Dublin

Renaissance city of literature

Editors:
Kathleen Miller
Search for other papers by Kathleen Miller in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Close
and
Crawford Gribben
Search for other papers by Crawford Gribben in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Close

From its Nobel laureates to its literary festivals, modern-day Dublin lives up to its role as a literary capital. The question of whether Ireland experienced a cultural and literary Renaissance has received increasing scholarly attention in recent years. This book extends the discussion by engaging with the specific literary culture of its capital city. It begins with an argument for the internationalised literary culture of late medieval Dublin by an analysis of James Yonge's 'Memoriale'. The citizens of Dublin engaged with and actively read texts imported from London, as Dublin's own printing was limited. The book presents case studies that establish Dublin as an emerging city of Renaissance literature by focusing on Edmund Spenser's political and social connections and by examining the literature of complaint emanating from late Elizabethan Dublin. It analyses the constructed authorial personae of Richard Bellings, James Shirley and Henry Burnell residing in Dublin, and discusses the concepts of literary friendship. Sir James Ware's scholarly achievements are analysed and his extensive intellectual community are investigated, revealing an open-minded Dublin community. In addition to being a representative Renaissance activity, translation was harnessed in the country as an 'instrument of state', as shown by translations of Gaelic poetry. The Renaissance literary production in Dublin had a multi-linguistic character with Latin orations taking place in the Trinity College Dublin. The book also addresses the question of whether the English-language drama composed and staged in Restoration Dublin is most accurately described as Anglo-Irish drama or 'English drama written in Ireland'.

Abstract only
Log-in for full text

 

‘Brings a salutary perspective to a marginalized topic—the nature and scope of a literary Renaissance in early modern Dublin. This very appealing volume is notable for its broad historical scope (ranging from the early fifteen-century Memoriale by the Dublin-born notary and legal scribe James Yonge to Anglo-Irish writing for the stage in Restoration Dublin) and the breadth of topics it addresses.'
Professor Lowell Gallagher
Studies in English Literature

  • Collapse
  • Expand

All of MUP's digital content including Open Access books and journals is now available on manchesterhive.

 

    • Full book download (PDF with hyperlinks)
All Time Past Year Past 30 Days
Abstract Views 106410 54376 1884
Full Text Views 1481 539 13
PDF Downloads 1187 244 10