Pulse en una miniatura para ir a Google Books.
Cargando... Christmas: A Biography (2017 original; edición 2017)por Judith Flanders (Autor)
Información de la obraChristmas: A Biography por Judith Flanders (2017)
Christmas Reading (141) Cargando...
Inscríbete en LibraryThing para averiguar si este libro te gustará. Actualmente no hay Conversaciones sobre este libro. An atheist writing about Christmas? No, thank you! ( ) This is a fun look at the history of the celebration of Christmas, and the way people have wrestled with it, both as sacred observance and secular festival, since it became a holiday. There are many books like this out there, going item by item, how Christmas trees came about, or Christmas cards, etc. But this book presents this information as a developing chronological story, which makes it more interesting and real than just a book of lists. The first recorded Christmases were in the 300s, and it wasn’t long before there was head-shaking at how secular it had become, and how it was better in “the old days.” Those seem to be the constants in Christmas: the semi-permanent “war on Christmas” and the misty-eyed remembrances of bygone celebrations. This book also knocks down some myths, such as the Dutch origin of Santa Claus (he seems to have been a Swiss concoction, actually) and that Coca-Cola didn’t imagine his current look (that was the creation, of course, of political cartoonist Thomas Nast). Also in the story are popular books, music and movies – special emphasis on “It’s A Wonderful Life” as the first modern Christmas fairy tale, after “A Christmas Carol.” The development of Christmas from a public to a private celebration, from elite to the masses, from adult to child, is detailed, along with fun bits of knowledge. See more of my reviews at Ralphsbooks. sin reseñas | añadir una reseña
Presents a tour of Christmas holiday traditions from the original festival through today, touching on subjects ranging from gift wrap and the holiday parade to the first gag holiday gift book and the first official appearance of Santa Claus."Nearly everything you know about Christmas is wrong. Do you think the proclaimed war on Christmas is a recent occurrence? Do you think Santa is Dutch, or that his red suit was brought to you courtesy of Coca-Cola? Or are you merely dreaming of a Christmas like the one you used to know? You aren't alone: thirty years after the first recorded Christmas, a fourth-century archbishop was already complaining that his flock was spending the day dancing and feasting, not in religious observance. By 1616, the playwright Ben Jonson was nostalgically reminiscing about the vastly better Christmases in the old days. Some traditions of Christmas are relatively new--who would have thought gift-wrap was a novelty of the twentieth century? That the first holiday parade was neither at Macy's, nor even in the United States? Other elements, however, have been around for a surprisingly long time. The first known gag holiday giftbook, The Boghouse Miscellany, was advertised in the 1760s, while in 1805, the leaders of the Lewis and Clark expedition exchanged--what else?--presents of underwear and socks. Christmas is different things to different people: a religious festival for some, a family celebration for others, or perhaps simply a time of seasonal eating and drinking. In Christmas: A Biography, acclaimed historian Judith Flanders casts a sharp eye over the myths, legends, and history that make up the holiday to show us the season as it really is, but rarely how it is understood."--Dust jacket flap. No se han encontrado descripciones de biblioteca. |
Debates activosNingunoCubiertas populares
Google Books — Cargando... GénerosSistema Decimal Melvil (DDC)394.2663Social sciences Customs, Etiquette, Folklore General Customs Special Occasions Holidays Christian holidays ChristmasClasificación de la Biblioteca del CongresoValoraciónPromedio:
|