Comparative Literature Commons^™

Who Killed Lycidas?: Lycidas And The Spanish Tragedy, Clay Daniel

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In Lycidas, the protagonist searches for an explanation for why his virtuous friend has mysteriously died in a cultural-political landscape of unpunished, thriving, official corruption. Though Renaissance pastoral sometimes inveighed against corrupt authorities, pastoral elegy did not. What models, then, other than the Bible, would Milton have had for the swain’s search? Milton’s headnote calls his poem a monody, which within a literary context primarily is a speech in Greek tragedy. Milton then invites us to read the poem within a dramatic context. But which dramatic context? The Book of Revelation of course is one these contexts. But contemporary …

Front Matter

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No abstract provided.

Delno C. West Award (2012)

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Jessica Winston

The West Award recognizes the most distinguished paper given by a senior scholar at the annual conference.

Hyperreal Blessings: Simulated Relics In The Pardoner’S Tale, Chelsea Henson

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This article argues that reading the relics Chaucer’s Pardoner carries through the lens of Jean Baudrillard’s definition of simulacra illustrates the potential existence – and subsequent dangers – of a simulated hyperreality to the spirituality of the fourteenth century. Juxtaposing “The Pardoner’s Prologue” from The Canterbury Tales and Baudrillard’s Simulacra and Simulation lends meaning to both the machinations of Chaucer’s (arguably) most corrupt pilgrim, and to the postmodern idea of simulated realities. Rather than doubles or imitations of an original image or conception of reality, Baudrillard’s simulacra are indistinguishable replacements for the real, as the Pardoner would have us believe …

“A Neighbour, Hedges Haue Eyes, And High-Wayes Haue Eares” Traveling Players, Traveling Spies In 1 Henry Iv And The True Tragedie Of Richard The Third, Robert D. Stefanek

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The Elizabethan government used companies of travelling players to serve a number of intelligence functions, which extended to the surveillance of audiences during performances. This surveillance was facilitated by the discursive instabilities of their plays and the architecture of the spaces in which they were performed. Surveillance by travelling players was part of an essentially colonial project in which the crown sought to extend its power and increase its visibility while attempting to fashion a nationalist, pro-Protestant, pro-Tudor identity in the provinces. To consider these dynamics, this article considers two conjectured performances. First, Shakespeare’s 1 Henry IV performed by the …

A Fascinating But Frustrating Study Of Marlowe’S Drama And Its Historical Context, Jefferey H. Taylor

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Clayton MacKenzie’s Deathly Experiments; A Study of Icons and Emblems of Mortality in Christopher Marlowe’s Plays is a fascinating, but equally frustrating, study of Marlowe’s drama and its historical context. The basic premise, to enrich our reading of Marlowe’s plays through resonance with widely available printed emblems and similar iconic art, is a worthy endeavor, one that follows the impulse to illuminate drama by examining contemporary visual art, and foregrounding the presence of theater as visual communications and enriching sensitivity to the communicative power of image and icon.

Full Issue

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No abstract provided.

Modernizing Matthew Paris: The Standards And Practices Of The First Printed Editions, Kristen Geaman

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This article discusses the first printed editions of Mathew Paris’s thirteenth-century chronicle, Chronica Maiora, arguing that these editions show a much higher level of editorial sophistication than has yet been recognized. Written between 1235 and 1259, the Chronica Maiora is one of the most extensive and detailed chronicles of medieval England; yet the work was not printed until 1571, as part of a series of historical publications overseen by Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury. Although the text of Parker’s edition has been almost universally criticized by scholars, this work suggests that he actually set a high editorial standard, especially by …

‘Robes And Furr’D Gowns Hide All’: Edgar’S Role(S) In King Lear, Annette Lucksinger

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Despite his centrality in the play, Edgar’s role in King Lear has rarely attracted sustained analysis. To be sure, scholarly neglect doubtless results from Edgar’s own elusiveness, from the disguises that grant him access to the major characters in the play, disguises that encourage others to read in him what they wish to see. Analyzing what other characters see or fail to see in Edgar’s disguises offers important light on his character and his role in the play. A Lacanian analysis of Lear’s reading of Edgar’s role as Poor Tom shows that Lear’s effort to establish (or to re-establish) his …

“Rise Up, Lord, Scatter Your Enemies (Please)”: Faith And Doubt In The Anglo-Saxon Staffordshire Hoard1, Thomas Klein

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As is now well known, in July of 2009, an unemployed metal “detectorist” named Terry Herbert was plying his device in the recently plowed field of a friend in the farmland outside of Lichfield, in Staffordshire, in the English West Midlands, and came upon a remarkable find.2 Over the course of several days, he uncovered hundreds of items of what turned out to be early Anglo-Saxon gold and silver metalwork. The find was subsequently reported to the British Portable Antiquities Scheme, which took over the site, and eventually some 1300 distinct objects (and many more pieces) were recovered. The news …

Marking The Woman A Sinner: Testimony And Legal Fiction In Renaissance England, Lesley Skousen

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Throughout Medieval England, ordained clergy could avoid secular punishment for felony by claiming a privilege known as benefit of clergy. During the Reformation, this privilege was repurposed by the ministers of Henry VIII and offered as a lay benefit. The plea of clergy left women ineligible, as they could not be priests and were rarely convicted in the same numbers as men. Even when accused of crimes, women could rely on legal fictions and evasive testimonies to escape conviction. Then in 1624 and 1691, Parliament redesigned benefit of clergy to include women, first for slight theft and then on equal …

Midwives As Agents Of Social Control: Ecclesiastical And Municipal Regulation Of Midwifery In The Late Middle Ages, Ginger L. Smoak

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Regulation of Midwifery in the Late Middle Ages was the result of both the trend toward supervisory social and institutional control and also the harnessing of midwives as agents of that control. This paper examines the procedure of ecclesiastical and municipal regulation through oaths and licensure, arguing that midwives were able to gain agency and autonomy, as well as protection, by occupying a liminal role between the private world of the birthing chamber and the public world of the witness stand. They were therefore vital to both sides of the process of regulation

Allen D. Breck Award Winner (2012)

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Lesley Skousen

The Breck Award recognizes the most distinguished paper given by a junior scholar at the annual conference.

The Signifying Power Of Pearl, Jane Beal

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The spiritual language, Ovidian love stories, and use of liturgical time in Pearl all invite allegorical interpretations of the poem. While there is clearly a literal, elegiac sense to the poem, there are also allegorical meanings. This makes perfect sense in light of the tradition of four-fold scriptural and literary interpretation in the Middle Ages, which the Pearl-Poet clearly used to understand biblical parables and compose his poetic masterpiece. The poet’s use of metaphoric language, memory of the legends of Orpheus and Eurydice and Pygmalion and Galatea, and astute interweaving of parables from the church liturgy alongside invocations of the …

Capturing The Imagination Of A Distracted Audience, David Paradis

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We compete for students’ attention. Surrounded by smart phones, tablets, and laptops, we compete for their attention, sometimes in the classroom but definitely outside of it. To combat this deluge of distractions, assigned readings must contain attractive content. The challenge can be particularly acute in pre-modern history classes, partly because the language and the content of primary sources, even when translated into clear, modern prose, is often unfathomable to readers accustomed to reading Sparknotes or Wikipedia. One potential solution to this challenge is Maurice Keen’s Outlaws of Medieval Legend (rev. ed. New York: Routledge, 2001).

Approaches To The Atonement In The Mystery Plays, Adam C. Wolfe

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The English Corpus Christi plays were a vibrant expression of late medieval Christianity, but they did not survive the Reformation. Many Protestant reformers opposed religious drama altogether, but there were some attempts by reformers to edit the plays and recast them in a Protestant mold, attempts which were ultimately unsuccessful. This paper examines one such attempt and finds that the problem went far beyond obvious references to, and representations of, specifically Catholic beliefs. Focusing on representations of the Atonement in the York and Towneley plays, I found at least four distinct theological approaches to this central concept of Christian theology, …

Indigenismo In The Mexican Photographs Of Tina Modotti: The Revolutionary And The Indigenista, Shannon Dame

Theses and Dissertations

During Tina Modotti's time in Mexico in the 1920s, much of her photography and political activities focused on and fought for the rights of those who had been previously overlooked and marginalized, namely the indigenous people of Mexico. Many government officials, artists and intellectuals at the time believed that it was through the indigenous culture that Mexico could redeem itself and create its own national identity. Indigenismo, the philosophy that supported this claim, was of interest to Modotti and was a recurring theme throughout her photography. Following the Mexican Revolution of 1910, indigenismo appeared to be the solution to …

Huff, Toby E., Intellectual Curiosity And The Scientific Revolution - A Global Perspective., Laina Farhat-Holzman

Comparative Civilizations Review

No abstract provided.

Tom Holland, The Forge Of Christendom: The End Of Days And The Epic Rise Of The West., Laina Farhat-Holzman

Comparative Civilizations Review

No abstract provided.

Johnson, Ian, A Mosque In Munich: Nazis, The Cia, And The Rise Of The Muslim Brotherhood In The West., Laina Farhat-Holzman

Comparative Civilizations Review

No abstract provided.

Literary Love(R)S: Recognizing The Female Outline And Its Implications In Roman Verse Satire, Kaitlyn Marie Klein

Theses and Dissertations

The existence of a metaphoric female standing in for poetic style was only plainly discussed in a paper from 1987 concerned with Roman elegiac poetry. This figure is given the title of scripta puella or written woman, since her existence depends solely on the writings of an author. These females often appear to have basis in reality; however there is insufficient evidence to allow them to cross out of the realm of fantasy. The term scripta puella in poetry refers to a perfected poetic form, one the author prefers over all others, and a human form creates the illusion of …

Embodied Culture: An Exploration Of Irish Dance Through Trauma Theory, Erica Burgin

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines traditional Irish dance as a locus of cultural memory, inscribed on the body. The native people of Ireland experienced invasion and oppression for nearly a millennium, beginning with Viking invasions at the end of the 8th century and ending in the 1940s, when the British finally departed Ireland, now an independent country. During the years of English rule, the British imposed harsh laws and sought to eradicate all vestiges of Irish culture in an attempt to diminish Irish identity. Through the ages, the definition of what it means to be Irish has changed widely, frequently resulting in …

From Obsurity To Fame And Back Again: The Caecilii Metelli In The Roman Republic, Dustin Wade Simmons

Theses and Dissertations

The house of the Caecilii Metelli was one of ancient Rome's most prestigious yet overshadowed plebeian families. Replete with dynamic orators, successful generals, and charismatic women, the Caecilii Metelli lived during the period of Rome's great expansion. Having participated in its transformation into the principal power in the Mediterranean, they survived until the fall of the Republic. By contemporary Roman standards they were a powerful and respected family. Seventeen consulships, nine triumphs, nine members of priestly colleges—including three who became pontifex maximus—and five censors are evidence of their high position in Rome. The trappings of magisterial office and military …

Book Review, Laina Farhat-Holzman, Isaac Tseggai, Norman C. Rothman, Anthony M. Stevens-Arroyo

Comparative Civilizations Review

No abstract provided.

Much Ado And Pride And Prejudice: Twin Characters And Parallel Plots, Ace G. Pilkington

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Much Ado About Nothing and Pride and Prejudice are telling a similar story which centers on Beatrice and Benedick in the first case and Darcy and Elizabeth in the second. The article also argues that Jane Austen had Much Ado in mind while writing Pride and Prejudice, but this second proposition is not readily provable (as such borrowings often are) by direct quotation and comparison. Jane Austen’s familiarity with Shakespeare and the similarity of her plot suggest the truth of this second proposition, but more important for this paper are the comparisons between the narratives themselves since they tell important …

Full Issue

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No abstract provided.

Money For Nothing: Molière’S Miser And The Risky World Of Early Modern France, Michael Call

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Molière’s 1668 comedy L’Avare, or The Miser, takes place during a significant shift in the way that early modern Europeans thought about chance and risk. Staged at the same historical moment that Pascal, Huygens, and Leibnitz were developing the first foundations of probability mathematics, L’Avare conjures up an atmosphere of uncertainty, setting in opposition risk-takers and the risk-averse. As the characters encounter and debate the concepts of usury, life expectancy, gambling, and the risks of maritime travel, they grapple palpably with the consequences of an uncertain world in which Divine Providence can no longer be assumed—a new world …

“Mutual Comfort”: Courtly Love And Companionate Marriage In The Poetry Of Sir Philip Sidney And Edmund Spenser, Amanda Taylor

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The interaction between courtly love poetry and the development of companionate marriage has received little critical attention. Rather, critics of courtly love poetry focus on authorial ambition and self-presentation. This paper explores how the revision of the courtly love genre in the poetry of Sir Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser participated within the societal transformation toward companionate marriage. The individualized female characters in their poetry shatter courtly stereotypes, but the relationship options presented either fragment the sequence, as in Sidney’s Astrophil and Stella, or enable it to drive forward to completion, as in Spenser’s Amoretti and Epithalamion. I …

Love And Marriage On The Medieval English Stage: Using The English Cycle Plays As Sources For Social History, James H. Forse

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Much scholarship concerning the concept of “companionate” marriage traces its origins to the early modern period as clergymen, especially Protestant ones, began to publish “guides” to the relationships and respective duties of husbands and wives in the 1500s and 1600s. Studies of marriage in the Middle ages concentrate on marriage among the nobility, since there is more documentary evidence about the medieval elites. Examinations of sermons reveal that the Church, especially after the twelfth century, stressed the sanctity of marriage as an institution created by God and blessed by Christ at the marriage at Cana, but sermons say little about …

A Tale Of Two Shakespeares: Staging Shakespeare At Conservative Christian Colleges, Christine Sustek Williams

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American Theatre publishes an annual list of the top ten plays in production in regional theatres each year and simply removes all Shakespeares from consideration. Otherwise the top ten list would simply be the top ten Bard List. However, when it comes to attempting Shakespeare on the college stage, I argue that many theatre teachers in higher education think twice, or even thrice, before brushing off the old complete works. Most students are quite intimidated when they reach for Shakespeare, having been told for many years that his work is hard to read and harder to understand. Add to that …