Contains 128 letters written by Donne between 1600 & 1631, collected & published by his son in 1651, illustrating Donne's character, his relationships with his family, his flattery of his patrons, his religious attitudes, his views of current happenings, & his increasing involvement in public affairs.

Over 3,200 entries An essential guide to authors and their works that focuses on the general canon of British literature from the fifteenth century to the present. There is also some coverage of non-fiction such as biographies, memoirs, and science, as well as inclusion of major American and Commonwealth writers. This online-exclusive new edition adds 60,000 new words, including over 50 new entries dealing with authors who have risen to prominence in the last five years, as well as fully updating the entries that currently exist. Each entry provides details of a writer's nationality and birth/death dates, followed by a listing of their titles arranged chronologically by date of publication.

In 1614, just prior to his ordination, John Donne renounced the writing of verse. He was well aware of the widespread opinion that rhyming was an inappropriate avocation for a man of the cloth. Yet, on certain occasions, Donne did write poetry again. In this group of five closely related essays, David Novarr takes a new look at Donne's poems—both secular and divine—written before and after his ordination. He reassesses the validity and utility of widely accepted critical contexts which define our understanding of particular poems, and proposes fresh approaches and interpretations. Novarr's knowledge of Donne's life, his critical insight, and his attention to the details of Donne's texts—all join to make The Disinterred Muse a major contribution to our understanding of Donne and his art.

Becoming a father was the main way that an individual in the English Renaissance could be treated as a full member of the community. Yet patriarchal identity was by no means as secure as is often assumed: when poets invoke the idea of paternity in love poetry and other forms, they are therefore invoking all the anxieties that a culture with contradictory notions of sexuality imposed. This study takes these anxieties seriously, arguing that writers such as Sidney and Spenser deployed images of childbirth to harmonize public and private spheres, to develop a full sense of selfhood in their verse, and even to come to new accommodations between the sexes. Shakespeare, Donne and Jonson, in turn, saw the appeal of the older poets' aims, but resisted their more radical implications. The result is a fiercely personal yet publicly-committed poetry that wouldn't be seen again until the time of the Romantics.

This book is an extensive investigation of letters and letter writing across two centuries, focusing on the sociocultural function and meaning of epistolary writing - letters that were circulated, were intended to circulate, or were perceived to circulate within the culture of epistolarity in early modern England. The study examines how the letter functioned in a variety of social contexts, yet also assesses what the letter meant as idea to early modern letter writers, investigating letters in both manuscript and print contexts. It begins with an overview of the culture of epistolarity, examines the material components of letter exchange, investigates how emotion was persuasively textualized in the letter, considers the transmission of news and intelligence, and examines the publication of letters as propaganda and as collections of moral-didactic, personal, and state letters. Gary Schneider is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English at the University of Texas-Pan American.

The first major socio-cultural study of manuscript letters and letter-writing practices in early modern England. Daybell examines a crucial period in the development of the English vernacular letter before Charles I's postal reforms in 1635, one that witnessed a significant extension of letter-writing skills throughout society.

A comprehensive re-examination of John Donne, through his response to the most iconic religious figure in Western theology, Saint Augustine of Hippo. This book significantly enriches our understanding of the reading and writing culture of Renaissance England, and of the religious debates and controversies in the decades leading up to the Civil War.

Annabel Patterson tackles the hottest topic in literary studies today - `the Great Books debate - providing a superbly formulated moderate stance between the Western canon's radical oppponents and its zealous protectors.

This 2003 book is a full-scale history of early modern English literature, offering perspectives on English literature produced in Britain between the Reformation and the Restoration. While providing the general coverage and specific information expected of a major history, its twenty-six chapters address recent methodological and interpretive developments in English literary studies. The book has five sections: 'Modes and Means of Literary Production, Circulation, and Reception', 'The Tudor Era from the Reformation to Elizabeth I', 'The Era of Elizabeth and James VI', 'The Earlier Stuart Era', and 'The Civil War and Commonwealth Era'. While England is the principal focus, literary production in Scotland, Ireland and Wales is treated, as are other subjects less frequently examined in previous histories, including women's writings and the literature of the English Reformation and Revolution. This history is an essential resource for specialists and students.