The Swerve
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Review
'In this gloriously learned page-turner, both biography and intellectual history, Harvard Shakespearean scholar Greenblatt turns his attention to the front end of the Renaissance as the origin of Western culture's foundation: the free questioning of truth' (starred review) --Publishers Weekly
'In this outstandingly constructed assessment of the birth of philosophical modernity, renowned Shakespeare scholar Greenblatt deftly transports reader to the dawn of the Renaissance...Readers from across the humanities will find this enthralling account irresistible.' (starred review) --Library Journal
'More wonderfully illuminating Renaissance history from a master scholar and historian' (starred review) --Kirkus Reviews
`attractively modern and liberal ideas... Greenblatt clarifies elegantly... he is a forceful, seductive writer' --Financial Times
'superbly readable piece of historical work ...an exciting story, and Greenblatt tells it with his customary clarity and verve' --Daily Telegraph
`superb history ... this concise, learned and fluently written book tells a remarkable story ... Highly skilled, close-focus readings of moments of great cultural significance are Stephen Greenblatt's speciality, whether in "new historicist" studies such as Marvellous Possessions, about the European encounter with the New World, or in his more populist biography Will in the World: How Shakespeare became Shakespeare' --The Observer
`concise, learned and fluently written book tells a remarkable story' --The Sunday Times
'Greenblatt's book is fluently written, and it provides readers with a clear introduction to the philosophy of Lucretius.' --Robert Black, BBC History Magazine
'In this outstandingly constructed assessment of the birth of philosophical modernity, renowned Shakespeare scholar Greenblatt deftly transports reader to the dawn of the Renaissance...Readers from across the humanities will find this enthralling account irresistible.' (starred review) --Library Journal
'More wonderfully illuminating Renaissance history from a master scholar and historian' (starred review) --Kirkus Reviews
`attractively modern and liberal ideas... Greenblatt clarifies elegantly... he is a forceful, seductive writer' --Financial Times
'superbly readable piece of historical work ...an exciting story, and Greenblatt tells it with his customary clarity and verve' --Daily Telegraph
`superb history ... this concise, learned and fluently written book tells a remarkable story ... Highly skilled, close-focus readings of moments of great cultural significance are Stephen Greenblatt's speciality, whether in "new historicist" studies such as Marvellous Possessions, about the European encounter with the New World, or in his more populist biography Will in the World: How Shakespeare became Shakespeare' --The Observer
`concise, learned and fluently written book tells a remarkable story' --The Sunday Times
'Greenblatt's book is fluently written, and it provides readers with a clear introduction to the philosophy of Lucretius.' --Robert Black, BBC History Magazine
Book Description
A riveting, exemplary tale of the great cultural "swerve" known as the Renaissance
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 32 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
First of all, this is a good read. Greenblatt writes fluently, intelligently and can tell a good story, all of which makes him a good populariser. In The Swerve he takes part of the story of the Renaissance, the rescuing of Lucretius's immensely influential poem on the nature of things, and explores it in some detail. He probably tries to make this one episode in a complex history even bigger than it was but perhaps in a storyteller that's not a bad fault.
There's a subtext running throughout the book - basically a long blast against "intelligent design" which probably is more important for an American readership than a British one, although it's unlikely that many people who adhere to that stuff will read this. How can it be, he asks, that Lucretius (and other Ancients) could construct such a "modern" and intellectually coherent theory of everything, while our contemporaries (too many of them)want to dwell in ignorance, fear and superstition? The churches' attempts to suppress Lucretius's work and his epicurean world view continue to fail, but they fight hard. Greenblatt's frustration is palpable.
There's a subtext running throughout the book - basically a long blast against "intelligent design" which probably is more important for an American readership than a British one, although it's unlikely that many people who adhere to that stuff will read this. How can it be, he asks, that Lucretius (and other Ancients) could construct such a "modern" and intellectually coherent theory of everything, while our contemporaries (too many of them)want to dwell in ignorance, fear and superstition? The churches' attempts to suppress Lucretius's work and his epicurean world view continue to fail, but they fight hard. Greenblatt's frustration is palpable.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Last month this book won the Pulizter prize (in general non-fiction), which is how I found out about it. It tells the story of how Lucretius's poem, a 'secular bible', came to be discovered in the 1400s and some of its impact on Western thought since.
What I enjoyed:
- The style and structure brings a bit of 'Dan Brown' intrigue to what could otherwise be a fairly thin book
- Brings to life the social, political and religious context in which the manuscript was discovered
- Engaging style, the author's passion for his topic shines through
- Very clear and written for the non-specialist
What I didn't enjoy:
- The narrative feels quite padded, possibly due to the limited fact-base about the book's discoverer
- The structure of the book involves a bit of a dance until we reach the moment of discovery of the manuscript - a touch frustrating at times
- It felt as if there was a missing chapter about the actual content of Lucretius's book (as opposed to how the content related to 15th century Vatican politics)
Overall I enjoyed the book and found it opened my eyes to an influential work of literature that I had previously never heard of and I'd recommend it on that basis. However if you've already read about Lucretius or are knowledgeable about the late-medieval history of the Catholic church this probably isn't for you.
What I enjoyed:
- The style and structure brings a bit of 'Dan Brown' intrigue to what could otherwise be a fairly thin book
- Brings to life the social, political and religious context in which the manuscript was discovered
- Engaging style, the author's passion for his topic shines through
- Very clear and written for the non-specialist
What I didn't enjoy:
- The narrative feels quite padded, possibly due to the limited fact-base about the book's discoverer
- The structure of the book involves a bit of a dance until we reach the moment of discovery of the manuscript - a touch frustrating at times
- It felt as if there was a missing chapter about the actual content of Lucretius's book (as opposed to how the content related to 15th century Vatican politics)
Overall I enjoyed the book and found it opened my eyes to an influential work of literature that I had previously never heard of and I'd recommend it on that basis. However if you've already read about Lucretius or are knowledgeable about the late-medieval history of the Catholic church this probably isn't for you.
10 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
The Swerve tells the story of Lucretius' epic poem "On the nature of things", the philosphy that spawned it, its loss to the world for a millenia, its rediscovery by 15th century book-hunter Poggio Bracciolini to its impact and influence on the renaissance. In telling the tale, the author takes the reader on a journey that encompasses 15th century Florence, the ruins of Herculaneum, the teachings and philosphy of Epicurus and the atomists to the intrigues of the curia - the papal court in Rome.
The re-discovery of Lucretius' poem at this time of the inquisition was of special significance denying as it does the existence of an afterlife, the existence of gods (or, more correctly, that our worships and offerings are of no consequence to them) or that the earth and humans hold any special place in the universe. Lucretius held that the universe and everything in it is constituted from atoms and that on death to atoms we return - not, as taught by the church, to eternal paradise or torment. The swerve of the title refers to what Lucretius termed clinamen - an unexpected and unpredictable movement of matter. The re-appearance of this poem after having been lost for so long, argues the author, constitutes just such a swerve.
Whilst I can't help feeling that the subtitle to this book "How the renaissance began" is a tad misleading and that the author perhaps overstates the importance of Lucretius' work in this historical period I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's a fascinating account - well written, researched and eminently readable - definitely recommended!
The re-discovery of Lucretius' poem at this time of the inquisition was of special significance denying as it does the existence of an afterlife, the existence of gods (or, more correctly, that our worships and offerings are of no consequence to them) or that the earth and humans hold any special place in the universe. Lucretius held that the universe and everything in it is constituted from atoms and that on death to atoms we return - not, as taught by the church, to eternal paradise or torment. The swerve of the title refers to what Lucretius termed clinamen - an unexpected and unpredictable movement of matter. The re-appearance of this poem after having been lost for so long, argues the author, constitutes just such a swerve.
Whilst I can't help feeling that the subtitle to this book "How the renaissance began" is a tad misleading and that the author perhaps overstates the importance of Lucretius' work in this historical period I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's a fascinating account - well written, researched and eminently readable - definitely recommended!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Disappointing and misleadingly titled.
Anyone buying this book on the strength of its grandiose title will be disappointed.
I found myself wondering whether there had been a slip-up at the printers and the... Read more
I found myself wondering whether there had been a slip-up at the printers and the... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Bookbuff
An illuminating perspective
I probably learned all this stuff, or a lot of it, years ago when I was in secondary school, then forgot it. Read more
Published 3 months ago by NickR
How the book on the genesis of the "science of everything" was found
As others have noted, this is a highly readable book about the search for, and finding of an important manuscript by an apostolic scribe called Poggio Bracciolini. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Derek Tunnicliffe
Swerve Review
A superb, easy to read story of a critical Latin manuscript found in western Europe. The pages virtually turn themselves.
Published 4 months ago by Ron S.
The Swerve-intelligently written but poorly produced book.
My criticism is levelled entirely at The Bodley Head and the lamentable standard of book production. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Laurel and Hardy
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