{"product_id":"why-lyrics-last-brian-boyd-9780674065642","title":"Why Lyrics Last: Evolution, Cognition, and Shakespeare's Sonnets","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eWhy Lyrics Last, \u003c\/i\u003e the internationally acclaimed critic Brian Boyd turns an evolutionary lens on the subject of lyric verse. He finds that lyric making, though it presents no advantages for the species in terms of survival and reproduction, is \"universal across cultures because it fits constraints of the human mind.\" An evolutionary perspective-- especially when coupled with insights from aesthetics and literary history--has much to tell us about both verse and the lyrical impulse. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBoyd places the writing of lyrical verse within the human disposition \"to play with pattern,\" and in an extended example he uncovers the many patterns to be found within Shakespeare's \u003ci\u003eSonnets.\u003c\/i\u003e Shakespeare's bid for readership is unlike that of any sonneteer before him: he deliberately avoids all narrative, choosing to maximize the openness of the lyric and demonstrating the power that verse can have when liberated of story. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn eschewing narrative, Shakespeare plays freely with patterns of other kinds: words, images, sounds, structures; emotions and moods; argument and analogy; and natural rhythms, in daily, seasonal, and life cycles. In the originality of his stratagems, and in their sheer number and variety, both within and between sonnets, Shakespeare outdoes all competitors. A reading of the \u003ci\u003eSonnets\u003c\/i\u003e informed by evolution is primed to attend to these complexities and better able to appreciate Shakespeare's remarkable gambit for immortal fame.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Brian Boyd\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0674065646\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780674065642\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Harvard University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/05\/2012\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 240\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.92lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.40h x 5.77w x 0.86d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 03\/15\/2012 pg. 110\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChronicle of Higher Education\u003c\/i\u003e 04\/06\/2012 pg. 15\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/01\/2012\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooks \u0026amp; Culture\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2013 pg. 19","brand":"Brian Boyd","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":43925552267519,"sku":"9780674065642","price":42.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/products\/img_6b4c0b92-fc64-420a-b7af-88372c185881.jpg?v=1681077948","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/why-lyrics-last-brian-boyd-9780674065642","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}