The Pocket Lavater; or, The Science of Physiognomy (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. To which is added an inquiry into the analogy existing between brute and human physiognomyBy Johann Caspar Lavater, Giambattista della Porta
Length2h 4m
About this audiobook
The Pocket Lavater; or, The Science of Physiognomy presents a compact yet revealing entry into the eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century fascination with reading character through the body. Bringing together aphoristic observation, descriptive taxonomy, moral speculation, and illustrative comparison, the volume situates physiognomy at the intersection of literature, philosophy, visual culture, and proto-scientific inquiry. Its notable discussions of facial form, expression, and temperament illuminate both the imaginative appeal and the historical limitations of a discipline once treated as a key to human nature. Johann Caspar Lavater's influential formulations and Giambattista della Porta's earlier Renaissance investigations together trace a long genealogy of physiognomic thought, from humanist natural philosophy to Enlightenment systems of classification. Their combined presence reveals how ideas about appearance, identity, virtue, and social judgment circulated across European intellectual history. Read today, the collection also invites critical reflection on the cultural assumptions, biases, and classificatory ambitions that shaped such efforts to make the visible body legible. This volume is recommended for readers interested in the history of ideas, literary characterization, visual representation, and the uneasy borderlands between science and speculation. It offers a valuable opportunity to examine multiple modes of argument and observation within a single influential tradition, fostering dialogue about perception, interpretation, and the ethics of judging character.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
GenrePsychology, Literary Classics
Length2 hrs 4 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 23, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1The Pocket Lavater; or, The Science of Physiognomy (Annotated)
2Introduction
3Synopsis
4Historical Context
5PREFACE.
Show all chaptersShow less
6COMPARISON OF MAN WITH OTHER ANIMALS.
7Analysis
8Reflection
9Memorable Quotes
More from Johann Caspar Lavater, Giambattista della Porta
Bad Fat Black GirlSesali Bowen6h 32m4.7 (2.8K)$24 · $0.00
Finding Your VoiceMannette Morgan8h 10m4.8 (187)$20
Invisible StormJason Kander6h 48m4.7 (3.2K)$24 · $0.00
AretéBrian Johnson19h 57m4.7 (2.2K)$35
Ullathin KuralPrem Rawat8h 17m4.8 (165)$18 · $0.00
Vax FactsPaul Thomas MD, Deedee Hoover10h 26m4.7 (577)$25
I Am The StormJanice Dean9h4.6 (1.5K)$8 · $0.00
On Democracies and Death CultsDouglas Murray10h 38m4.6 (6.5K)$29 · $0.00
TerraformPropaganda5h 39m4.7 (594)$24 · $0.00
Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases (Annotated)Ida B. Wells-Barnett2h 44m4.6 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
Hour of the HeartIrvin D. Yalom, Benjamin Yalom8h 19m4.6 (2.3K)$26 · $0.00
The Thomas Sowell ReaderThomas Sowell14h 51m4.6 (2.3K)$25
So You Want to Talk about RaceIjeoma Oluo7h 41m4.6 (146.2K)$17
Braving the TruthRachel Held Evans11h 31m4.7 (359)$29 · $0.00
Level UpRob Dial7h 42m4.6 (3.3K)$26 · $0.00
As a JewSarah Hurwitz8h 36m4.6 (1.2K)$26 · $0.00
Saint Joan (Annotated)George Bernard Shaw6h 20m4.6 (1.2K)$1.20 · $0.00
Burn the HaystackJennie Young, PhD9h 30m4.6 (543)$29 · $0.00
Woman and the New Race (Annotated)Margaret Sanger6h 30m4.6 (1K)$1.99 · $0.00
Good InsideBecky Kennedy9h 55m4.5 (59.3K)$29 · $0.00
The Gulag Archipelago Volume 3Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn21h 56m4.7 (8.9K)$46 · $0.00
The Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North America (Annotated)Howard Irving Chapelle, Tappan Adney13h 9m4.8 (150)$1.99 · $0.00
This Side of Paradise - The Original 1920 Edition (Annotated)F. Scott Fitzgerald11h 30m4.6 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
The Great Gatsby: Original 1925 Edition (An F. Scott Fitzgerald Classic NovelFrancis Scott Fitzgerald4h 45m4.6 (9.3K)$18 · $0.00
Ivanhoe (Annotated)Walter Scott22h 52m4.8 (88)$2 · $0.00
The Fire Next TimeJames Baldwin2h 25m4.6 (159.1K)$15
The Complete Histories / History Plays of William Shakespeare (Annotated)William Shakespeare29h 42m4.6 (2.3K)$1.99 · $0.00
Braving the TruthRachel Held Evans11h 31m4.7 (359)$29 · $0.00
Richard Wagamese SelectedRichard Wagamese3h 14m4.6 (594)$15
The Old Man and the Sea (Annotated)Ernest Hemingway4h 27m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
Twelfth Night (The Unabridged Play) + The Classic Biography (Annotated)William Shakespeare, Sidney Lee16h 38m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
Henry V (The Play, Historical Background and Analysis of the Character in the Play)William Shakespeare, William Hazlitt8h 40m4.6 (1.3K)$1 · $0.00
Pathways to LightPrakash Amte7h 6m4.6 (1.3K)$8
These Vital SignsSayed Tabatabai3h 20m4.7 (215)$18 · $0.00
H. P. LOVECRAFT Ultimate Collection: Novellas, Short Stories, Poetry & Essays (Annotated)H. P. Lovecraft12h 28m4.6 (2.3K)$2 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust15h 54m4.5 (10.6K)$2 · $0.00
Lessons in TruthH. Emilie3h 50m4.6 (1.4K)$4.70 · $0.00
TORAH - Bilingual Edition: English/Hebrew (Annotated)Max Margolis, JPS28h 26m4.6 (1K)$2 · $0.00
The Poetic EddaJackson Crawford6h 24m4.5 (19.8K)$17
Betty Crocker picture cooky bookBetty Crocker, Inc. General Mills2h 13m4.5 (6.5K)$1 · $0.00
You may also like
Kama SutraVatsyayana, Richard Francis Burton6h 26m3.7 (13.4K)$2 · $0.00
Wilkie CollinsPeter Ackroyd6h 59m3.8 (1.3K)$17
The Critique of Practical ReasonImmanuel Kant6h 52m4.1 (15.2K)$1.80 · $0.00
Great Pianists on Piano Playing (Annotated)James Francis Cooke8h 13m4.2 (264)$2 · $0.00
On ColorDavid Scott Kastan5h 54m3.9 (1.1K)$20
The Imp Of The PerverseEdgar Allan Poe16m3.9 (3.1K)$2.30
The GiftLewis Hyde13h 36m4.1 (5.8K)$23
How to Analyze People on Sight - Through the Science of Human Analysis: The Five Human Types (Annotated)Ralph Paine Benedict, Elsie Lincoln Benedict7h 28m3.6 (4.1K)$1.99 · $0.00
Nicomachean EthicsAristotle8h 49m4.3 (74.1K)$1.20 · $0.00
Notes on NosesEden Warwick6h 3m3.8 (21)$2 · $0.00
The Medieval MindHenry Osborn Taylor51h 58m4.2 (12)$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Sir Richard Francis Burton (Illustrated & Annotated Edition)Richard Francis Burton435h 14m$1 · $0.00
Primitive ArtFranz Boas11h 20m4.0 (188)$2.40
The Right Hand: Left-HandednessSir Daniel Wilson4h 50m$2.30
The Pocket Lavater; or, The Science of PhysiognomyJohann Caspar Lavater, Giambattista della Porta2h 1m$2 · $0.00
The Perfumed GardenSheikh Nefzaoui5h 34m3.5 (1.7K)$4 · $0.00
Sex in the Cities Vol 2 (Berlin)Hans Jürgen Döpp2h 49m$12 · $0.00
The Inner Consciousness (translated)William Walker Atkinson2h 9m3.9 (36)$4.70 · $0.00
How to Read Human NatureWilliam Walker3h 27m3.8 (215)$3.50 · $0.00
SoonAndrew Santella4h 16m3.7 (873)$20 · $0.00