The blues across four centuries – Robert Burton’s ‘Anatomy of Melancholy’
Self-help books about depression are nothing new. Institute of English Studies fellow, Dr Karen Attar, looks at an important example that was first published in 1621.
All posts filed under: Libraries & Publications
‘Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?’ – a very Christmas murder
Dr Karen Attar, research fellow at the Institute of English Studies, uncovers traces of Thomas Becket in the Senate House Library.
Shaking the scholarly world: Francis Bacon and 400 Years of the ‘Novum Organon’
Tucked away among the treasures of Senate House Library is this ‘foundation of human progress and empowerment’, writes Dr Karen Attar.
Another annus horribilis? ‘The Family Firm’ one year on…
As the UK endures its own truly horrible year, monarchy historian Dr Ed Owens sees opportunities for the still struggling Windsors.
Chronicles of a librarian’s librarian – a treasure of Senate House Library
John Evelyn, the 17th-century diarist whose Restoration diary is recognised as the most extensive and informative record of a momentous period, even advised Samuel Pepys on libraries. Dr Karen Attar, research fellow at the Institute of English Studies, looks at his legacy.
How to map an emergency? The role of cartography in a crisis
Covid-19 has brought the world of data-driven crisis management and social organisation out of the shadows. ‘This is an opportunity,’ says chartered geographer and University of Westminster lecturer, Doug Specht, ‘to examine its flaws and ramifications’ and ‘strive towards more inclusive mapping, more inclusive data and cautiously move towards a world in which data can play a […]
South Sea Bubble: a byword for folly and fraud
As oil prices tumble and we face high national debt, it seems particularly appropriate to reflect on the South Sea Bubble, a stock market crash from 300 years ago, and its contemporary documentation. Dr Karen Attar, research fellow at the Institute of English Studies, looks at the stories behind the headlines that were splashed across […]
More than just a typeface – 500th anniversary sharpens focus on print pioneer Christophe Plantin
Institute of English Studies research fellow, Dr Karen Attar, argues for wider recognition for the achievements of a giant of print.
The Year of the Nurse and what an eyewitness account reveals about ‘the lady with the lamp’
As we celebrate the Year of the Nurse and the 150th anniversary of the British Red Cross, Institute of English Studies research fellow Dr Karen Attar, takes a look at an eye-witness account of a nurse who accompanied Florence Nightingale, ‘the lady with the lamp’, to Scutari in 1854.
Pascal’s jottings in defence of Christianity turns 350
Mathematician, physicist, inventor, religious controversialist, literary author: in a brief life terminated by a lingering, debilitating illness, Blaise Pascal (1623–62) was nothing if not multi-talented. As the curator of rare books at Senate House Library, I think of Pascal primarily in terms of mathematics, says Dr Karen Attar.