences and humanities.

Bruno Latour is among the most important figures in contemporary philosophy and social science. His ethnographic studies have revolutionized our understanding of areas as diverse as science, law, politics and religion. To facilitate a more realistic understanding of the world, Latour has introduced a radically fresh philosophical terminology and a new approach to social science, ‘Actor-Network Theory’. In seminal works such as Laboratory Life, We Have Never Been Modern and An Inquiry into Modes of Existence, Latour has outlined an alternative to the foundational categories of ‘modern’ western thought Ð particularly its distinction between society and nature Ð that has major consequences for our understanding of the ecological crisis and of the role of science in democratic societies. Latour’s ‘empirical philosophy’ has evolved considerably over the past four decades. In this lucid and compelling book, Gerard de Vries provides one of the first overviews of Latour’s work. He guides readers through Latour’s main publications, from his early ethnographies to his more recent philosophical works, showing with considerable skill how Latour’s ideas have developed. This book will be of great value to students and scholars attempting to come to terms with the immense challenge posed by Latour’s thought. It will be of interest to those studying philosophy, anthropology, sociology, science and technology studies, and almost all other branches of the social sciences and humanities.

Vladimir Nabokov was one of the greatest novelists of the previous century and his mastery of English and Russian prose is unequalled. Nabokov had originally trained to become a painter and shared Marc Chagall’s tutor in Paris. In Nabokov and the Art of Painting the authors demonstrate how the art of painting is interwoven with the narratives. His novels, which refer to over a hundred paintings, show a brilliance of colours and light and dark are in a permanent dialogue with each other.Following the introduction describing the many associations Nabokov made between the literary and visual arts, several of his novels are discussed in detail: Laughter in the Dark, The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, Pnin, Lolita, Pale Fire and Ada. Separate chapters are devoted to Leonardo da Vinci and Hieronymus Bosch, as Nabokov had a special appreciation for both painters. The authors show how the pictorial gave an extra depth to the great themes of love and loss in Nabokov’s work.

Vladimir Nabokov was one of the greatest novelists of the previous century and his mastery of English and Russian prose is unequalled. Nabokov had originally trained to become a painter and shared Marc Chagall’s tutor in Paris. In Nabokov and the Art of Painting the authors demonstrate how the art of painting is interwoven with the narratives. His novels, which refer to over a hundred paintings, show a brilliance of colours and light and dark are in a permanent dialogue with each other.Following the introduction describing the many associations Nabokov made between the literary and visual arts, several of his novels are discussed in detail: Laughter in the Dark, The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, Pnin, Lolita, Pale Fire and Ada. Separate chapters are devoted to Leonardo da Vinci and Hieronymus Bosch, as Nabokov had a special appreciation for both painters. The authors show how the pictorial gave an extra depth to the great themes of love and loss in Nabokov’s work.

This manuscript examines Vladimir Nabokov's Pale Fire, widely regarded as his most challenging and critically acclaimed work. While Lolita remains Nabokov's best-known novel, Pale Fire has generated the most sustained scholarly attention and interpretive debate among literary critics. Existing scholarship on Shakespeare's influence in Pale Fire has remained narrowly focused on Timon of Athens, the source of the novel's title. This study provides the first comprehensive analysis of all fifty-one Shakespearean references throughout the text, examining the complete range of plays to which Nabokov alludes. Through systematic investigation of these intertextual connections, this work demonstrates that Nabokov's deployment of Shakespearean imagery functions as a crucial interpretive key to the novel's central concerns. The analysis reveals how Shakespeare's presence illuminates three fundamental themes in Pale Fire: the novel's autobiographical dimensions, the protagonist's quest for immortality, and the tragedy of Hazel Shade, the work's tragic heroine. By tracing these Shakespearean threads throughout Nabokov's intricate narrative structure, this study offers new insights into the novel's complex thematic architecture and demonstrates how literary allusion operates as both aesthetic strategy and meaning-making device in one of twentieth-century literature's most enigmatic masterworks.

This manuscript examines Vladimir Nabokov's Pale Fire, widely regarded as his most challenging and critically acclaimed work. While Lolita remains Nabokov's best-known novel, Pale Fire has generated the most sustained scholarly attention and interpretive debate among literary critics. Existing scholarship on Shakespeare's influence in Pale Fire has remained narrowly focused on Timon of Athens, the source of the novel's title. This study provides the first comprehensive analysis of all fifty-one Shakespearean references throughout the text, examining the complete range of plays to which Nabokov alludes. Through systematic investigation of these intertextual connections, this work demonstrates that Nabokov's deployment of Shakespearean imagery functions as a crucial interpretive key to the novel's central concerns. The analysis reveals how Shakespeare's presence illuminates three fundamental themes in Pale Fire: the novel's autobiographical dimensions, the protagonist's quest for immortality, and the tragedy of Hazel Shade, the work's tragic heroine. By tracing these Shakespearean threads throughout Nabokov's intricate narrative structure, this study offers new insights into the novel's complex thematic architecture and demonstrates how literary allusion operates as both aesthetic strategy and meaning-making device in one of twentieth-century literature's most enigmatic masterworks.

This manuscript examines Vladimir Nabokov's Pale Fire, widely regarded as his most challenging and critically acclaimed work. While Lolita remains Nabokov's best-known novel, Pale Fire has generated the most sustained scholarly attention and interpretive debate among literary critics. Existing scholarship on Shakespeare's influence in Pale Fire has remained narrowly focused on Timon of Athens, the source of the novel's title. This study provides the first comprehensive analysis of all fifty-one Shakespearean references throughout the text, examining the complete range of plays to which Nabokov alludes. Through systematic investigation of these intertextual connections, this work demonstrates that Nabokov's deployment of Shakespearean imagery functions as a crucial interpretive key to the novel's central concerns. The analysis reveals how Shakespeare's presence illuminates three fundamental themes in Pale Fire: the novel's autobiographical dimensions, the protagonist's quest for immortality, and the tragedy of Hazel Shade, the work's tragic heroine. By tracing these Shakespearean threads throughout Nabokov's intricate narrative structure, this study offers new insights into the novel's complex thematic architecture and demonstrates how literary allusion operates as both aesthetic strategy and meaning-making device in one of twentieth-century literature's most enigmatic masterworks.

The Finite Element Method: Fundamentals and Applications demonstrates the generality of the finite element method by providing a unified treatment of fundamentals and a broad coverage of applications. Topics covered include field problems and their approximate solutions; the variational method based on the Hilbert space; and the Ritz finite element method. Finite element applications in solid and structural mechanics are also discussed. Comprised of 16 chapters, this book begins with an introduction to the formulation and classification of physical problems, followed by a review of field or continuum problems and their approximate solutions by the method of trial functions. It is shown that the finite element method is a subclass of the method of trial functions and that a finite element formulation can, in principle, be developed for most trial function procedures. Variational and residual trial function methods are considered in some detail and their convergence is examined. After discussing the calculus of variations, both in classical and Hilbert space form, the fundamentals of the finite element method are analyzed. The variational approach is illustrated by outlining the Ritz finite element method. The application of the finite element method to solid and structural mechanics is also considered. This monograph will appeal to undergraduate and graduate students, engineers, scientists, and applied mathematicians.

Bruno Latour is among the most important figures in contemporary philosophy and social science. His ethnographic studies have revolutionized our understanding of areas as diverse as science, law, politics and religion. To facilitate a more realistic understanding of the world, Latour has introduced a radically fresh philosophical terminology and a new approach to social science, ‘Actor-Network Theory’. In seminal works such as Laboratory Life, We Have Never Been Modern and An Inquiry into Modes of Existence, Latour has outlined an alternative to the foundational categories of ‘modern’ western thought Ð particularly its distinction between society and nature Ð that has major consequences for our understanding of the ecological crisis and of the role of science in democratic societies. Latour’s ‘empirical philosophy’ has evolved considerably over the past four decades. In this lucid and compelling book, Gerard de Vries provides one of the first overviews of Latour’s work. He guides readers through Latour’s main publications, from his early ethnographies to his more recent philosophical works, showing with considerable skill how Latour’s ideas have developed. This book will be of great value to students and scholars attempting to come to terms with the immense challenge posed by Latour’s thought. It will be of interest to those studying philosophy, anthropology, sociology, science and technology studies, and almost all other branches of the social sciences and humanities.