Sesame and Lilies
by John Ruskin
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1865
- Form
- Essay
- Language
- English
- Length
- Short · 120 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Moderate2 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendSesame and LiliesYale University Press, 2002Deborah Epstein Nord's edition of the two original lectures with four essays on the book's reception and its place in Victorian ideas of womanhood.
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Two lectures given in Manchester in 1864 and published the next year, with a third added in 1871. Of Kings' Treasuries argues that books are the company of the best minds and that the English do not read, valuing wealth and advancement over education. Of Queens' Gardens describes the separate powers of men and women, assigning women the guardianship of the home and of moral order, and calls for girls to be educated to fit them for it. Enormously popular as a school prize, it became a target for later feminist criticism.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Sesame and Lilies are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.