The Man who Made Lists: Love, Death, Madness, and the Creation of Roget's ThesaurusThe extraordinary true story of Peter Mark Roget and his legendary Thesaurus. Peter Mark Roget-polymath, eccentric, synonym aficionado-was a complicated man. He was an eminent scholar who absorbed himself in his work, yet he also possessed an allure that endeared him to his mentors and colleagues-not to mention a host of female admirers. But, most notably, Roget made lists. From the age of eight, he kept these lists with the intention of ordering the chaotic world around him. After his father's death, his mother became, at once, overbearing and despondent. Soon, his sister would also descend into mental illness. Despite these tragedies, Roget lived a colorful life full of unexpected twists and discoveries-including narrowly avoiding jail in Napoleon's France, assisting famed physician Thomas Beddoes by personally testing the effects of laughing gas, and inventing the slide rule. Evocative and entertaining, The Man Who Made Lists lets readers join Roget on his worldly adventures and emotional journeys. This rich narrative explores the power of words and the everlasting legacy of a rediscovered genius. |
Contents
Preface | 1 |
Stained by the Blood of a National Hero | 9 |
Part One Formations 17791808 | 19 |
The Brilliant Student | 53 |
The Idle and Depressed Young Man | 83 |
Napoleons Captive | 111 |
Both the Thesaurus and a Medical Career Begun | 145 |
Part Two Bloomsbury Doctor Inventor | 179 |
Mary | 211 |
Mourning Scholarly Triumph and a Secret New Love | 233 |
Other editions - View all
The Man Who Made Lists: Love, Death, Madness, and the Creation of Roget's ... Joshua Kendall No preview available - 2009 |
The Man Who Made Lists: Love, Death, Madness, and the Creation of Roget's ... Joshua Kendall No preview available - 2009 |
Common terms and phrases
anatomy animals Annette anxiety Baillie Beddoes Bentham Bostock Bridgewater Treatise British brother Burton Catherine Catherine's century Chauvet classification couple Darwin Davy death decade diary Dugald Dugald Stewart Dumont early Edgeworth Edinburgh edition England English Erasmus Darwin famous father feel Ferriar French frigidarium Geneva Girard Ilfracombe Jane Griffin Jane Marcet Jean Roget John Joseph Romilly Kate language later Latin lectures letter Library literary living London Madame de Staël Manchester Marcet Mary medical school mind months mother Napoleon natural never nitrous oxide notebook obsessions once paracosm Paris Peter Mark Roget Philips boys philosopher physician physiology Piozzi published Roget began Roget felt Roget wrote Roget's Thesaurus Romilly's Royal Society scientific scientists Sir Samuel Romilly sister soon Spowers Staël Stewart Street Synonymy Thesaurus Thomas Beddoes tion took town trip uncle University University of London weeks wife Wilkins word lists write