Download or read book Shelley and Vitality written by S. Ruston and published by Springer. This book was released on 2005-04-08 with total page 243 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Shelley and Vitality reassesses Percy Shelley's engagement with early nineteenth-century science and medicine, specifically his knowledge and use of theories on the nature of life presented in the debate between surgeons John Abernethy and William Lawrence. Sharon Ruston offers new biographical information to link Shelley to a medical circle and explores the ways in which Shelley exploits the language and ideas of vitality. Major canonical works are reconsidered to address Shelley's politicised understanding of contemporary scientific discourse.