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Auster, Paul

(Encyclopedia)Auster, Paul ôˈstər [key], 1947–, American writer, b. Newark, N.J. After publishing four volumes of poetry, he wrote his first novel, Squeeze Play (1982). A compelling storyteller, Auster became ...

sunyata

(Encyclopedia)sunyata sho͞onˈyətə [key] [Skt.,=emptiness], one of the main tenets of Mahayana Buddhism, first presented by the Perfection of Wisdom (Prajna-paramita) scriptures (1st cent. b.c. on) and later sys...

Alain de Lille

(Encyclopedia)Alain de Lille älăNˈ də lēl [key], c.1128–c.1202, French scholastic philosopher, a Cistercian, honored by his contemporaries as the Universal Doctor. He was born in Lille; he taught at Paris an...

Hernández, Miguel

(Encyclopedia)Hernández, Miguel ārnänˈdĕs [key], 1910–42, Spanish poet, b. Orihuela. A completely self-taught writer, he absorbed the influence of the poets of the Golden Age and of the generation of Garcí...

Gottfried von Strassburg

(Encyclopedia)Gottfried von Strassburg gôtˈfrēt fən shträsˈbo͝orkh [key], fl. 13th cent., German poet, also called Godfrey of Strasbourg. He is thought to have been official scribe of Strasbourg, but little ...

Frye, Northrop

(Encyclopedia)Frye, Northrop nôrˈthrəp [key], 1912–91, Canadian literary critic, b. Quebec. In 1936 he was ordained as a minister in the United Church of Canada. In 1948 he was appointed professor of English a...

onomatopoeia

(Encyclopedia)onomatopoeia ŏnˌəmătˌəpēˈə [key] [Gr.,=word-making], in language, the representation of a sound by an imitation thereof; e.g., the cat mews. Poets often convey the meaning of a verse through ...

Klopstock, Friedrich Gottlieb

(Encyclopedia)Klopstock, Friedrich Gottlieb frēˈdrĭkh gôtˈlēp klôpˈshtôk [key], 1724–1803, German poet, important for his influence upon Goethe, the Göttingen poets, and the Sturm und Drang movement. Hi...

Kanauj

(Encyclopedia)Kanauj or Kannauj both: kənoujˈ [key], town (1991 pop. 58,932), Uttar Pradesh state, N central India, on the Ganges River. It is a market center for tobacco, perfume, and rose water. A very ancient ...

Pascoli, Giovanni

(Encyclopedia)Pascoli, Giovanni jōvänˈnē päˈskōlē [key], 1855–1912, Italian poet. Pascoli's childhood was marked by a series of tragedies: the deaths of his parents and of five of his brothers and sisters...