Spengler's morphology of culture in six novels of Lawrence Durrell

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dc.contributor.advisorTrail, George Y.
dc.contributor.committeeMemberHarrell, Don W.
dc.contributor.committeeMemberPackard, Hyland B.
dc.creatorCarr, Patricia Page
dc.date.accessioned2022-12-13T17:47:20Z
dc.date.available2022-12-13T17:47:20Z
dc.date.issued1971
dc.description.abstractA close reading of The Alexandria Quartet and Tunc and Nunquam reveals that Lawrence Durrell has utilized many of Spengler's ideas about culture. He dramatizes Spengler's conception of a culture as a spontaneous flowering rooted in its own landscape and as an expression of the human spirit in cultural forms such as religion, science and economics. The relationships between these forms create a morphological pattern that is prototypal for all cultures. In the late stages of a culture these forms become etiolated and sterile, and it is with these forms that Durrell is largely concerned. Also in the late stages, the individual feels his culture as an oppressive burden, and the protagonists in these novels must discover the real meaning of freedom within their culture. Although all the novels express Spenglerian determinism. Tunc and Nunquam emphasize the possibility of a phoenix-like rebirth of a culture out of the ashes of decline. The collective human wish is the determinant of a culture, and the quality of this wish is crucial to the growth and character of a new one.
dc.description.departmentEnglish, Department of
dc.format.digitalOriginreformatted digital
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.other13996739
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10657/12875
dc.language.isoen
dc.rightsThis item is protected by copyright but is made available here under a claim of fair use (17 U.S.C. Section 107) for non-profit research and educational purposes. Users of this work assume the responsibility for determining copyright status prior to reusing, publishing, or reproducing this item for purposes other than what is allowed by fair use or other copyright exemptions. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires express permission of the copyright holder.
dc.titleSpengler's morphology of culture in six novels of Lawrence Durrell
dc.type.dcmiText
dc.type.genreThesis
thesis.degree.collegeCollege of Arts and Sciences
thesis.degree.departmentEnglish, Department of
thesis.degree.disciplineEnglish
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Houston
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Arts

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