Steven Cassedy takes aim at two of the most enduring myths of modern criticism: that it is secular, and that it is new and autonomous. He argues that though modern criticism is often forbiddingly scientific and technical, the modern critic remains something of a mystic. Every school of modern criticism—from structuralism to postmodern criticism—rests on a faith in an "Eden," an irreducible essence, a myth, like the common myth that there is an intrinsic distinction between "poetic" language and "ordinary" language. The modern critic attempts to abandon all mystical faith; this is the "flight from Eden." But it is always in vain. It is traditionally assumed that modern literary criticism and theory came from France, and relatively recently. In fact, according to Cassedy, the entire modern critical consciousness was already formed by the early twentieth century in the minds of writers who were primarily neither professional critics nor philosophers, but poets. Some were French (Mallarmé, and Valéry); others were not (Rilke, Bely, and the Russian avant-garde poet Velimir Khlebnikov). In them we find the same Edenic faith, the same effort to abandon it, and the same failure of that effort. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1990.

It´s time. It´s starting in earnest with the increasing rain and earthquakes. Global warming is crashing through the myriad doors of Mother Earth´s mansion. The Gaian concept says the Earth is alive, and she´s pissed. The planet Earth has been sick for a long while. Mother Nature has been leaving subtle clues to that effect. Mankind has caused the sickness, but humans ignored the fact. Nature's announcements, noticed by only a few concerned scientists, have been largely disregarded by the rest of Earth's population. More noteworthy, however, the economy has continued to improve over the decades. The first scientific base became operational on the Moon. As the lives of the people on Earth prospered, orbital habitats were built, and Man's quest to journey into space continued. People didn't give a damn about a few picky signals from their home planet. My science fiction story, Flight to Eden, takes a searching, powerful, and thought- provoking look at a world suffering for years from a disease completely ignored by humans: Pollution! In a self-initiated treatment, Mother Nature wages war in her own unique way against the ravages of Mankind. In the process, she prescribes the medication, and then cures herself! The extent of the healing, and the ultimate destiny of the world's former inhabitants, comes at a terrible though fascinating cost for Mankind. The story spans a millennium, covers the progress, the devastation, and then the reconstruction in three increments: The one hundred seventy prosperous years up until the time of The Healing; the 800 years after The Healing, while Mother Nature, and the population adjust to the cure; and a brief time near the millennium's end, when three divergent groups of humans attempt a reoccupation of Earth's, now healed, and clean surface, with surprising consequences. The last page of the book will astound you. Pollution, the mephitic toxicity of the air humans sucked into their lungs, continued to thicken and worsen. The average annual temperature continued to rise. Large chunks of polar ice, from both Arctic and Antarctic regions, fell into the oceans. Aircraft and ships reported an increase in the number of icebergs. Water levels along coastlines rose slowly but steadily. A significant number of the populations sought cleaner pastures, their primary objective: Flee from the polluted atmosphere surrounding Earth. Some migrated off-world to live in space, others chose to join the exodus to live underground, and yet, most humans, for whatever the reasons, choose to remain on the surface and make the best of things. As the delicate balance of Earth's ecology had continued to change, Mother Nature became sick and tired of being sick and tired from all of Mankind's abuse, caused by ignorance, apathy, and greed. The human population had picked away at the weary world, until there remained little else for it to do, but begin a massive healing process. In particular, the increase in pollution, acid rain, and Man's continued destruction of the rain forests, finally tipped the scales. It became time for drastic action. In order to save itself, Earth fought back the only way her military force, Mother Nature, knew how: Environmental clean up crews mustered to the call for healing. Self-preservation, and a clean environment were her generals. Like huge macrophages, horrendous weather, accompanied by earthquakes, flooding, vulcanism, and pestilence, scoured the surface. Resembling advancing armies, these weapons went to work mending the cancerous damage. The armies fought relentlessly, but before the Earth would be cured, a significant amount of healing had to take place. It did not happen overnight. A period known as, The Healing, began with torrential rains, greatly exceeding the 40-day biblical epoch. It rained almost every day for more than three years, beginning a process of global cleansing never before witnessed by hu

Unexpected allies It's been more than a decade since Nicole Cavanagh's mother was found dead. But the people of Koomera Crossing are still talking about the rift that her death caused between the Cavanaghs and the McClellands–two powerful and formerly friendly families. Now Nicole has come home, determined to find out the truth about her mother's death. Who would have thought that her one ally would be a McClelland?

From the outside, Eden Kelley appeared to be living the life most women would envy. The talented wife of a music minister and mother of three boys, she had a nice home and was married to the man of her dreams. But soon after her marriage, her faith in God would be severely shattered when her dream becomes a nightmare. Prison Diva shares Edens journey from abuse to finding Gods grace. As a young girl raised in a Christian environment, her beautiful home and the marriage she dreamed of would become a prison from which she could not escape. Through her own diary entries, Eden reveals how an abusive marriage and years of neglect would result in a string of events that lead her down a path of self-destruction. The diary becomes her best friend, and she is able to record her innermost thoughts, frustrations, and desires as she navigates the confines of a man and a marriage beset by dysfunction and abuse. A true story of a womans desperate search for Gods help as she tries to escape from the cold, dark prison of abuse, addiction, and sin, Prison Diva chronicles Edens courageous journey back to Godand it stands as a testimony to his grace and forgiveness.

WINNER OF SPAIN'S NATIONAL CRITICS AWARD The epic literary adventure that has transfixed readers and critics alike in Spain Almost four hundred passengers are on board the Boeing 747 en route from Los Angeles to Singapore. Only a handful will survive the crash. Washed ashore on a tiny island with no means of contacting the outside world, tension and fear threaten to overwhelm the group. But as they endeavour, day by day, to survive, they find themselves forced to confront the reality of the lives they left behind. Written in deftly cinematic prose, Andrés Ibáñez’s stunning novel is already considered a modern classic in Spain, expertly translated here by Sophie Hughes. 'Ibáñez is, quite simply, a genius' La Vanguardia

Peter Greene is a millionaire who likes his freedom and likes his money. Most of all, he likes his women—generally two at a time, and that's why he keeps so many mistresses stashed in apartments across the globe. But Peter's carefree world gets turned upside down when his sister's college roommate moves in for the summer. Eden has always been a one-man woman, but when she falls under the sensual spell of Peter Greene, he suggests they go on an 'adventure' to Stockholm. Eden's eyes are opened by Peter's daring attitudes toward sex...but after experimenting freely overseas, can they go their separate ways back in Miami?

Paul Lorca, an American professor of cultural anthropology, is living in London during a sabbatical. One evening, while walking through crowded Leicester Square, he and his thirteen-year-old daughter, Sandra, lose each other. After a frantic search, he finds her. But during the course of the next several weeks, he comes to believe that it is not his daughter he has found, but someone or something else. What if it were possible to clone a beloved deceased family member and an historical figure from 2000 years ago? A privately-funded underground medical research team in New York City works to clone a messiah with DNA extracted from the Shroud of Turin. Stacey Manning, a brilliant young biochemist, is invited to join the team. She accepts because she wants to clone her sister, recently killed in a tragic auto accident. In Miami, terrorists are targeting Cuban-Americans. A group forms to oppose this threat, but what are the consequences for the lawyer who volunteers to undertake the role of avenger? Crossroads to Eden is a fast-paced ensemble novel of extraordinary characters and their journeys into the unexplored regions of alien possession, reproductive cloning guided by the miracles of contemporary science, and efforts to cope with domestic terrorism.

One of the most amazing epic stories in recent memory, the connection between ancient alien beings and human history is captured in this mesmerizing science fiction novel. A biblical passage from the Book of Genesis points the way to this connection, which recently has been tied to new excavations in Southeast Turkey, thought by several archeologists to be the site of the fabled Garden of Eden. The story ties the ancient Jewish staff of Moses to the Knights Templers, the Bilderberg Group, the American NSA, and Israeli intelligence services, all in pursuit of the secretive German Nazi Base 211 located at the South Pole in Antarctica. The American top secret Operation High Jump, which was recently partially declassified, raises many questions about the involvement of the world’s governments in a cover-up of alien presence on Earth.

"As one critic wrote about Searching for Eden: "In the beginning--and throughout the play--here was laughter. And the audience found it good." More than a hundred years after Mark Twain wrote his own short stories about Adam and Eve, James Still combines those stories for Act One of Searching for Eden, and then imagines Adam and Eve in the present day for Act Two to create this completely original and contemporary play about the world's first love story. Act One takes place at the dawn of time in the Garden of Eden. In the imaginations of Still and Twain, the Garden of Eden is a place where the battle of the sexes begins, where language is deliciously invented, and where loneliness and heartbreak are poignantly discovered. After intermission, we jump forward to the present day--but Adam and Eve have only aged into their 40s and are dealing with middle age and the distractions of high-power careers. Adam has surprised Eve with this trip back to Eden (a last-minute vacation package Adam found on the Internet) as an anniversary gift. The "first couple" returns to present-day Eden (now an upscale resort simply called "E") in an attempt to recapture the primal passions of their youth. While Act One is about childhood, discovery, and new love--Act Two is about middle age, rediscovery and trying to make old love new again. At its heart, Searching for Eden is about the pleasures and terrors of knowing one person--and being known by that person--for a long, long time."--Publisher's website.