This week we had a few posts over on the YOBC blog.
Click HERE to read about nrlymrtl’s first impressions of The Grapes of Wrath.
Click HERE to catch up on Moby Dick.
What do you find interesting about classics? Do they have to be pure entertainment to keep you hooked? Do you read them to gain historical perspective of the culture and times of when they were written/written about?
For Perspective:
1851 – Moby Dick published.
1855 – Rayon invented.
1861 – Bicycle invented.
1876 – Telephone patented.
1880 – Toilet paper invented.
1893 – Zipper invented.
1901 – Australia becomes a commonwealth.
1904 – Trans-Siberian railway completed.
1909 – Plastic is invented.
1914 – First traffic light.
1918 – Daylight saving time introduced.
1920 – Prohibition in US begins.
1926 – Houdini dies.
1929 – Stock market crashes.
1933 – Prohibition ends.
1934 – Dust Bowl.
1939 – The Grapes of Wrath published
Rayon commonly refers to textiles obtained by an alkaline treatment of cellulose and was not developed until 1894-1901, originally called viscose (the name rayon wasn’t used until 1924). An artificial silk was invented in 1855, but still wasn’t manufactured (Chardonnet Silk) until 1891. This material was actually nitrocellulose (guncotton) and had the drawback of being flammable,. Refs: Wikipedia Rayon Page & LeCouteur, P.; Burreson, J. (2003) Napoleon’s Buttons, New York, NY Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin
Thanks for the cool nerdy comment. I love learning little facts like this!
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