A somewhat dry but serviceable introduction to history's role in the writings of major literary figures, History Through Literature is comprised of 12 individual episodes, dating back to the dawn of writing and going forward to the late 20th century. Imperialism and Progress--The Victorian Era looks at, roughly, the second half of the 19th century, combining overlaid narration describing key movements and events (such as British colonialism, the American Civil War, and early social reform) with snippets from authors such as Kipling, Whitman and Dickens. Of course, you can't possibly do much more than briefly mention names and events in a half-hour survey of Victorian literature, although the brief excerpts of works read by Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky and the commentary by historian Susan Beléé may whet the appetite of students for more (and monkeys might fly out of my butt, as Wayne would say) The accompanying teacher's guide is pretty good, and, overall the program does cover a lot of ground--albeit with an emphasis on breadth over depth. So, depending on your point of view, this video offers an opportunity to explore a number of ancillary topics or it means more teacher preparation. Recommended. Other titles include: Faith and Feudalism: The Early Middle Ages, Renaissance and Reformation and Romanticism and Revolution. Aud: J, H, C. (R. Pitman)
History Through Literature: Imperialism and Progress--The Victorian Era
(1997) 25 min. $95. CLEARVUE/eav. PPR. Color cover. Closed captioned. Vol. 13, Issue 4
History Through Literature: Imperialism and Progress--The Victorian Era
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