Defending Literature in Early Modern England: Renaissance Literary Theory in Social Context (Cambridge Studies in Renaissance Literature and Culture, Series Number 37)

Matz, Robert

ISBN 10: 0521660807 / ISBN 13: 9780521660808

Edité par Cambridge University Press, 2000

A propos de cet article

In.

N° de réf. du vendeur ria9780521660808_new

Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: Defending Literature in Early Modern England: Renaissance Literary Theory in Social Context (Cambridge Studies in Renaissance Literature and Culture, Series Number 37)
• Éditeur: Cambridge University Press
• Date de parution: 2000
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN à 10 chiffres: 0521660807
• ISBN à 13 chiffres: 9780521660808
• Reliure: Couverture rigide
• État de l'article: New

A propos de ce titre

Synopsis

This study, first published in 2000, analyses Renaissance literary theory in the context of social transformations of the period.

Présentation de l'éditeur

Why was literature so often defended and defined in early modern England in terms of its ability to provide the Horatian ideal of both profit and pleasure? This book, first published in 2000, analyses Renaissance literary theory in the context of social transformations of the period, focusing on conflicting ideas about gentility that emerged as the English aristocracy evolved from a feudal warrior class to a civil elite. Through close readings centered on works by Thomas Elyot, Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser, Matz argues that literature attempted to mediate a complex set of contradictory social expectations. His original study engages with important theoretical work such as Pierre Bourdieu's and offers a substantial critique of New Historicist theory. It challenges recent accounts of the power of Renaissance authorship, emphasizing the uncertain status of literature during this time of cultural change, and sheds light on why and how canonical works became canonical.