Lake Scutari, largest lake in the Balkans, on the frontier between Montenegro and Albania. Its area is 150 square miles (390 square km), but it reaches 205 square miles (530 square km) at its seasonal high water. The lake was formerly an arm of the Adriatic Sea. On its west and northwest are steep

Skadi, in Norse mythology, the giant wife of the sea god Njörd. In order to avenge the death of her father, the giant Thiazi, Skadi took up arms and went to attack the rival tribe of the gods (the Aesir) in Asgard, home of the gods. The Aesir, wanting to appease her anger, offered her the choice of

Gustav Wied: …read rather than performed, one, Skærmydsler (1901; “Skirmishes”), transcended the inherent difficulties of performance to become one of the great successes of the Royal Theatre. A few of his works, the play Ranke Viljer og 2 × 2 = 5 (1906; 2 × 2 = 5) and two collections of…

Skagen, city and port, northern Jutland, Denmark, near the northern tip of the peninsula on the Kattegat strait. Chartered in 1413, it is one of the principal fishing centres in Denmark. It is also a summer resort and, from the 1870s, the site of an artists’ and writers’ colony. Notable are the

Skagerrak, rectangular arm of the North Sea, trending southwest to northeast between Norway on the north and the Jutland peninsula of Denmark on the south. About 150 miles (240 km) long and 80–90 miles (130–145 km) wide, the Skagerrak narrows between Cape Skagen (the Skaw), Denmark, and the Swedish

Skagerrak, rectangular arm of the North Sea, trending southwest to northeast between Norway on the north and the Jutland peninsula of Denmark on the south. About 150 miles (240 km) long and 80–90 miles (130–145 km) wide, the Skagerrak narrows between Cape Skagen (the Skaw), Denmark, and the Swedish

Battle of Jutland, (May 31–June 1, 1916), the only major encounter between the main British and German battle fleets in World War I, fought near the Skagerrak, an arm of the North Sea, about 60 miles (97 km) off the west coast of Jutland (Denmark). In late spring 1916, after months of calm in the

Ricky Skaggs is an American mandolin and fiddle virtuoso, singer, and music producer who played a leading role in the New Traditionalist movement of the 1980s by adapting bluegrass music’s instrumentation and historically conscious sensibility to mainstream country music. Skaggs was a child prodigy

Ricky Skaggs is an American mandolin and fiddle virtuoso, singer, and music producer who played a leading role in the New Traditionalist movement of the 1980s by adapting bluegrass music’s instrumentation and historically conscious sensibility to mainstream country music. Skaggs was a child prodigy

Skagway, municipality, southeastern Alaska, U.S. Lying 90 miles (145 km) northeast of Juneau and situated at the north end of the Lynn Canal, it is the northernmost point on the Inside Passage (Alaska Marine Highway). The area was originally inhabited by the Tlingit, and its name derives from the

Finno-Ugric religion: High gods: …god of the sky (Škaj, “creator” or “birth giver,” among the Moksha people, and also Ńišké-pas, “the great inseminating god”) is the chief of the gods, all-knowing and all-seeing, who is not approached for trivial things. He appears, however, very concretely in a festival connected with the beginning of…

Lilies of the Field: …tough-as-nails mother superior (played by Lilia Skala) eventually enlists his help in building a chapel. Despite several setbacks, he completes the chapel and in the process earns the respect and admiration of the nuns and the local townspeople.

skaldic poetry: Skalds were identified by name; their poems were descriptive and subjective; their metres were strictly syllabic instead of free and variable; and their language was ornamented with heiti and kennings. Heiti (“names”) are uncompounded poetic nouns, fanciful art words rather than everyday terms; e.g., “brand”…

skaldic poetry, oral court poetry originating in Norway but developed chiefly by Icelandic poets (skalds) from the 9th to the 13th century. Skaldic poetry was contemporary with Eddaic poetry but differed from it in metre, diction, and style. Eddaic poetry is anonymous, simple, and terse, often

Germanic religion and mythology: Scandinavian literary sources: …then furnished a section entitled “Skáldskaparmál” (“Poetic Diction”), explaining and illustrating the abstruse allusions to gods and ancient heroes in the poetry of the skalds. After this, he wrote an introduction to the mythology of the north in the “Gylfaginning” (“Beguiling of Gylfi”), a section describing all of the major…

Gudmundur Kamban: …is the four-volume historical novel Skálholt (1930–32; Eng. trans. of vol. 1 and 2, The Virgin of Skalholt), a carefully researched fictional investigation of the life of the daughter of the 17th-century Icelandic bishop Brynjólfur Sveinsson. Another important work is Jeg ser et stort skönt land (1936; I See a…

Iceland: Christianization: …bishoprics were established, one at Skálholt in 1056 and the other at Hólar in 1106. Literate Christian culture also transformed lay life. Codification of the law was begun in 1117–18. Later the Icelanders began to write sagas, which were to reach their pinnacle of literary achievement in the next century.

Nikos Skalkottas was one of the leading Greek composers of the 20th century. Skalkottas began violin studies at the age of five, continuing them later at the Athens conservatory and in Berlin, where he also studied composition. Influenced by Schoenberg, with whom he studied (1927–31), he began

Nikos Skalkottas was one of the leading Greek composers of the 20th century. Skalkottas began violin studies at the age of five, continuing them later at the Athens conservatory and in Berlin, where he also studied composition. Influenced by Schoenberg, with whom he studied (1927–31), he began

Egill Skallagrímsson was one of the greatest of Icelandic skaldic poets, whose adventurous life and verses are preserved in Egils saga (c. 1220; translated in The Sagas of Icelanders), attributed to Snorri Sturluson. The saga portrays Egill as having a dual nature derived from his mixed descent

Egill Skallagrímsson was one of the greatest of Icelandic skaldic poets, whose adventurous life and verses are preserved in Egils saga (c. 1220; translated in The Sagas of Icelanders), attributed to Snorri Sturluson. The saga portrays Egill as having a dual nature derived from his mixed descent

Skamander, group of young Polish poets who were united in their desire to forge a new poetic language that would accurately reflect the experience of modern life. Founded in Warsaw about 1918, the Skamander group took its name, and the name of its monthly publication, from a river of ancient Troy.

Ingmar Bergman: Life: …of the Wolf), Skammen (1968; Shame), and En passion (1969; A Passion, or The Passion of Anna), all dramas of inner conflicts involving a small, closely knit group of characters. With The Touch (1971; Beröringen), his first English-language film, Bergman returned to an urban setting and more romantic subject matter,…

Skanda, Hindu god of war who was the firstborn son of Shiva. The many legends giving the circumstances of his birth are often at variance with one another. In Kalidasa’s epic poem Kumarasambhava (“The Birth of the War God”; 5th century ce), as in most versions of the story, the gods wished for

Gupta dynasty: His successors—Kumara Gupta, Skanda Gupta, and others—saw the gradual demise of the empire with the invasion of the Hunas (a branch of the Hephthalites). By the mid-6th century, when the dynasty apparently came to an end, the kingdom had dwindled to a small size.

Skanderbeg was the national hero of the Albanians. A son of John (Gjon) Kastrioti, prince of Emathia, George was early given as hostage to the Turkish sultan. Converted to Islām and educated at Edirne, Turkey, he was given the name Iskander—after Alexander the Great—and the rank of bey (hence

Tirana: The focus is Skanderbeg Square, whose Etehem Bey Mosque (1819) is now flanked by the Soviet-built Palace of Culture. Nearby is the University of Tirana (1957). The old city stretches to the east and north of the main square and features alehouses and historic architecture. Tirana has museums,…

skandha, according to Buddhist thought, the five elements that sum up the whole of an individual’s mental and physical existence. The self (or soul) cannot be identified with any one of the parts, nor is it the total of the parts. They are: (1) matter, or body (rūpa), the manifest form of the four

Skåne, län (county) and traditional landskap (province), southern Sweden. Skåne county was created in 1997 from the counties of Malmöhus and Kristianstad and is coextensive with Skåne province. Occupying the peninsular southern tip of Sweden, it is bounded by water on three sides—the Baltic Sea on

Skåne question, in medieval and modern Baltic and Scandinavian history, international problem involving control of the southern Scandinavian Peninsula province of Skåne, which affected the political and economic power relationships of the northern European maritime powers. Although contiguous with

museum: History museums: …the first open-air museum, at Skansen. Museums of both types soon appeared in other countries. The former National Museum of Popular Arts and Traditions in Paris exemplified a national approach within a museum building. The museum’s closure in 2005, however, suggested changing trends in an era of increased globalization. The…

Skadi, in Norse mythology, the giant wife of the sea god Njörd. In order to avenge the death of her father, the giant Thiazi, Skadi took up arms and went to attack the rival tribe of the gods (the Aesir) in Asgard, home of the gods. The Aesir, wanting to appease her anger, offered her the choice of

Skara, town, Västra Götaland län (county), south-central Sweden, southeast of Lake Vänern. One of Sweden’s oldest towns, it was a religious centre both before and after the arrival of Christianity. In 1015 it became the seat of Sweden’s first bishop. The cathedral was built in the 12th century and

Skara Brae, one of the most perfectly preserved Stone Age villages in Europe, which was covered for hundreds of years by a sand dune on the shore of the Bay of Skaill, Mainland, Orkney Islands, Scotland. Exposed by a great storm in 1850, four buildings were excavated during the 1860s by William

Skaraborg, former län (county) of south-central Sweden, located between Lakes Vänern and Vättern. Founded as a county in 1634, it was merged with the counties of Älvsborg and Göteborg och Bohus in 1998 to form the county of Västra

crustacean: Annotated classification: †Subclass Skaracarida Late Cambrian; 12 trunk segments; no thoracic appendages apart from maxillipeds. Subclass Copepoda Miocene to present; no carapace; no compound eyes; 1 or more trunk segments fused to head; typically 6 pairs of thoracic limbs; no abdominal limbs; larva usually a nauplius; free-living and…

Piotr Skarga was a militant Jesuit preacher and writer, the first Polish representative of the Counter-Reformation. After a difficult childhood during which both his parents died, he studied at Jagiellonian University, then became rector of a parish school in Warsaw. After some travel, he became a

Bente Skari is a Norwegian cross-country skier who won numerous World Cup titles and who dominated international events in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Skari was the daughter of former Olympic ski medalist and International Ski Federation executive Odd Martinsen. Although she skied during the

Antonio Skármeta was a Chilean novelist, screenwriter, and diplomat, best known for his novel Ardiente paciencia (1985; Burning Patience) and for the film adaptations it inspired, including the Oscar-nominated Il postino (1994; The Postman). Skármeta was the grandson of Yugoslav immigrants to

skarn, in geology, metamorphic zone developed in the contact area around igneous rock intrusions when carbonate sedimentary rocks are invaded by large amounts of silicon, aluminum, iron, and magnesium. The minerals commonly present in a skarn include iron oxides, calc-silicates (wollastonite,

Tuscarora, Iroquoian-speaking North American Indian tribe. When first encountered by Europeans in the 17th century, the Tuscarora occupied what is now North Carolina. They were noted for their use of indigenous hemp for fibre and medicine. Traditionally, the Tuscarora depended heavily on

Skarżysko-Kamienna, city, Świętokrzyskie województwo (province), southeastern Poland. It is located on the Kamienna River. An important metallurgical centre since the end of World War II and rail junction on the Warsaw-Kraków line, it is part of the Staropolskie Zagłębie Przemysłowe, or the Old

skat, card game for three players, but usually four participate, with each player sitting out a turn as dealer. It is Germany’s national card game. It originated in Altenburg, near Leipzig, about 1817 and is played wherever Germans have settled; the International Skat Players Association (ISPA) has

ska: …they became known as the Skatalites in 1963, making several seminal recordings for leading producers and backing many prominent singers, as well as the fledgling Bob Marley and the Wailers. The Skatalites’ most distinctive musical presence was trombonist, composer, and arranger Drummond. A colourful figure who grappled with mental instability…

Skate, first production-model nuclear-powered attack submarine of the U.S. Navy. Launched and commissioned in 1957, it was similar to the first nuclear-powered submarine, the Nautilus, but smaller, displacing only 2,360 tons. Like the Nautilus, the Skate and the three other boats in its class

skate, (order Rajiformes), in zoology, any of numerous flat-bodied cartilaginous fishes constituting the order Rajiformes. Skates are found in most parts of the world, from tropical to near-Arctic waters and from the shallows to depths of more than 2,700 metres (8,900 feet). Most classifications

figure skating: Regional and national: Skate Canada is the ISU member organization overseeing figure skating in Canada. It qualifies judges, provides financial support for skaters, and conducts training for coaches. Skate Canada also holds junior and senior nationals for its top skaters, who qualify for national competition in a manner…

skateboarding: The first skate park was built in Florida in 1976, and many others began to appear throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia, all providing a variety of slopes and banked surfaces for sudden turns and stunts. It was at this time that riders started skating…

skate sailing, the sport of moving over ice on skates by carrying a small sail for propulsion by the wind. It probably originated in the Scandinavian countries and was practiced in some form or another almost immediately after the invention of the skate. The skate sail is generally rectangular or

skateboarding, form of recreation and sport, popular among youths, in which a person rides standing balanced on a small board mounted on wheels. Considered one of the so-called extreme sports, skateboarding as a professional sport boasts a range of competitions, including vertical and street-style

skateboarding: The first skate park was built in Florida in 1976, and many others began to appear throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia, all providing a variety of slopes and banked surfaces for sudden turns and stunts. It was at this time that riders started skating…

Tony Hawk: That year the Tony Hawk Foundation was founded to help develop skate parks in low-income neighbourhoods. Hawk also wrote several books on skateboarding, and his autobiography, Hawk: Occupation: Skateboarder (written with Sean Mortimer), was published in 2000. He later was the subject of the documentary Tony Hawk: Until…

The Skaters’ Waltz, Op. 183, waltz by French composer Emil Waldteufel written in 1882. Of Waldteufel’s many compositions—including more than 200 dance pieces—The Skaters’ Waltz is the best-known. In The Skaters’ Waltz Waldteufel set out to capture the atmosphere of a winter day in Paris, with

The Skaters’ Waltz, Op. 183, waltz by French composer Emil Waldteufel written in 1882. Of Waldteufel’s many compositions—including more than 200 dance pieces—The Skaters’ Waltz is the best-known. In The Skaters’ Waltz Waldteufel set out to capture the atmosphere of a winter day in Paris, with

skating, sport in which bladelike runners or sets of wheels attached to shoes are used for gliding on ice or other surfaces. See figure skating; ice hockey; roller-skating; speed

ice skating, the recreation and sport of gliding across an ice surface on blades fixed to the bottoms of shoes (skates). The activity of ice skating has given rise to two distinctive sports: figure skating, which involves the performance of various jumps, spins, and dance movements; and speed

roller-skating, recreational and competitive sport in which the participants use special shoes fitted with small wheels to move about on rinks or paved surfaces. Roller-skating sports include speed skating, hockey, figure skating, and dancing competitions similar to the ice-skating sports, as well

heterocyclic compound: Five-membered rings with one heteroatom: Skatole, a degradation product of tryptophan that retains the indole unit, contributes much of the strong odour of mammalian feces. Indole-3-acetic acid (heteroauxin or β-indolylacetic acid) is a plant-growth regulator and the most important member of the auxin family of plant hormones (see hormone: The…

Skagen, city and port, northern Jutland, Denmark, near the northern tip of the peninsula on the Kattegat strait. Chartered in 1413, it is one of the principal fishing centres in Denmark. It is also a summer resort and, from the 1870s, the site of an artists’ and writers’ colony. Notable are the

skaz, in Russian literature, a written narrative that imitates a spontaneous oral account in its use of dialect, slang, and the peculiar idiom of that persona. Among the well-known writers who have used this device are Nikolay Leskov, Aleksey Remizov, Mikhail Zoshchenko, and Yevgeny Zamyatin. The

Vasily Aksyonov: Another, Skazhi izyum (1985; Say Cheese!), is an irreverent portrait of Moscow’s intellectual community during the last years of Leonid Brezhnev’s leadership. Pokolenie zimy (1994; Generations of Winter) chronicles the fate of a family of intellectuals at the hands of the Soviet regime during the period of Joseph Stalin’s…

Oshawa, city, regional municipality of Durham county, southeastern Ontario, Canada. It lies on the north shore of Lake Ontario, just northeast of Toronto. Founded as Skea’s Corners on the military Kingston Road in 1795, it was renamed Oshawa—an Indigenous word referring to a stream crossing—in

Walter William Skeat was a British ethnographer of the Malay Peninsula whose detailed works laid the foundation for later ethnographic studies of the area. Following a classical education at Christ’s College, Cambridge, Skeat in 1891 joined the civil service of the state of Selangor in the Malay

dictionary: Specialized dictionaries: …was provided in 1879 by Walter William Skeat. It was long kept in print in reeditions but was superseded in 1966 by The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, by Charles Talbut Onions, who had worked many decades on it until his death. Valuable in its particular restricted area is J.F.…

United Kingdom Independence Party: Origins and the growth of Euroskepticism: …London School of Economics professor Alan Sked that campaigned against the 1991 Maastricht Treaty on European Union. Sked founded UKIP in 1993, following Britain’s ratification of the Maastricht Treaty, the document that established the European Union. UKIP fielded nearly 200 candidates in the 1997 general election, but the party fared…

Skeena River, river in western British Columbia, Canada. It rises in the Skeena Mountains in the northern part of the province and flows generally southwestward, receiving its two major tributaries, the Babine and Bulkley rivers, before emptying into Chatham Sound (an arm of the Pacific Ocean),

skeet shooting, sport in which marksmen use shotguns to shoot at clay targets thrown into the air by spring devices called traps. It differs from trapshooting, from which it derived, in that in skeet, traps are set at two points on the field and targets may be thrown diagonally across the shooter’s

iceboating: …competition, and smaller versions, called skeeters, with a sail of only about 75 square feet (7 square m), showed that they could sail safely and fast. By 1940 the design had crystallized, and the skeeter, or class E boat, as it is now designated, enjoyed a rapid growth. Skeeters were…

Frank King: …gave the baby the name Skeezix, and after that the characters were permitted to grow older, marry, and have children of their own. Skeezix, for instance, went through high school in the 1930s and was middle-aged in the 1960s.

keel: A “skeg” is an aftward extension of the keel intended to keep the boat moving straight and to protect the propeller and rudder from underwater obstructions. A “fin keel” is a narrow plate (of wood, metal, or other material) fixed midships to the keel of a…

Vaira Vike-Freiberga: She named as prime minister Andris Skele, who had served twice in that position, and charged him with reining in the state budget. Determined to keep the country’s foreign policy on a Western-oriented course, she criticized Russia’s opposition to Latvia’s bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as…

human development: Physical and behavioral interaction: The usual measure used is skeletal maturity or bone age. This is measured by taking an X ray of the hand and wrist. The appearances of the developing bones can be rated and formed into a scale of development; the scale is applicable to boys and girls of all genetic…

skeletal muscle, in vertebrates, most common of the three types of muscle in the body. Skeletal muscles are attached to bones by tendons, and they produce all the movements of body parts in relation to each other. Unlike smooth muscle and cardiac muscle, skeletal muscle is under voluntary control.

South America: Soils: …slopes are often steep, and lithosols (shallow soils consisting of imperfectly weathered rock fragments) abound, accounting for another 10 percent of the continent’s surface. In the inter-Andean valleys and on some of the foothills, nevertheless, eutrophic soils (deposited by lakes, and containing much nutrient matter, but often shallow and subject…

human skeleton, the internal skeleton that serves as a framework for the body. This framework consists of many individual bones and cartilages. There also are bands of fibrous connective tissue—the ligaments and the tendons—in intimate relationship with the parts of the skeleton. This article is

Daniel Bovet: drugs, antihistamines, and muscle relaxants.

skeleton, the supportive framework of an animal body. The skeleton of invertebrates, which may be either external or internal, is composed of a variety of hard nonbony substances. The more complex skeletal system of vertebrates is internal and is composed of several different types of tissues that

Kaokoland: …narrow coastal belt, called the Skeleton Coast, is often foggy and humid because of cool offshore currents. Water is scarce except along the Kunene River; elsewhere in Kaokoland pools of water are sometimes found in otherwise dry riverbeds. There are a few springs adequate to support limited irrigation of garden…

Walt Disney: First animated cartoons: …Symphonies with a picture entitled The Skeleton Dance, in which a skeleton rises from the graveyard and does a grotesque, clattering dance set to music based on classical themes. Original and briskly syncopated, the film ensured popular acclaim for the series, but, with costs mounting because of the more complicated…

skeleton shrimp, any of certain marine crustaceans of the family Caprellidae (order Amphipoda), particularly of the genera Caprella and Aeginella. The common name derives from the slender body structure. Most species are predators on other small animals, but some feed on organic debris. Aeginella

skeleton sledding, winter sport in which the skeleton sled, consisting of steel runners fastened to a platform chassis, is ridden in a headfirst prone position. Skeleton sledding competitions are typically held on the same courses used for bobsled contests. It is a dangerous and thrilling sport in

Nick Cave: Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and Grinderman: …focus of the fiercely elegiac Skeleton Tree (2016). The double album Ghosteen was released in 2019.

human skeleton, the internal skeleton that serves as a framework for the body. This framework consists of many individual bones and cartilages. There also are bands of fibrous connective tissue—the ligaments and the tendons—in intimate relationship with the parts of the skeleton. This article is

Skellig Michael, monastic settlement situated on an island off the coast of County Kerry in southwestern Ireland that was founded between the 6th and 8th centuries. Skellig Michael, a pyramidal rock nearly 715 feet (218 meters) tall, lies 8 miles (13 km) from the Irish mainland in the Atlantic

Skelmersdale, town, West Lancashire district, administrative and historic county of Lancashire, northwestern England. It lies on the western periphery of the older industrial town of Wigan. During the early 10th century Scandinavians settled in the area, naming it Skjalmar’s Dale. In Domesday Book

Skelton Glacier, Antarctic glacier situated on the Hillary Coast of Victoria Land, to the northeast of the Cook Mountains, near McMurdo Sound. It flows sluggishly southward into the Ross Ice Shelf. The greatest known thickness of ice along its 39-mi (62-km) length occurs at a point about 30 mi from

John Skelton was a Tudor poet and satirist of both political and religious subjects whose reputation as an English poet of major importance was restored only in the 20th century. His individual poetic style of short rhyming lines, based on natural speech rhythms, has been given the name of

Red Skelton was an American pantomimist and radio and television comedian, host, and star performer of the popular TV variety program The Red Skelton Show (1951–71; called The Red Skelton Hour from 1962 to 1970). In that series, Skelton re-created a number of characters—among them Clem

Red Skelton was an American pantomimist and radio and television comedian, host, and star performer of the popular TV variety program The Red Skelton Show (1951–71; called The Red Skelton Hour from 1962 to 1970). In that series, Skelton re-created a number of characters—among them Clem

Skeltonics, short verses of an irregular metre much used by the Tudor poet John Skelton. The verses have two or three stresses arranged sometimes in falling and sometimes in rising rhythm. They rely on such devices as alliteration, parallelism, and multiple rhymes and are related to doggerel.

skene, (from Greek skēnē, “scene-building”), in ancient Greek theatre, a building behind the playing area that was originally a hut for the changing of masks and costumes but eventually became the background before which the drama was enacted. First used c. 465 bc, the skene was originally a small

reggae: …for this distinctive guitar-playing effect, skengay, is identified with the sound of gunshots ricocheting in the streets of Kingston’s ghettos; tellingly, skeng is defined as “gun” or “ratchet knife.” Thus reggae expressed the sounds and pressures of ghetto life. It was the music of the emergent “rude boy” (would-be gangster)…

Frederick Crews: In such later works as Skeptical Engagements (1986) and Freud: The Making of an Illusion (2017), he sought to debunk psychoanalysis and to discredit Sigmund Freud as a scientific thinker.

Bjørn Lomborg: In Verdens sande tilstand (1998; The Skeptical Environmentalist), he maintained that, although the world faces many environmental problems, their severity is often exaggerated, and the proposed remedies are frequently inappropriate and costly. He suggested that the money might be better invested in alleviating poverty in the developing world. As societies…

skepticism, in Western philosophy, the attitude of doubting knowledge claims set forth in various areas. Skeptics have challenged the adequacy or reliability of these claims by asking what principles they are based upon or what they actually establish. They have questioned whether some such claims

Dominica: Independence of Dominica: …died in January 2004, and Roosevelt Skerrit succeeded him. Skerrit, at age 31, was at the time the world’s youngest head of government. Under his leadership Dominica increased its international alliances, joining in 2008 the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (from 2009, the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our…

Alien: Plot and characters:

literary sketch, short prose narrative, often an entertaining account of some aspect of a culture written by someone within that culture for readers outside of it—for example, anecdotes of a traveler in India published in an English magazine. Informal in style, the sketch is less dramatic but more

sketch, traditionally a rough drawing or painting in which an artist notes down his preliminary ideas for a work that will eventually be realized with greater precision and detail. The term also applies to brief creative pieces that per se may have artistic merit. In a traditional sketch, the

The Sketch Book, short-story collection by Washington Irving, first published in 1819–20 in seven separate parts. Most of the book’s 30-odd pieces concern Irving’s impressions of England, but six chapters deal with American subjects. Of these the tales “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and “Rip Van