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Howells, William Dean

(Encyclopedia)Howells, William Dean, 1837–1920, American novelist, critic, and editor, b. Martins Ferry, Ohio. Both in his own novels and in his critical writing, Howells was a champion of realism in American lit...

Ivan IV

(Encyclopedia)Ivan IV or Ivan the Terrible, 1530–84, grand duke of Moscow (1533–84), the first Russian ruler to assume formally the title of czar. In his later years, Ivan's character, always stern, grew tyra...

Schiller, Friedrich von

(Encyclopedia)Schiller, Friedrich von, 1759–1805, German dramatist, poet, and historian, one of the greatest of German literary figures, b. Marbach, Württemberg. The poets of German romanticism were strongly inf...

Pierce, Franklin

(Encyclopedia)Pierce, Franklin, 1804–69, 14th President of the United States (1853–57), b. Hillsboro, N.H., grad. Bowdoin College, 1824. Admitted to the bar in 1827, he entered politics as a Jacksonian Democrat...

botany

(Encyclopedia)botany, science devoted to the study of plants. Botany, microbiology, and zoology together compose the science of biology. Humanity's earliest concern with plants was with their practical uses, i.e., ...

Poe, Edgar Allan

(Encyclopedia)Poe, Edgar Allan, 1809–49, American poet, short-story writer, and critic, b. Boston. He is acknowledged today as one of the most brilliant and original writers in American literature. His skillfully...

Newman, Saint John Henry

(Encyclopedia)Newman, SaintJohn Henry, 1801–90, English churchman, theologian, and writer, cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, one of the founders of the Oxford movement, b. London. Newman was canonized in 201...

Moldavia

(Encyclopedia)Moldavia mŏldāˈvēə [key], historic Romanian province (c.14,700 sq mi/38,100 sq km), extending from the Carpathians in Romania east to the Dnieper River in Moldova. The region was part of the Ro...

semantics

(Encyclopedia)semantics [Gr.,=significant] in general, the study of the relationship between words and meanings. The empirical study of word meanings and sentence meanings in existing languages is a branch of lingu...

Normandy

(Encyclopedia)Normandy nôrmäNdēˈ [key], region and former province, NW France, bordering on the English Channel. It now includes five departments—Manche, Calvados, Eure, Seine-Maritime, and Orne. Normandy is ...