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Essays, Letters & Speeches — page 6
258 public-domain essays, letters & speeches books, summarised. Page 6 of 6.
A preface to politics
Walter Lippmann
A brilliant young critic tears through the rigid mechanics of American government, arguing that no law or political machine can ever replace an understanding of human desire.
Chips from a German Workshop, Volume 4: Essays Chiefly on the Science of Language
F. Max (Friedrich Max) Müller
Language is not a static artifact but an evolving, living organism whose historical growth reveals the shared history and cognitive development of all human civilization.
Toleration and other essays
Voltaire
A sharp, ironic mind dismantles religious bigotry and institutional cruelty, exposing the absurdity of dogmatic intolerance through historical indictment, biblical satire, and rationalist philosophy.
Shadowings
Lafcadio Hearn
Whispered folktales, the summer hum of cicadas, and the deep echoes of a forgotten world blend into a meditative exploration of memory and transience.
The Letters of S. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan
Ambrose, Saint, Bishop of Milan
Amid the crumbling structure of the late Roman Empire, a formidable bishop relies on ink and parchment to steady a shifting world. Through personal notes, political briefs, and theological arguments, he defends his flock and challenges imperial power.
The Book-Hunter at Home
P. B. M. (Philip Bertram Murray) Allan
A seasoned English bibliophile opens the doors to his quiet study, demystifying the arcane arts of book collecting with urbane charm, practical technical advice, and deep historic affection.
The Revision Revised: Three Articles Reprinted from the "Quarterly Review." I. The New Greek Text. II. The New English Version. III. Westcott and Hort's New Textual Theory. To Which is Added a Reply to Bishop Ellicott's Pamphlet in Defence of the Revisers and Their Greek Text of the New Testament: Including a Vindication of the Traditional Reading of 1 Timothy III. 16
John William Burgon
When nineteenth-century scholars attempted to replace the long-established English Bible, a fierce ecclesiastical defense arose to expose what it viewed as a disastrous betrayal of sacred manuscript evidence.
Short Studies on Great Subjects
James Anthony Froude
A grand inquiry into the moral underpinnings of human history, this collection balances sweeping cultural analysis with sharp biographical portraits of those who reshaped Western thought.
Main Currents in Nineteenth Century Literature - 2. The Romantic School in Germany
Georg Brandes
Poetry marries philosophy to chase a fleeting, ethereal ideal beyond real life.
The Law
Frédéric Bastiat
What happens when the weapon meant to protect your life and property becomes the very instrument used to strip them away?
We Women and Our Authors
Laura Marholm
Modern literature claims to liberate woman, but it really only seeks to reshape her into a mirror of man's own restless, divided mind.
Amenities of Literature: Consisting of Sketches and Characters of English Literature
Isaac Disraeli
Across centuries of shifting monarchs, social upheaval, and evolving dialects, the human mind leaves its indelible imprint in the written word, transforming ephemeral passions into the permanent intellectual history of a nation.
Fantasia of the Unconscious
D. H. (David Herbert) Lawrence
A defiant philosophy of human nature insists that true vitality lies not in mental ideals, but in the dark, physical centers of the individual soul. It challenges every modern impulse toward conformity and intellectualism.
Evolution and Ethics, and Other Essays
Thomas Henry Huxley
An unyielding scientific mind examines the moral duty of humanity, refusing to let nature or religious fanaticism dictate the rules of human conduct.
The Last Harvest
John Burroughs
Reflecting the deliberate, watchful eye of a seasoned naturalist, this final collection meditates on the enduring power of classic literature, the flaws of evolutionary theory, and the quiet constancy of the natural world.
U.S. Presidential Inaugural Addresses
United States. Presidents
An evolving tapestry of American leadership unfolds across centuries of transition, crisis, and renewal.
Bibliomania
Thomas Frognall Dibdin
A lively, eccentric investigation into the obsession with rare books, written as a multi-day conversation among passionate readers who analyze the symptoms, history, and tragic excesses of literary devotion.
The Declaration of Independence of The United States of America
Thomas Jefferson
A single foundational document reframes political obedience, asserting that a people possess the natural right to sever ties with a monarch when their liberties are systematically destroyed.