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The Periodic Table (short story collection)

December 15, 2023

This article is about the book by Primo Levi. For the children's book by Simon Basher, see The Periodic Table (Simon Basher book).

The Periodic Table (Italian: Il sistema periodico) is a 1975 short story collection by Primo Levi, named after the periodic table in chemistry. In 2006, the Royal Institution of Great Britain named it the best science book ever.[1]

The Periodic Table
First edition
AuthorPrimo Levi
Original titleIl sistema periodico
TranslatorRaymond Rosenthal
Cover artistM. C. Escher
CountryItaly
LanguageItalian
GenreShort stories
PublisherEinaudi (Italian)
Schocken Books (English)
Publication date
1975
Published in English
1984
Media typePrint (hardback & paperback)
Pages233
ISBN0-8052-3929-4
OCLC16468959
The elements that are titles of the stories.

Content edit

The stories are autobiographical episodes based on the author's experiences as a Jewish-Italian doctoral-level chemist under the Fascist regime in Italy and afterwards. They include various themes that follow a chronological sequence: his ancestry; his study of chemistry and practising the profession in wartime Italy; a pair of imaginative tales he wrote at that time,[2] and his subsequent experiences as an anti-Fascist partisan; his arrest and imprisonment, interrogation, and internment in the Fossoli di Carpi and Auschwitz camps; and postwar life as an industrial chemist.

Each of the twenty-one stories in the book bears the name of a chemical element as its title and has a connection to the element in some way.

Chapters edit

  1. "Argon" – The author's childhood, the community of Piedmontese Jews and their language
  2. "Hydrogen" – Two children experiment with electrolysis
  3. "Zinc" – Laboratory experiments in a university
  4. "Iron" – The author's adolescence, between the racial laws and the Alps
  5. "Potassium" – An experience in the laboratory with unexpected results
  6. "Nickel" – Inside the chemical laboratories of a mine
  7. "Lead" – The narrative of a primitive metallurgist (fiction)[3]
  8. "Mercury" – A tale of populating a remote and desolate island (fiction)[4]
  9. "Phosphorus" – An experience on a job in the chemical industry
  10. "Gold" – A story of imprisonment
  11. "Cerium" – Survival in the Lager
  12. "Chromium" – The recovery of livered varnishes
  13. "Sulfur" – An experience on a job in the chemical industry (apparently fiction)
  14. "Titanium" – A scene of daily life (apparently fiction)
  15. "Arsenic" – Consultation about a sugar sample
  16. "Nitrogen" – Trying to manufacture cosmetics by scratching the floor of a hen-house
  17. "Tin" – A domestic chemical laboratory
  18. "Uranium" – Consultation about a piece of metal
  19. "Silver" – The story of some unsuitable photographic plates
  20. "Vanadium" – Finding a German chemist after the war
  21. "Carbon" – The history of a carbon atom

Bibliography edit

Adaptations edit

The book was dramatised for radio by BBC Radio 4 in 2016.[5] The dramatisation was broadcast in 12 episodes, with Henry Goodman and Akbar Kurtha as Primo Levi.

Notes and references edit

  1. ^ Randerson, James (21 October 2006). "Levi's memoir beats Darwin to win science book title". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
  2. ^ In the chapter, Nickel, "...on some other of those long nights were born two stories of islands and freedom, the first I felt inclined to write after...liceo..."(1984 paperback, p. 73), and "Nor have the two mineral tales which I wrote then disappeared.... The reader will find them here in the succeeding pages, inserted, like a prisoner's dream of escape, between these tales of militant chemistry." (1984 paperback, p. 78)
  3. ^ "One story fantasize[s] about a remote precursor of mine, a hunter of lead instead of nickel...." 1984 paperback, p. 73
  4. ^ "...the other [story], ambiguous and mercurial, I had taken from a reference to the island of Tristan da Cunha that I happened to see during that period." 1984 paperback, p. 73
  5. ^ "Primo Levi's The Periodic Table". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 August 2016.

See also edit

December 15, 2023
periodic, table, short, story, collection, this, article, about, book, primo, levi, children, book, simon, basher, periodic, table, simon, basher, book, periodic, table, italian, sistema, periodico, 1975, short, story, collection, primo, levi, named, after, pe. This article is about the book by Primo Levi For the children s book by Simon Basher see The Periodic Table Simon Basher book The Periodic Table Italian Il sistema periodico is a 1975 short story collection by Primo Levi named after the periodic table in chemistry In 2006 the Royal Institution of Great Britain named it the best science book ever 1 The Periodic TableFirst editionAuthorPrimo LeviOriginal titleIl sistema periodicoTranslatorRaymond RosenthalCover artistM C EscherCountryItalyLanguageItalianGenreShort storiesPublisherEinaudi Italian Schocken Books English Publication date1975Published in English1984Media typePrint hardback amp paperback Pages233ISBN0 8052 3929 4OCLC16468959The elements that are titles of the stories Contents 1 Content 2 Chapters 3 Bibliography 4 Adaptations 5 Notes and references 6 See alsoContent editThe stories are autobiographical episodes based on the author s experiences as a Jewish Italian doctoral level chemist under the Fascist regime in Italy and afterwards They include various themes that follow a chronological sequence his ancestry his study of chemistry and practising the profession in wartime Italy a pair of imaginative tales he wrote at that time 2 and his subsequent experiences as an anti Fascist partisan his arrest and imprisonment interrogation and internment in the Fossoli di Carpi and Auschwitz camps and postwar life as an industrial chemist Each of the twenty one stories in the book bears the name of a chemical element as its title and has a connection to the element in some way Chapters edit Argon The author s childhood the community of Piedmontese Jews and their language Hydrogen Two children experiment with electrolysis Zinc Laboratory experiments in a university Iron The author s adolescence between the racial laws and the Alps Potassium An experience in the laboratory with unexpected results Nickel Inside the chemical laboratories of a mine Lead The narrative of a primitive metallurgist fiction 3 Mercury A tale of populating a remote and desolate island fiction 4 Phosphorus An experience on a job in the chemical industry Gold A story of imprisonment Cerium Survival in the Lager Chromium The recovery of livered varnishes Sulfur An experience on a job in the chemical industry apparently fiction Titanium A scene of daily life apparently fiction Arsenic Consultation about a sugar sample Nitrogen Trying to manufacture cosmetics by scratching the floor of a hen house Tin A domestic chemical laboratory Uranium Consultation about a piece of metal Silver The story of some unsuitable photographic plates Vanadium Finding a German chemist after the war Carbon The history of a carbon atomBibliography editFirst American edition New York Schocken Books 1984 ISBN 0 8052 3929 4 hardcover ISBN 0 8052 0811 9 trade paperback Reissues Random House hardcover edition September 1996 ISBN 0 679 44722 9 ISBN 978 0 679 44722 1 Knopf Publishing Group paperback edition April 1995 ISBN 0 8052 1041 5 ISBN 9780805210415 Adaptations editThe book was dramatised for radio by BBC Radio 4 in 2016 5 The dramatisation was broadcast in 12 episodes with Henry Goodman and Akbar Kurtha as Primo Levi Notes and references edit Randerson James 21 October 2006 Levi s memoir beats Darwin to win science book title The Guardian Retrieved 3 March 2017 In the chapter Nickel on some other of those long nights were born two stories of islands and freedom the first I felt inclined to write after liceo 1984 paperback p 73 and Nor have the two mineral tales which I wrote then disappeared The reader will find them here in the succeeding pages inserted like a prisoner s dream of escape between these tales of militant chemistry 1984 paperback p 78 One story fantasize s about a remote precursor of mine a hunter of lead instead of nickel 1984 paperback p 73 the other story ambiguous and mercurial I had taken from a reference to the island of Tristan da Cunha that I happened to see during that period 1984 paperback p 73 Primo Levi s The Periodic Table www bbc co uk Retrieved 5 August 2016 See also edit nbsp Quotations related to The Periodic Table at Wikiquote nbsp Chemistry portal Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Periodic Table short story collection amp oldid 1186925400, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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