Camilla Caporicci - Böcker

Traditionally attributed to King Solomon and called by Rabbi Akiva the “Holy of Holies” among sacred Scriptures (Mishnah, Yadayim 3:5), the Song of Songs is one of the most fascinating and controversial biblical books, and played an essential role in the shaping of European spirituality and culture. Combining in a unique way a sensual and deeply lyrical celebration of love with a well-established tradition of Christian allegorical interpretation, this text, crucial to both the Middle Ages and the early modern period, held a particular appeal for poets devoted not only to religious verse, but also to love poetry. The Song of Songs and Its Tradition in Renaissance Love Lyric is the first systematic and wide-ranging investigation of the multifaceted use of the Song of Songs in Renaissance love lyric poetry, with specific attention to Italian, French, and, especially, English poetic production. At the same time, this investigation is embedded into a narrative that, comprising two initial chapters devoted to medieval poetry and to Francesco Petrarca, represents an unprecedented attempt to trace the role of the Song of Songs in the rise and development of the European love lyric, following its path - or rather, one of its paths - from the medieval origins of this tradition to the end of the sixteenth century. The picture of the general impact of the Song of Songs in the development of the European love lyric is combined with in-depth analysis of key works by specific authors -- including Dante Alighieri, Francesco Petrarca, Torquato Tasso, Marguerite de Navarre, Anne de Marquets, Clément Marot, Richard Barnfield, Edmund Spenser, William Shakespeare, John Donne, Elizabeth Melville, and Aemilia Lanyer - promoting a contextualization of their significance within a new interpretative framework. While the comparative standpoint characterizing this study fosters a deeper comprehension of the evolution of the European love lyric, its multidisciplinary approach, which considers the Song of Songs as the centre of a web of dynamics pertaining to the fields of literature, philosophy, theology, and religious and cultural history, contributes to the understanding of the thought and spirit of ages crucial to the shaping of European culture.

Written by an international group of highly regarded scholars and rooted in the field of intermedial approaches to literary studies, this volume explores the complex aesthetic process of "picturing" in early modern English literature. The essays in this volume offer a comprehensive and varied picture of the relationship between visual and verbal in the early modern period, while also contributing to the understanding of the literary context in which Shakespeare wrote. Using different methodological approaches and taking into account a great variety of texts, including Elizabethan sonnet sequences, metaphysical poetry, famous as well as anonymous plays, and court masques, the book opens new perspectives on the literary modes of "picturing" and on the relationship between this creative act and the tense artistic, religious and political background of early modern Europe. The first section explores different modes of looking at works of art and their relation with technological innovations and religious controversies, while the chapters in the second part highlight the multifaceted connections between European visual arts and English literary production. The third section explores the functions performed by portraits on the page and the stage, delving into the complex question of the relationship between visual and verbal representation. Finally, the chapters in the fourth section re-appraise early modern reflections on the relationship between word and image and on their respective power in light of early-seventeenth-century visual culture, with particular reference to the masque genre.

Written by an international group of highly regarded scholars and rooted in the field of intermedial approaches to literary studies, this volume explores the complex aesthetic process of "picturing" in early modern English literature. The essays in this volume offer a comprehensive and varied picture of the relationship between visual and verbal in the early modern period, while also contributing to the understanding of the literary context in which Shakespeare wrote. Using different methodological approaches and taking into account a great variety of texts, including Elizabethan sonnet sequences, metaphysical poetry, famous as well as anonymous plays, and court masques, the book opens new perspectives on the literary modes of "picturing" and on the relationship between this creative act and the tense artistic, religious and political background of early modern Europe. The first section explores different modes of looking at works of art and their relation with technological innovations and religious controversies, while the chapters in the second part highlight the multifaceted connections between European visual arts and English literary production. The third section explores the functions performed by portraits on the page and the stage, delving into the complex question of the relationship between visual and verbal representation. Finally, the chapters in the fourth section re-appraise early modern reflections on the relationship between word and image and on their respective power in light of early-seventeenth-century visual culture, with particular reference to the masque genre.

Richard Barnfield is sometimes considered the rival poet in Shakespeare’s sonnets but has been relatively neglected in studies of early modern English poetry. This edited collection situates Barnfield’s position in early modern literature beyond his best known work, The Affectionate Shepherd, exploring his classical education, wider homoerotic verse and distinctive aesthetic literary style.Making use of different approaches, the essays in this volume tackle issues of intertextuality and interdiscursivity through the poet’s use of classical sources and poetic genres such as the sonnet and epyllia. Particular attention is devoted to the relationship between Barnfield’s work and that of his contemporaries. Traditionally limited to a comparison with Shakespeare’s output, this volume places Barnfield in the literary panorama of his time, giving specific attention to those features which make his work stand out. Using corpus linguistics tools, the poet’s entire body of work is further elucidated through the structure and meter of his sonnets as well as formal and functional aspects of his use of irony. Written by an international group of scholars, this collection celebrates the 450th anniversary of Barnfield’s birth and makes his poetry essential to the study of early modern literature.

Richard Barnfield is sometimes considered the rival poet in Shakespeare’s sonnets but has been relatively neglected in studies of early modern English poetry. This edited collection situates Barnfield’s position in early modern literature beyond his best known work, The Affectionate Shepherd, exploring his classical education, wider homoerotic verse and distinctive aesthetic literary style.Making use of different approaches, the essays in this volume tackle issues of intertextuality and interdiscursivity through the poet’s use of classical sources and poetic genres such as the sonnet and epyllia. Particular attention is devoted to the relationship between Barnfield’s work and that of his contemporaries. Traditionally limited to a comparison with Shakespeare’s output, this volume places Barnfield in the literary panorama of his time, giving specific attention to those features which make his work stand out. Using corpus linguistics tools, the poet’s entire body of work is further elucidated through the structure and meter of his sonnets as well as formal and functional aspects of his use of irony. Written by an international group of scholars, this collection celebrates the 450th anniversary of Barnfield’s birth and makes his poetry essential to the study of early modern literature.