' The unconsidered life is not worth living' ' Socrates. Thinking about life what it means & what it holds in store does not have to be a despondent experience but rather can be enlightening & uplifting. A life truly worth living is one that is informed & considered so a degree of philosophical insight into the inevitabilities of the human condition is inherently important & such an approach will help us to deal with real personal dilemmas. This book is an accessible lively & thought-provoking series of linked commentaries based on A. C. Grayling's ' The Last Word' column in the Guardian. Its aim is not to persuade readers to accept one particular philosophical point of view or theory but to help us consider the wonderful range of insights which can be drawn from an immeasurably rich history of philosophical thought. Concepts covered include courage love betrayal ambition cruelty wisdom passion beauty & death. This will be a wonderfully stimulating read & act as an invaluable guide as to what is truly important in living life whether facing success failure justice wrong love loss or any of the other profound experience life throws out. ...

Did you know that people in Indonesia have a word that means to take off your clothes in order to dance'? Or how many words the Albanians have for eyebrows & moustaches? Or that the Dutch word for skimming stones is plimpplamppletteren? Drawing on the collective wisdom of over 154 languages this intriguing book is arranged by theme so you can compare attitudes all over the world to such subjects as food the human body & the battle of the sexes. Here you can find not only those words for which there is no direct counterpart in English (such as the Japanese age-otori which means looking less attractive after a haircut) but also a frank discussion of exactly how many Eskimo' terms there are for snow & a vast array of information exploring the wonderful & often downright strange world of words. Oh & tingo means 'to take all the objects one desires from the house of a friend one at a time by asking to borrow them'. ...

This second volume based on the excavations of the Viking town Kaupang 2000-2003 presents find types used in economic transactions -- coins hacksilver ingots weights & balances. Changes in type & volume of economic transactions at Kaupang & in Scandinavia are discussed & the economic mentality of Viking crafts- & tradesmen is explored. Earlier the study of Viking silver currency was based mainly on hoards containing coins & hacksilver. In this volume the combined study of the find types mentioned as well as the sophisticated chronology of settlements finds from sites like Kaupang gives a completely new insight into economy & exchange. In the early 9th century silver & goods seem to have come to Kaupang mainly from the Carolingian world. Silver weighed with locally produced lead weights was used as currency on a limited scale. The old ore unit was easily convertible to Carolingian units. After the mid-9th century this early system was altered. The increased availability of silver caused by the import of Islamic coins as well as the introduction in most of Scandinavia in the 860s/870s of standardised weights of probable Islamic origin paved the way from then on for an increasing use of silver as payment. These studies demonstrate that sites like Kaupang led the way in economic development in Scandinavia. The urban environment promoted an economic mentality which contributed significantly to the fundamental transformation of Scandinavian culture & society which culminated in the regions integration in Christian Europe in the High Middle Ages. ...

Mr Macks inventing career has got off to a bad start
- hes been arrested! Its up to Jimmy Robbie Kayla & Rover the wonder-dog to:
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Travel back into the measly Middle Ages where the world was full of wild women mad monks naughty knights & crazy kings & qeens! Discover a genuine jesters joke why chickens had their bottoms shaved & what ten-year-old treacle was used for. History with the nasty bits left in! 2013 is HORRIBLE HISTORIES twentieth anniversary. ...

In the hope of saving her brothers life should a woman submit to rape? Should the law be respected when its administrator is corrupt? How powerful in the state should religion become? Although Measure for Measure ends like a comedy with reconciliations forgiveness & marriages it has often been regarded as one of Shakespeares problem plays. The drama shows the difficulty of effecting an appropriate balance between judicial severity & mercy between sexual repression & decadence & between political vigilance & social manipulation. These problems remain topical & in Measure for Measure they are given immediacy by vivid character-conflicts & memorably intense poetry. This is one of Shakespeares most probing & powerful works. ...

The Oxford School Shakespeare is a well-established series which helps students understand & enjoy Shakespeares plays. As well as the complete & unabridged text each play in this series has an extensive range of students notes. These include detailed & clear explanations of difficult words & passages a synopsis of the plot summaries of individual scenes & notes on the main characters. Also included is a wide range of questions & activities for work in class together with the historical background to Shakespeares England a brief biography of Shakespeare & a complete list of his plays. This topical & relevant play is a new addition to the Oxford School Shakespeare. The text follows the redesign of the series photographs of recent stage productions have been included & the attractive cover design follows the revised series style. Roma Gill the series editor has taught Shakespeare at all levels. She has acted in & directed Shakespeares plays & has lectured on Shakespeare all over the world. ...

In the Dukes absence from Vienna his strict deputy Angelo revives an ancient law forbidding sex outside marriage. The young Claudio whose fiancee is pregnant is condemned to death by the law. His sister Isabella soon to become a nun pleads with Lord Angelo for her brothers life. But her purity so excites Angelo that he offers her a monstrous bargain he will save Claudio if Isabella will visit him that night. ...

1916. England is at war & the Morland family is in the thick of it with two men already in France & three more soon to go. Tragedy strikes Morland Place when Jessie's husband Ned is reported missing on the Western Front. His father launches a desperate bid to find him but the family fear the worst. Jessie in mourning & frustrated by her job as an auxiliary nurse goes to London to work in a military hospital. There she is reunited with her old friend Oliver posted to the capital under the RAMC. Also in London is violet whose affair with the brilliant artist Octavian Laidislaw is about to erupt in scandal.. . The Measure of Days paints a portrait of a family & a nation at war at a pivotal point in history. With the onset of conscription no one is left unaffected. Every man must hold himself in readiness; & every woman knows that when she says goodbye it might be for the last time. ...

THE ARMY OF DARKNESS DRAWS NEAR Five centuries ago a catastrophic demon war left the world in ruins. Since then the survivors
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