The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations [Anglais] [Relié]

The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations is as impressive, erudite, enjoyable, and educational a tome as you might expect from Oxford. It's the sort of undertaking the press does very well. The first such dictionary, as compiled by Oxford, was published in 1953, and it's been tweaking, modifying, and updating it ever since. This new edition, the fifth, offers well over 20,000 quotations from more than 3,000 authors. Responding to correspondence from their readers, Oxford has restored some material from past editions, such as the proverbs and nursery-rhymes section. There's a much more inclusive attention to sacred texts of world religions, and 2,000 quotations are brand new.

The quotations are arranged alphabetically, by author, so browsing provides insight into the authors quoted, more so than do compendiums that are organize by theme. There is also, however, a full thematic index, starting with Administration, Age, and America, and running the alphabetical gamut through to War, Weather, and Youth. And that is followed by a 283-page comprehensive keyword index. If you needed to fault Oxford with something, it might be the small print, but it certainly wouldn't be the thoroughness or cross-referenceability.

There's Kingsley Amis on hangovers ("His mouth had been used as a latrine by some small creature of the night, and then as its mausoleum") and the sexes ("Women are really much nicer than men. No wonder we like them"). There's Woody Allen on immortality ("I don't want to achieve immortality through my work--I want to achieve it through not dying") and Fred Allen on committees ("A group of men who individually can do nothing but as a group decide that nothing can be done"). Spiro T. Agnew is on record as saying, "If you've seen one city slum you've seen them all." And Konrad Adenauer weighs in with "A thick skin is a gift from God."

There are pages of special categories, such as one of advertising slogans ("Let your fingers do the walking," "It's finger-licking good," and "Beanz meanz Heinz") and three pages of last words ("God will pardon me, it is His trade," from Heinrich Heine; "If this is dying, then I don't think much of it," by Lytton Strachey; and "It's been so long since I've had champagne," by Anton Chekhov). And there are pages of film lines, misquotations, epitaphs, telegrams, and toasts, too. Oxford's Dictionary of Quotations is a wonderfully reliable and inclusive quotation reference, and it's a lot of fun, as well. --Stephanie Gold

Grade 7 Up. This revised edition is based on the 1979 edition and The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations (1991). It contains 17,500 quotations from 2500 authors, including more non-English writers, thinkers, and public figures than previous Oxford collections, and provides more substantial representation of American figures, more quotes from non-literary fields, and revisits the lyrics of hymns and songs, which were purged from the 1979 edition. Despite all of this, the focus is strongly British, e.g., 10 pages devoted to Samuel Johnson, 171 to Shakespeare, while Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson get about a page each, and that wonderful quotable Cervantes, less than a page. Entries are arranged alphabetically by name, and include dates and a brief identification whenever possible. The print is small, but the typeface and layout are attractive and easy to use. There are features not usually found in such dictionaries, such as the inclusion of some excerpts from secondary sources about the author of a quote, and, in those cases in which the quotation was not originally written in English, presentation is in the original language followed by a translation. Brief appendixes touch on "Sayings of the 90s," "Popular Misquotations," and slogans. The Oxford's closest contender may be the 16th edition of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (Little, Brown, 1992), that is very similar in scope (20,000 quotations representing 2550 authors) but appears to have more cultural breadth. The Oxford is recommended for libraries that have a demand for quotations, particularly those of British origin.?Tess McKellen, Packer Collegiate Institute, Brooklyn
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Knowles, whose previous works include The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase, Saying, and Quotation, has produced another stellar book. Over one tenth of the book's 20,000 quotations (from over 3000 sources) are included for the first time. Like The Oxford Dictionary of Twentieth Century Quotations (LJ 3/15/99), one of the sources for this fifth edition, this book includes special categories of quotationsAborrowed titles, last words, film lines, misquotations, closing lines, film titles, and military sayings. After a long absence, proverbs and nursery rhymes are included, and quotes from and about the sacred texts of world religions make their first appearance here. Each quotation contains cross references to others by or about the individual and also includes his or her birth and death dates and profession. Quotations from the same individual are separated by literary form, while those in foreign languages appear in both their original language and in English. A superb thematic index and an extensive keyword index allow the reader to find the source of even partial quotations. The book does have a slight bias toward British quotations, which is logical, given its provenance. Smaller public libraries may prefer quotation dictionaries with predominantly American sources, but the superior organization, comprehensiveness, and special features here will supplement the holdings of most academic and larger public libraries nicely. An essential purchase.ALeah Sparks, Annapolis, MD
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Oxford last published this work, which is the largest of its many collections of quotations, in 1996. It has added more than 2,000 new entries, bringing the total to 20,000. Approximately 2,500 authors are represented.

The book is arranged alphabetically by author. Page layout is clear, with name ranges in the header, entry names in bold type, and numbered quotations, which makes for easy lookups from the index and cross-references. Birth and death dates and a career brief (e.g., "British Whig politician") are given. Cross-references between entries, including page and quotation number, lead the reader to all related quotations. New authors in the fifth edition include Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm, Bill Clinton ("I did not have sexual relations with that woman"), Hillary Rodham Clinton, Helen Fielding ("I will not sulk about having no boyfriend," from Bridget Jones's Diary), Bill Gates, actress Helen Mirren, and Fay Weldon.

Twenty special categories, interfiled among authors and set off in boxes, group selected quotations by type. Examples are advertising slogans, misquotations, newspaper headlines and leaders ("Dewey defeats Truman"), political slogans and songs, film lines ("Here's looking at you, kid"), catchphrases, epitaphs, opening lines, and toasts. The editorial origins of the book are particularly evident here, with many ads for British products and lines from ad campaigns in England and Ireland. Quotes from sources not attributable to an author can be found under headings such as Ballads, The Book of Common Prayer, Nursery rhymes, Proverbs, and The Talmud.

Quotes in foreign languages are followed by English translations, but many from foreign-language speakers are only presented in English, with a note about the source and translator. For instance, of 14 quotes from Flaubert, only one is given first in French. Character names are included for dialogue lines from a play or opera. Information on context is provided if it is needed to appreciate the words. Following the quote from Malvina Reynolds' song "Little Boxes," for example, we learn that it described the tract houses in the hills to the south of San Francisco. Source information for each quotation includes title or type of work (e.g., letter, speech) and date. Apocryphal and attributed statements are so noted.

An eight-page thematic index aids in identifying a dozen or more sayings in each of 44 categories, such as marriage, politics, and television. This section is a nod at the many references (including several from Oxford) that arrange quotations entirely by subject or theme, rather than by author. Such a scheme is particularly useful when a quotation does not contain a keyword directly related to its meaning and thus cannot be identified by means of a keyword index. However, unless the reader is looking for something in one of the few categories on offer here, this index won't be terribly useful. For example, if one wanted to find quotations on mathematics, which is not a category in the thematic index, the only option is to use the volume's keyword index, which means that relevant quotations that do not contain the word mathematics will not be found. A voracious quotation consumer will want to have alternative titles on hand that fully utilize the topical approach.

The thorough source documentation and cross-referencing, coupled with the large number of well-chosen entries, make this a useful purchase for almost every library. It will be especially welcome for its coverage of the last decade, because the last edition of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (Little, Brown), which is of similar breadth and depth, was published in 1992.

The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations has been long hailed as the most literary quotation book available. Here readers will find in one volume the wit and wisdom of humanity--the finest lines to be found in Shakespeare, the Bible, Mark Twain, Groucho Marx, and hundreds of other writers, philosophers, political figures, and entertainers.

This major new edition offers the broadest and most up-to-date coverage of quotations available today. Now with 20,000 quotations arranged by author, this is Oxford's largest quotations dictionary ever. Alongside superb coverage of quotations from traditional sources, the Dictionary now boasts improved coverage of world religions, classical Greek and Latin literature, proverbs, and nursery rhymes. In addition, for the first time there are special sections for Advertising Slogans, Epitaphs, Film Lines, and Misquotations, which bring together topical and related quotes. Moreover, the new Fifth Edition provides enhanced accessibility with a new thematic index to help you find the best quotes on a chosen subject, more in depth details of the earliest traceable source, an extensive keyword index, and biographical cross references, so you will easily be able to find quotations for all occasions, and identify who said what, where, and when.

Ranging from profound, to cogent, to witty, these quotations will add spice to your writing and conversation. An ideal reference for any home or office library, The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, Fifth Edition is a constant source of entertainment and inspiration for public speakers, writers, or anyone else who enjoys a sparkling line or a spirited reply.

An updated and expanded edition of an authoritative compendium of quotations contains more than seventeen thousand quotes from 2,500 men and women from all walks of life, along with appendices covering the sayings of the nineties, advertising slogans, and more. UP. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Diamond Jubilee of the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations
2001 was the diamond jubilee for Oxford Quotations. It’s over 60 years since the first edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations was published in 1941. What have the main changes been? the most striking difference is a cultural one.

Current Affairs
In his Introduction to the first edition, Bernard Darwin reflected that "it is difficult today not to deal in warlike metaphors", but in fact the text of the Dictionary in those days reflected little of the period leading up to the Second World War. It is strange now to look at a page on which Winston Churchill, outnumbered by his father Randolph, is represented by a single quote (from 1906): It cannot in the opinion of His Majesty's Government be classified as slavery in the extreme acceptance of the word without some risk of terminological inexactitude. George V's official last words (How is the Empire?) are here, but not the Abdication, or the former Edward VIII's reference to the help and support of the woman I love. (The reported headline in an American newspaper announcing Mrs Simpson's divorce in an Ipswich court, King's Moll Reno'd in Wolsey's home town, was not to be included until the 4th edition of 1992.)
The Prime Minister who had to deal with the Abdication Crisis, Stanley Baldwin, does not appear at all, although his warning that the bomber will always get through was uttered in 1932. Churchill's great counterpart Franklin Roosevelt also appears with one quote (one of the few from the 1930s): his assertion during his 1932 presidential campaign that, I pledge you - I pledge myself - to a new deal for the American people. Neville Chamberlain does not appear: it should have been possible to record his mistaken I believe it is peace for our time (on his return from Munich in 1938), although his erroneous prediction of April 1940, Hitler has missed the bus, probably did come too late for a book published in 1941. There is in fact very little to indicate the coming storm, other than an item in the Addenda to German quotations: Hermann Goering's comment in a radio broadcast of 1936, Guns will make us powerful; butter will only make us fat. The Dictionary in those days did not try!
to reflect the key moments of current affairs.

Advertising Slogans
The novelist Norman Douglas once suggested that you can tell the ideals of a nation by its advertisements, and there are a number featured here. Bernard Darwin's introduction mentions what in 1941 was still a familiar advertising slogan, Pink Pills for Pale People, and the Oxford English Dictionary notes that the slogan for Kruschen salts, that Kruschen feeling, became a catchphrase of the 1920s to indicate a feeling of vigorous health. Health and concurrent looks were of particular concern, although some of the slogans seem to verge on the personal: Good-morning! Have you used Pears' soap?, for example, and You ought to see me on Sunday (Knight's Castile Soap). Wright's Coal Tar Soap (corrected to Pears in the 2nd edition of 1953) has the somewhat surprising statement, He won't be happy till he gets it.
Some advertisements, well-known in 1941, seem to have been forgotten by the 1950s: Dr Brighton, advertising Brighton's health-giving properties, was also to be dropped from the second edition, as was Always welcome, keep it handy, Grant's Morella Cherry Brandy. The slogan Where's George? Gone to Lyonch reflected the popularity of Lyons' Corner Houses in the 1920s and 1930s, but was not to survive the Second World War.

Popular Songs
Popular songs include soldiers' songs from the First World War (Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag) and earlier music-hall favourites (We don't want to fight, but by jingo, if we do). There are a few precursors of larger entries in later editions: Irving Berlin is included for Alexander's Ragtime Band (1911), but not yet for Let's face the music and dance (1936). The possible dangers of social life (prefiguring Flanders and Swann's Have some Madeira, m'dear of the 1950s) were indicated by an anonymous limerick about a young lady of Kent who,
When men asked her to dine,
Gave her cocktails and wine,
She knew what it meant - but she went!
The Duke of Rutland (1818-1906), perhaps observing such a lifestyle with dismay, appealed
Let wealth and commerce, laws and learning die
But leave us still our old nobility.

The World of Literature
The selection is in fact pre-eminently a literary one: the prefatory note "The Compilers to the Reader" lists as the "most quoted writers" Browning, Byron, Cowper, Dickens, Johnson, Kipling, Milton, Shakespeare, Shelley, Tennyson, and Wordsworth; the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer also receive a special mention. But despite the predominance of the canonical writers, room was also found for minor figures: for example, the Victorian writer Thomas Ashe (1836-89), whose poems according to the Dictionary of National Biography "failed entirely to gain the ear of his generation" is represented by the plaintive line, Meet we no angels, Pansie? The moderns are cautiously represented: Virginia Woolf has as her single quotation the title of A Room of One's Own.
Sixty Years On
Quotation, said Bernard Darwin, brings to many people one of the intensest joys of living. The first edition of ODQ has its quotations organized in such separate sections as Authors Writing in English, Book of Common Prayer, Holy Bible, Anonymous, Ballads, Nursery Rhymes, Quotations from Punch, and Foreign Quotations (Latin, Greek, French, Italian, Spanish, and German have the language of origin; Russian, Norwegian, and Swedish appear only in translation). Opening the pages is rather like walking into a traditional study lined with leather-bound volumes. The book opens a window into a different, and in many ways more orderly world, from the one we inhabit 60 years later, but our fascination with quotations endures. As Ralph Waldo Emerson put it in 1876, By necessity, by proclivity, - and by delight, we all quote.