Project Gutenberg 2007-03-31 Public domain in the USA. 153 Crothers, Samuel McChord 1857 1927 By the Christmas Fire Reading ease score: 70.4 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. The bayonet-poker -- On being a doctrinaire -- Christmas and the literature of disillusion -- The ignominy of being grown-up -- Christmas and the spirit of democracy. E-text prepared by Thierry Alberto, Martin Pettit, and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team "By the Christmas Fire" by Samuel McChord Crothers is a collection of reflective essays written in the early 20th century. The work examines the themes of Christmas, peace, human nature, and moral progress through a philosophical lens, engaging the reader with both personal anecdotes and broader cultural criticism. The opening essay introduces the concept of a "bayonet-poker" as a symbol of transformation and peace in a world riddled with conflict and challenges to goodwill among humanity. At the start of the book, the author describes his Christmas fire, accompanied by a unique bayonet-poker that once served a destructive purpose but has been repurposed for domestic warmth. This metaphor of transformation sets the stage for a deeper exploration of the Christmas spirit, questioning the often contradictory nature of human existence and the difficulty in reconciling our ideals of peace with the harsh realities of the world. Through a series of contemplative narratives, Crothers addresses the complexities of moral ideals, the nature of humanity's struggles, and our capacity for change, inviting readers to reflect on their own role in fostering kindness amidst life's inherent conflicts. (This is an automatically generated summary.) en Essays PS Text Christmas Browsing: Culture/Civilization/Society Browsing: Literature 194665 194541 2024-10-09T08:18:08.146970 2023-09-09T10:14:37.914034 text/html text/html 197404 2007-03-31T15:13:44 text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 323589 2021-01-01T22:42:29 text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 388273 2024-10-09T08:18:16.420955 application/epub+zip 389878 2024-10-09T08:18:11.977984 application/epub+zip 130631 2024-10-09T08:18:09.936970 application/epub+zip 534909 2024-10-09T08:18:19.055942 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 518149 2024-10-09T08:18:14.866959 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 222651 2022-09-10T05:03:07.053544 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 171123 171027 2024-10-09T08:18:07.531980 2023-09-09T10:14:37.491993 text/plain; charset=us-ascii text/plain 170856 2021-01-01T22:42:29 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 66660 2021-01-01T22:42:29 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 170869 2021-01-01T22:42:29 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 66659 2021-01-01T22:42:29 text/plain; charset=us-ascii application/zip 21617 2024-10-09T08:18:19.188912 application/rdf+xml 11536 2024-10-09T08:18:10.503974 image/jpeg 2971 2024-10-09T08:18:10.219958 image/jpeg 395865 2024-10-09T08:18:08.179997 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia