Examines the work produced by great artists - Beethoven, Thomas Mann, Jean Genet among them - at the end of their lives. This work helps the reader to see how, though these works often stood in direct contrast to the tastes of society, they were, just as often, announcements of what was to come in the artist's discipline.

Traditional humanistic education has been under assault for many years. In this, his final book, Edward Said argues that a more democratic form of humanism - one that aims to incorporate, emancipate, and enlighten - is still possible. Proposing an enhanced dialogue between cultural traditions as a strategy for revitalizing the humanities, Said contends that words are vital agents of historical and political change and that reading teaches people to continually question, upset, and reform. By considering the emerging social responsibilities of writers and intellectuals in an ever more...