The steep hills and dramatic gorges of Ithaca were the setting for a revolution in American education when, in the 1860s, a self-made man sought "to do the most good... to the poor and to posterity." Ezra Cornell's philanthropy, enhanced with funds from the Morrill Land Grant Act and enlarged by the vision of educator Andrew Dickson White, created what has been called the first American university―'a modern, democratic, research-oriented institution open to young men and women of all creeds and races. Reflecting the ideas of its founders, Cornell University has combined the industrial science and technology of America with the humanism of Athens to serve both the individual and society.
In her concise, generously illustrated account of Cornell, Carol Kammen places that bold vision in its nineteenth-century context―a time when higher education was restricted to a privileged few. Now the university enters the twenty-first century as an institution of international stature and a leader in educational opportunity.
Kammen, a noted local historian and lecturer in history at Cornell, tells the story of this great university with verve. Highlighting the text are excerpts from important documents and images from archives in the Cornell Library's Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, selected by Susette Newberry, a Cornell archivist specializing in photography and media studies. Together, words and images illustrate the growth of the university, the origins of its famous schools and colleges, and its enduring commitment to excellence in education.

Cornell: Glorious to View

History

Kammen, Carol

LaFeber,Walter

Americas

Cornell University Library

Using students' diaries, letters, email and blogs, Cornell historian Carol Kammen captures the essence of the undergraduate experience at Cornell through first-person student accounts that span nearly 140 years of university history.

First-Person Cornell

Carol Kammen

"Speak Useful Words or Say Nothing": Old Norse Studies (Islandica, 53)

This selection by Susan E. Deskis and Thomas D. Hill of twelve of Joseph Harris's most important essays underscores the range of his work from critical readings of canonical texts to philological elucidation of Old Norse and Old English literary works to discussions of larger theoretical issues such as oral theory. One of the central problems of medieval literary scholarship is the aesthetics of traditional and oral literature, and how and whether one can meaningfully discuss the literary history of an oral genre. Harris's studies of such topics as the Old Norse short narrative and of the Masterbuilder tale focus precisely on such problems and offer brilliant readings of specific texts as well as models of literary historical discourse. "Speak Useful Words or Say Nothing" also shows that Harris's work frequently bridges the divide between the Latin and Christian sources and the native vernacular traditions that together found their way into Old Norse and Old English literature.For more about the Islandica series, visit http://cip.cornell.edu/Islandica.

Literature & Fiction

Harris,Joseph

History & Criticism

Nevermore: The Edgar Allan Poe Collection of Susan Jaffe Tane

TANE, Susan Jaffe

The development of new digital technologies has led to fundamental changes in the ways that cultural institutions fulfill their public missions of access, preservation, research, and education. Many institutions are developing publicly-accessible websites in which users can visit online exhibitions, search collection databases, access images of collection items, and in some cases create their own digital content. Digitization, however, also raises the possibility of copyright infringement. It is imperative, therefore, that staff in libraries, archives, and museums have a good understanding of fundamental copyright principles and how institutional procedures can be affected by the law. Copyright and Cultural Institutions was written to assist understanding and compliance with copyright law. It discusses the basics of copyright law and the exclusive rights of the copyright owner, the major exemptions used by cultural heritage institutions, and stresses the importance of "risk assessment" when conducting any digitization project. Two cases studies (on digitizing oral histories and student work) are also included.

Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for Digitization for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums

Hirtle, Peter B.

Hudson, Emily

Kenyon, Andrew T.

Reference

The Partisan Muse in the Early Icelandic Sagas (1200–1250) is a study of the genesis of Old Icelandic prose literature from its roots in oral tradition to the compilation of key early sagas at the beginning of the thirteenth century. Theodore M. Andersson devotes special attention to the Icelandic sagas (kings' sagas or konungasögur) that narrate the careers of Norwegian kings, Óláfr Tryggvason and Óláfr Haraldsson prominent among them.The author considers the "self-consciously Icelandic filter" that balances Icelanders’ perception of Norwegian kings and Icelandic protagonists. He also treats the volatile balance of power between the monarch and the jarls of Norway that permeates the narrative of a now-lost *Hlaðajarla saga, whose traces are evident in the major compilations Morkinskinna and Fagrskinna.Five of the book's chapters are revisions of previously published papers. The final two chapters carry the discussion of textual interrelationships in the kings' sagas to somewhat later Icelandic native sagas (Íslendingasögur) originating in the north and the west of the country.

The Partisan Muse in the Early Icelandic Sagas (1200–1250) (Islandica, 55)

Andersson, Theodore M.

Islandica LIV"The world of romance, whether secular or sacred, is often fraught with difficulties. Lovers are parted and have to struggle to be reunited, monsters or evil stepmothers have to be defeated, and the strength of one's devotion to God or the Virgin Mary has to be demonstrated. Scholars of medieval romance themselves often encounter a thicket of theoretical or philological thorns to wade through, but as all lovers of a good romance know, the protagonist is always rewarded for his or her kindness, wit, hard work, and perseverance."―from Romance and Love in Late Medieval and Early Modern IcelandMarianne Kalinke, who retired from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in May 2006, made profound contributions in Old Norse-Icelandic literature over her distinguished career of teaching and writing. She is perhaps best known for her Bridal-Quest Romance in Medieval Iceland, also in the Islandica series. This volume in her honor features new essays by fourteen authors on the theme of Old Norse-Icelandic romance and love. Several chapters examine love between a man and a woman with special focus on the ways in which the Sagas of Icelanders differ from courtly romances; tragic and comic elements of Icelandic tales of love; and the differing societal roles of women and men. Other chapters explore the intersection of folklore, mythology, and romance; the role of dwarfs in fourteenth-century Icelandic romances; and the characteristics that distinguish heroic epics from romances. Aspects of love as expressed through religion are highlighted in chapters on sacred and hagiographic texts. For more about the Islandica series, visit http://cip.cornell.edu/Islandica.

Romance and Love in Late Medieval and Early Modern Iceland: Essays in Honor of Marianne Kalinke (Islandica, 54)

Islandica LVIIcelandic Baroque seeks to approach the writings of Hallgrimur Petursson (1614–1674), Iceland's leading devotional poet, from a new direction. Hallgrimur is best known for his Passiusalmar, fifty hymns that contemplate the crucifixion and death of Christ, using a variety of meters and melodies; they have been sung in Iceland over Lent for many generations. This book offers a new evaluation of his poetry.First, seventeenth-century Icelandic literature in general, and Hallgrimur's works in particular, are set in the wider context of contemporary European literature, particularly from Scandinavia and Germany. Second, the influence of the poet's social milieu, both domestic and overseas, is explored. Third, the author, Margrét Eggertsdóttir, explores whether and, if so, how aesthetic and literary theories of the baroque can enrich our understanding of seventeenth-century Icelandic literature. Her principal aim is to contribute to a reevaluation of Icelandic seventeenth-century literary history by applying new interpretative perspectives to works by leading poets of the period, most notably the iconic figure of Hallgrimur Petursson.

Icelandic Baroque: Poetic Art and Erudition in the Works of Hallgrímur Pétursson (Islandica, 56)

Eggertsdóttir, Margrét

Religion & Spirituality

Egil's Saga, composed some eight hundred years ago to relate the life and times of Egill Skallagrimsson, the Viking poet and Icelander of the tenth century, is a major prose narrative thought by many scholars to be written by Snorri Sturluson, the great medieval historiographer of Iceland. Essential elements for understanding Egils saga in its time and place include, among others, the settlement of Iceland, the relationship between Icelanders and Norwegian kings, and the Christianization of the Norse world as pagan beliefs receded. The saga, one of the longest and best-structured in the medieval Icelandic literary canon, is, in the words of Torfi Tulinius, a story "of how people create an image of their past to give meaning to what is happening in their lives or of those that surround them."In a close reading of the saga, Tulinius brings forth the complex relationship between structure and meaning in the saga, as well as hitherto unnoticed references to Scripture that suggest a Christian interpretation of the main protagonist's life. A careful analysis of Snorri Sturluson’s life and times allows Torfi to propose a context for a fuller perception of Egil's Saga as a great work of art.

The Enigma of Egill: The Saga, the Viking Poet, and Snorri Sturluson (Islandica, 57)

Tulinius, Torfi H.

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the Cornell University Library publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Cornell University Library

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the Cornell University Library publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Cornell: Glorious to View

First-Person Cornell

"Speak Useful Words or Say Nothing": Old Norse Studies (Islandica, 53)

Nevermore: The Edgar Allan Poe Collection of Susan Jaffe Tane

Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for Digitization for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums

"Speak Useful Words or Say Nothing": Old Norse Studies (Islandica, 53)

The Partisan Muse in the Early Icelandic Sagas (1200–1250) (Islandica, 55)

Romance and Love in Late Medieval and Early Modern Iceland: Essays in Honor of Marianne Kalinke (Islandica, 54)

Icelandic Baroque: Poetic Art and Erudition in the Works of Hallgrímur Pétursson (Islandica, 56)

The Enigma of Egill: The Saga, the Viking Poet, and Snorri Sturluson (Islandica, 57)