Imaginary animals : the monstrous, the wondrous and the human / Boria Sax.

By:

Sax, Boria

text
still image

Media type:

unmediated

Carrier type:

volume

ISBN:

9781780231730
1780231733

Subject(s):

DDC classification:

700
398.24/54 23

LOC classification:

GR825 .S288 2013

Contents:

The true unicorn -- Animal encounters -- What is an 'imaginary animal'? -- Every real animal is imaginary -- Every imaginary animal is real -- Monsters -- Wonders -- Creatures of water -- Creatures of fire and air -- Creatures of earth -- Shape-shifters -- Mechanical animals -- Conclusion.

Summary: Medieval authors placed fantastic creatures in the borders of manuscripts, since they mark the boundaries of our understanding. Tales throughout the world generally place fabulous beasts in marginal locations. According to apocalyptic visions of the Bible, they will also proliferate as we approach the end of time. Because they challenge our conceptual powers, fantastic creatures also seem to exist at the limits of language. Legends tell us that imaginary animals belong to a primordial time, before we had encompassed the world in names, categories and elaborate conceptual frameworks. This richly illustrated book shows how, despite their liminal role, dog-men, mermaids, and many other imaginary creatures are socially constructed through the same complex play of sensuality and imagination as "real" ones. It traces the history of imaginary animals from Palaeolithic art to the Harry Potter stories. These figures help us psychologically by giving form to our amorphous fears as "monsters", as well as embodying our hopes as "wonders."

Holdings ( 1 )
Title notes ( 3 )

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Shelving location	Call number	Copy number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Book	NMC Library	Stacks	GR825 .S288 2013 (Browse shelf(Opens below))	1	Available		33039001306272

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Previous					No cover image available			Next
Previous	GR825 .B73 2016 Haunted : on ghosts, witches, vampires, zombies, and other monsters of the natural and supernatural worlds /	GR825 .M1835 2017 The world of lore. Monstrous creatures /	GR825 .P626 2011 Monsters in America : our historical obsessions with the hideous and the haunting /	GR825 .S288 2013 Imaginary animals : the monstrous, the wondrous and the human /	GR825 .W9 Mythical creatures of the U.S.A. and Canada : a roundup of the mythical snakes and worms, insects, birds, fish, serpents, and mermaids, animals and monsters that have roamed the American land /	GR830 .D7 D52 1979 The flight of dragons /	GR830 .V3 U55 2013 The universal vampire : origins and evolution of a legend /	Next

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Medieval authors placed fantastic creatures in the borders of manuscripts, since they mark the boundaries of our understanding. Tales throughout the world generally place fabulous beasts in marginal locations. According to apocalyptic visions of the Bible, they will also proliferate as we approach the end of time. Because they challenge our conceptual powers, fantastic creatures also seem to exist at the limits of language. Legends tell us that imaginary animals belong to a primordial time, before we had encompassed the world in names, categories and elaborate conceptual frameworks. This richly illustrated book shows how, despite their liminal role, dog-men, mermaids, and many other imaginary creatures are socially constructed through the same complex play of sensuality and imagination as "real" ones. It traces the history of imaginary animals from Palaeolithic art to the Harry Potter stories. These figures help us psychologically by giving form to our amorphous fears as "monsters", as well as embodying our hopes as "wonders."