DOCSLIB.ORG

Introduction

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Introduction Please provide footnote text Introduction Sperone Speroni degli Alvarotti (Padua 1500–1588) was Pietro Pomponazzi’s (1462–1525) pupil at the University of Bologna where he was educated as an Aristotelian. He was one of the main members of the “Accademia degli Infiammati” (“Academy of the Burning Ones”) in Padua and “Accademia delle notti vaticane” (“Academy of the Vatican Nights”) in Rome. He taught logic and philosophy at the University of Padua. His extraordinary rhetorical ability and performances were well known in the Italian political and cultural environ- ment. Being an advocate of the use of Italian language for any and all disci- plines, he was presented as one of the fathers of the vernacular in Bernardino Tomitano’s (1517–1576) Ragionamenti della lingua toscana (1546). He was also in contact with the most important protagonists of the 16th century, including Pietro Aretino (1492–1556), Bernardo Tasso (1493–1569), Torquato Tasso (1544– 1595), Gasparo Contarini (1483–1542), Jacopo Mazzoni (1548–1598), Pope Pius IV (1499–1565), and the Duke of Urbino Guidobaldo II della Rovere (1514–1574), among others.1 Sperone Speroni is mostly famous for his central role in the quarrel about language (“questione della lingua”) addressed in his Dialogo delle lingue (1542). His defense of the vernacular as a valuable language for literature and phi- losophy resulted in his choosing to write all his works in Italian. At the same time, Speroni proposed a revolution in philosophy promoting ancient sophists’ perspectives and arguments as the most appropriate for political and civil life. There is evidence that sophistry is constantly addressed and practiced in Speroni’s oeuvre, from his dialogues through his trattatelli to the Apologia dei dialoghi. Within these works, Speroni carries on a defense of ancient sophistry against its accusers, primarily Socrates (469–399 BCE) and Plato. According to Speroni, sophistic rhetoric should regain the significance it possessed before Socrates and Plato destroyed it and fundamentally changed the history of Western culture. Speroni argued that the sophistic approach to the human world is more appropriate than any metaphysics. In fact, the sophists’ relativism and flexibility in politics and ethics fit political and civil 1 An introduction to Speroni’s biography and work is provided by M. Pozzi, “Nota introdut- tiva.” Trattatisti del Cinquecento. (Ed.) M. Pozzi. Tome II. (Milano: Ricciardi, 1996), 471–509. The book Sperone Speroni (Padova: Editoriale Programma, 1989) collects essays on several aspects of Speroni’s production and above all provides two highly important tools for any scholarly research: a bibliography of Speroni’s published works and a catalogue of Speroni’s manuscripts collected in the Biblioteca Capitolare of Padua. © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, ���8 | doi ��.��63/9789004354739_00� 2 Introduction life better than Plato’s eternal essences. Implying that ancient Greece and Renaissance Italy share a similar political and ethical situation, Speroni advo- cated for a rebirth of sophistic rhetoric as the best way to enhance the public life of each particular community. Given the specific situation of Renaissance Italy, it being fragmented in a va- riety of regional cultures, a study of the relationship between Speroni’s think- ing and the tradition of ancient sophists, which is at the core of my research, may also significantly impact the understanding of the Italian Renaissance. Despite the fact that Speroni’s works deeply influenced early modern culture even beyond Italy, from Bernardino Tomitano to Joachim du Bellay (c. 1522– 1560), his oeuvre and legacy have been mostly neglected. Therefore, the study of this subject carries the urgency of reconstructing an important part of Italian and European cultural heritage beyond specific disciplinary boundaries. Speroni’s manuscripts are collected in 17 volumes in the Biblioteca Capitolare of Padua. A description of them was first provided by Claudio Bellinati’s Catalogo dei manoscritti di Sperone Speroni nella Biblioteca Capitolare di Padova.2 A sec- ond and more detailed description is now available in Silvio Bernardinello’s Catalogo dei codici della Biblioteca Capitolare di Padova.3 Speroni’s works have been published several times from 1542 through the 20th century. A full descrip- tion of all editions is available in Mariella Magliani’s Bibliografia delle opere a stampa di Sperone Speroni.4 In 1740, Natale dalle Laste and Marco Forcellini published the only complete edition of Speroni’s works.5 Their edition is based on both manuscripts and previous editions. Scholars of Speroni can find just a few of these works in modern editions. Mario Pozzi published an edition of the following works: Dialogo d’amore, Dialogo delle lingue, Dialogo della re- torica (book I), Dialogo della istoria (part II), Della dignità delle donne, Apologia dei dialoghi (part I), and some letters.6 Antonio Sorella published the edition of the Dialogo delle lingue based on the autograph manuscript of Speroni kept in 2 C. Bellinati. “Catalogo dei manoscritti di Sperone Speroni nella Biblioteca Capitolare di Padova.” Sperone Speroni. 323–356. 3 S. Bernardinello. Catalogo dei codici della Biblioteca Capitolare di Padova. In appendice gli incunaboli con aggiunte manoscritte. 2 vols. (Padova: Istituto per la storia ecclesiastica pa- dovana, 2007). An important additional tool for finding Speroni’s manuscripts is the Italian project ALI (Autografi dei Letterati Italiani) whose results have been collected in an online archive (http://www.autografi.net) and published in G. Grata. “Sperone Speroni”. Autografi dei letterati italiani. Il Cinquecento. II (Roma: Salerno, 2013), 327–343. 4 M. Magliani. “Bibliografia delle opere a stampa di Sperone Speroni.” Sperone Speroni. 275–322. 5 S. Speroni. Opere … tratte da’ mss. Originali. (Eds.) N. dalle Laste and M. Forcellini. 5 tomes (Venezia: Appresso D. Occhi, 1740) reprint: (ed.) M. Pozzi (Roma: Vecchiarelli, 1989). 6 Pozzi, ed. Trattatisti del Cinquecento. 471–849..
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 3 a Martyr of Painting
    The social lives of paintings in Sixteenth-Century Venice Kessel, E.J.M. van Citation Kessel, E. J. M. van. (2011, December 1). The social lives of paintings in Sixteenth-Century Venice. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/18182 Version: Not Applicable (or Unknown) Licence agreement concerning inclusion of doctoral License: thesis in the Institutional Repository of the University of Leiden Downloaded from: https://hdl.handle.net/1887/18182 Note: To cite this publication please use the final published version (if applicable). 3 A Martyr of Painting Irene di Spilimbergo, Titian, and Venetian Portraiture between Life and Death Pygmalion’s love for the figure of ivory, which was made by his own hands, gives us an example of those people who try to circumvent the forces of nature, never willing to en- joy that sweet and soft love that regularly occurs between man and woman. While we are naturally always inclined to love, those people give themselves over to love things that are hardly fruitful, only for their own pleasure, such as Paintings, Sculptures, medals, or similar things. And they love them so dearly that those same things manage to satisfy their desires, as if their desire had been satisfied by real Love that has to be between man and woman.1 Giuseppe Orologi, comment on Ovid’s Metamorphoses (1578) As Giuseppe Orologi, a writer with connections to Titian, makes clear in his commentary on Ovid’s story of the sculptor Pygmalion, some people of his 1 ‘L’amore di Pigmaleone, alla figura di Avorio fatta da le sue mani, ci da essempio
    [Show full text]
  • Celinda, a Tragedy
    Celinda, A Tragedy VALERIA MIANI • Edited with an introduction by VALERIA FINUCCI Translated by JULIA KISACKY Annotated by VALERIA FINUCCI & JULIA KISACKY Iter Inc. Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies Toronto 2010 Iter: Gateway to the Middle Ages and Renaissance Tel: 416/978–7074 Fax: 416/978–1668 Email: [email protected] Web: www.itergateway.org CRRS Publications, Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies Victoria University in the University of Toronto Toronto, Ontario M5S 1K7 Canada Tel: 416/585–4465 Fax: 416/585–4430 Email: [email protected] Web: www.crrs.ca © 2010 Iter Inc. & the Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies All Rights Reserved Printed in Canada Iter and the Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies gratefully acknowledge the generous sup- port of the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation toward the publication of this book. Iter and the Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies gratefully acknowledge the generous sup- port of James E. Rabil, in memory of Scottie W. Rabil, toward the publication of this book. Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Miani, Valeria Celinda : a tragedy / Valeria Miani ; edited and with an introduction by Valeria Finucci ; tranlated by Julia Kisacky ; annotated by Valeria Finucci & Julia Kisacky. (The other voice in early modern Europe : the Toronto series ; 8) Translation of the Italian play by the same title. Co-published by: Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies. Includes bibliographical references and index. Issued also in electronic format. Text in Italian with English translation on facing pages. ISBN 978–07727–2075–7 I. Finucci, Valeria II. Kisacky, Julia, 1965– III.
    [Show full text]
  • Sperone Speroni (1500-1588) and the Rebirth of Sophistry in the Italian Renaissance Call: H2020-MSCA-IF-2014 - Grant Number: 659644
    ASSEGNISTA : Teodoro Katinis TITOLO DEL PROGETTO DI RICERCA: Sperone Speroni (1500-1588) and the Rebirth of Sophistry in the Italian Renaissance Call: H2020-MSCA-IF-2014 - Grant number: 659644 PERIODO: era previsto un periodo di 24 mesi dal 01/09/2015 al 31/08/2017. NB: Il contratto è stato concluso prima, il 30/09/2016 dopo 13 mesi, essendo l’Assegnista stato assunto presso University of Ghent (Belgium) TUTOR: prof. Marco Sgarbi TIPOLOGIA DI ASSEGNO: MSCA-IF-2014 - Grant number: 659644 – CUP H72I15000550006 Breve presentazione del progetto: This two-year research project aimed to analyze the works of Sperone Speroni degli Alvarotti (Padua 1500–1588), his re-evaluation of ancient sophistic perspectives and his legacy in the early modern age. Speroni was one of the most important protagonists of the Renaissance debate on language and logic as well as civil and speculative philosophy. Educated as an Aristotelian, he eventually developed a distinctive philosophy and was the first to challenge Plato’s (327-447 BCE) condemnation of sophists. Despite the fact that Speroni was a central figure of Renaissance philosophy and literature in the vernacular, he is one of the most neglected authors in scholarly production. Furthermore, scholars have considered Speroni’s interest in ancient sophists as a marginal aspect of his philosophy and have disregarded the paramount role of the period’s vernacular writing on sophistry that began with his works and spread throughout sixteenth-century Italy. This project not only contributed to the research on vernacular Aristotelianism funded by an ERC Starting Grant 2013 (ARISTOTLE – 335949) and led by Marco Sgarbi but also filled the gap in international studies with a comprehensive analysis of the subject.
    [Show full text]
  • Sperone Speroni's Della Pace and the Problematic Definition of Concord
    176 ABSTRACT This paper contributes to the study Sperone of a mostly neglected work of the fifteenth-century Italian literature: Speroni’s Della Sperone Speroni’s collection of short treatises (“trattatelli”) published in the fifth volume of his Opera in 1740. Pace and the In particular, I focus on Della Pace (On Peace), probably a draft Problematic of a never-written longer treatise. I provide a transcription and English translation of the text as well as an Definition analysis of its content and linguistic aspects. The focus of Speroni’s text is the discussion of the meaning of Concord of ‘concord’, which goes beyond the classical definition and brings TEODORO KATINIS to an unconventional analysis of Ghent University, also its opposite terms: discord and Faculty of Arts and Philosophy, conflict. By reading Speroni’s writing, Department of Literary Studies, we discover his original thought Blandijnberg 2, Ghent, nourished by Machiavelli’s and pre- Belgium Socratic influences. This paper looks [email protected] at Speroni not only as an author involved in literary debates, but also as a philosopher with an original perspective to be discovered. INTERNATIONAL ISSUE NO. 8/2020 TEODORO KATINIS 177 SpERONE SpERoni’S DELLA PACE AND THE PROBLEMATIC DEFINITION OF CONCOrd That which scholars consider dis- Venetian area. He is mostly known for ruptive in the history of ideas depends his contribution to the so-called ‘quarrel not on only on the level of accessibil- of language’ in which he argued for the ity of primary sources but also on what use of the Italian vernacular as a lan- we decide to draw our attention to.
    [Show full text]
  • Poetologie Und Nation
    Poetologie und Nation Die politische Reflexion Joachim Du Bellays in der Deffence et Illustration de la Langue Françoyse Julia Roeder Romanische Philologie Poetologie und Nation: Die politische Reflexion Joachim Du Bellays in der Deffence et Illustration de la Langue Françoyse Inaugural-Dissertation zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades der Philosophischen Fakultät der Westfälischen Wilhelms-Universität zu Münster (Westf.) vorgelegt von Julia Roeder aus Münster 2011 Tag der mündlichen Prüfung: 30.11.2011 Dekan der Philosophischen Fakultät: Prof. Dr. Christian Pietsch Erstgutachter: Prof. Dr. Karin Westerwelle Zweitgutachter: Prof. Dr. Achim Hölter Julia Roeder Poetologie und Nation Wissenschaftliche Schriften der WWU Münster Reihe XII Band 7 Julia Roeder Poetologie und Nation Die politische Reflexion Joachim Du Bellays in der Deffence et Illustration de la Langue Françoyse Wissenschaftliche Schriften der WWU Münster herausgegeben von der Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Münster http://www.ulb.uni-muenster.de Bibliografische Information der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek: Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek verzeichnet diese Publikation in der Deutschen Nationalbibliografie; detaillierte bibliografische Daten sind im Internet über http://dnb.d-nb.de abrufbar. Dieses Buch steht gleichzeitig in einer elektronischen Version über den Publikations- und Archivierungsserver der WWU Münster zur Verfügung. http://www.ulb.uni-muenster.de/wissenschaftliche-schriften Julia Roeder „Poetologie und Nation. Die politische Reflexion Joachim Du Bellays in der Deffence
    [Show full text]
  • Sperone Speroni (1500-1588) and the Rebirth of Sophistry in the Italian Renaissance
    ACRONYM AND TITLE: SPERONI: Sperone Speroni (1500-1588) and the Rebirth of Sophistry in the Italian Renaissance FUNDING PROGRAMME: Horizon 2020 CALL: H2020-MSCA-IF-2014 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF-EF) – European Fellowship SCIENTIFIC FIELD: Social Science and Humanities HOST DEPARTMENT: DFBC - Department of Philosophy and Cultural Heritage SCIENTIFIC RESPONSIBLE: Prof. Marco Sgarbi FELLOW: Dott. Teodoro Katinis FINANCIAL DATA: Project total costs Overall funding assigned to UNIVE € 180.277 € 180.277 ABSTRACT: This two-year research project aims to analyze the works of Sperone Speroni degli Alvarotti (Padua 1500– 1588), his reevaluation of ancient sophistic perspectives and his legacy in the early modern age. Speroni was one of the most important protagonists of the Renaissance debate on language and logic as well as civil and speculative philosophy. Educated as an Aristotelian, he eventually developed a distinctive philosophy and was the first to challenge Plato’s (327-447 BCE) condemnation of sophists. Despite the fact that Speroni was a central figure of Renaissance philosophy and literature in the vernacular, he is one of the most neglected authors in scholarly production. Furthermore, scholars have considered Speroni’s interest in ancient sophists as a marginal aspect of his philosophy and have disregarded the paramount role of the period’s vernacular writing on sophistry that began with his works and spread throughout sixteenth-century Italy. This project will not only contribute to the research on vernacular Aristotelianism funded by an ERC Starting Grant 2013 (ARISTOTLE – 335949) and led by Marco Sgarbi but also fill the gap in international studies with a complete analysis of the subject.
    [Show full text]
  • Titian, ,A Singular Friend'
    Originalveröffentlichung in: Kunst und Humanismus. Festschrift für Gosbert Schüßler zum 60. Geburtstag, herausgegeben von Wolfgang Augustyn und Eckhard Leuschner, Dietmar Klinger Verlag, Passau 2007, S. 261-301 CHARLES DAVIS Titian, ,A singular friend‘ A beautiful, if somewhat mysterious portrait painted by Tiziano Vecellio has found its ,last‘ home in the new world, in far away San Francisco, in a place, that is, which de- rives its name from a Spanish novel describing a paradisiacal island called California (figs. 1, 2, 3). Titian’s authorship of the portrait, now belonging to the San Francisco Art Museums and presently housed at the Palace of the Legion of Honor, is testified to by the painter’s signature, and it has never been questioned since the portrait first re- ceived public notice, belatedly, in 1844, when it appeared in the collection of the Mar- quis of Lansdowne. Less spectacular than some of Titian’s best known portraits, the portrait now in California nonetheless belongs to his finest portrayals of the men of his time. Several identifications have been proposed for the sitter, but none advanced with particular conviction. Although the nameless portrait testifies eloquently to the exi- stence of a noble man at rest, whose existence it indeed preserves and continues, his worldly identity remains an unresolved point of interest.1 The San Francisco Art Museums’ ,Portrait of a Gentleman‘ bear’s Titian’s signa- · ture in the inscription which the sitter holds. It reads unequivocally: D Titiano Vecel- lio / Singolare Amico. In all publications the inscription has been read: Di Tiziano sin- golare amico.
    [Show full text]
  • Bartolomeo Maranta's 'Discourse' on Titian's Annunciation in Naples: Introduction1
    Bartolomeo Maranta’s ‘Discourse’ on Titian’s Annunciation in Naples: introduction1 Luba Freedman Figure 1 Titian, The Annunciation, c. 1562. Oil on canvas, 280 x 193.5 cm. Naples: Museo Nazionale di Capodimonte (on temporary loan). Scala/Ministero per i Beni e le Attività culturali/Art Resource. Overview The ‘Discourse’ on Titian’s Annunciation is the first known text of considerable length whose subject is a painting by a then-living artist.2 The only manuscript of 1 The author must acknowledge with gratitude the several scholars who contributed to this project: Barbara De Marco, Christiane J. Hessler, Peter Humfrey, Francesco S. Minervini, Angela M. Nuovo, Pietro D. Omodeo, Ulrich Pfisterer, Gavriel Shapiro, Graziella Travaglini, Raymond B. Waddington, Kathleen M. Ward and Richard Woodfield. 2 Angelo Borzelli, Bartolommeo Maranta. Difensore del Tiziano, Naples: Gennaro, 1902; Giuseppe Solimene, Un umanista venosino (Bartolomeo Maranta) giudica Tiziano, Naples: Società aspetti letterari, 1952; and Paola Barocchi, ed., Scritti d’arte del Cinquecento, Milan- Naples: Einaudi, 1971, 3 vols, 1:863-900. For the translation click here. Journal of Art Historiography Number 13 December 2015 Luba Freedman Bartolomeo Maranta’s ‘Discourse’ on Titian’s Annunciation in Naples: introduction this text is held in the Biblioteca Nazionale of Naples. The translated title is: ‘A Discourse of Bartolomeo Maranta to the most ill. Sig. Ferrante Carrafa, Marquis of Santo Lucido, on the subject of painting. In which the picture, made by Titian for the chapel of Sig. Cosmo Pinelli, is defended against some opposing comments made by some persons’.3 Maranta wrote the discourse to argue against groundless opinions about Titian’s Annunciation he overheard in the Pinelli chapel.
    [Show full text]
  • SILENCE and the FEMALE VOICE in the ORLANDO FURIOSO by Monica
    TOWSON UNIVERSITY OFFICE OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN THEIR OWN VOICES: SILENCE AND THE FEMALE VOICE IN THE ORLANDO FURIOSO by Monica L. Lynch A thesis Presented to the faculty of Towson University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in Humanities Towson University Towson, Maryland 21252 May 2016 Acknowledgements When I first met Ariosto, I knew immediately that I had found a text that would occupy me for a long time to come. I am deeply indebted to Dr. John C. McLucas for introducing me to him, for his guidance in organizing and focusing my argument on this vast topic, and for his encouragement to keep writing. His love of the text brought the 500-year-old poem to life for me. I must also thank Dr. Marlana Portolano without whose guidance through the thesis process I would have been lost. My gratitude must also go to Dr. H. George Hahn who many years ago encouraged me to begin work on my Master’s degree and who has graciously agreed to see me through to the end as a committee member. I am also thankful for the tutelage and guidance of committee members Dr. Christopher M. Cain and Dr. Rita Costa-Gomes whose expectations of excellence encouraged me to do my best work. iii Abstract In Their Own Voices: Silence and the Female Voice in the Orlando furioso Monica L. Lynch For women, the rediscovery of classical texts meant that the ideals of silence and chastity became more closely linked in Early Modern minds than they had been before.
    [Show full text]
  • Artikel Als PDF Herunterladen
    What happens to Aristotle in practice? Sperone Speroni’s Canace before the background of the Accademia degli Infiammati and Elevati Simona Oberto Alongside with the rise of interest in new philosophical, scientific, linguistic and litera- ry-poetic fields of knowledge Italy’s 16th century presents a peculiar cultural mass phenomenon implemented mainly by a socio-intellectual elite, which leads to the foun- ding of a very high number of academies. The available information on the approxi- mately 170 institutions of this period varies significantly,1 though written documents such as lectures, lessons, letters, treatises or dialogues of a single academy or testi- monies by other academies can not only contribute to the reconstruction of structural aspects and/or poetological dynamics concerning a particular academic gathering, but also delineate the knowledge on those, which were the most important contempo- rary institutions. Among the latter the Accademia degli Infiammati in Padua, one of the most impor- tant centers for the diffusion of Aristotelism, plays a decisive role. Unfortunately, the data on this benchmark for vernacular literature and for five further influential Cinque- cento-academies2 is still rather scarce, due to a lack of its sources and of the accounts 1 Cf. Maylender, Michele: Storia delle Accademie d’Italia Vol. I–V, Bologna: Forni 1976. 2 These academies are the Intronati (Siena), the Elevati (Padua), the Eterei (Padua), the Humidi (Flo- rence) and the Fiorentina (Florence).The Infiammati were influenced by the Sienese Intronati, which is testified by the academic structures, programs and the presence of former protagonists such as Alessandro Piccolomini; cf.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 Bibliografia Di Riferimento I. Bibliografia Primaria A) Edizioni
    Bibliografia di riferimento I. Bibliografia primaria a) Edizioni originali DU BELLAY, Jean, Adversus Jacobi Omphalii maledicta, pro rege Francorum christianissimo defensio, [Paris, Robert Estienne, 1544] ID., Defense pour le Roy de France treschrestien, a lencontre des injures & detractions de Jacques Omphalius, faicte nagueres en latin par ung serviteur du Roy, & maintenant traduicte en francois par Simon Brunel, Paris, Robert Estienne, 1544; ID., Oraison escripte suyvant l'intention du roy tres chrestien aux sérénissimes... seigneurs et à tous les estas du sainct Empire, assemblez en la ville de Spire, Paris, Robert Estienne, 1544; ID., Response à une épistre envoyée de Spire par ung secrétaire allemand à ung serviteur du Roy tres chrestien. Aultre épistre des choses faictes puis quatre ans en l'Europe, Paris, Robert Estienne, 1544; ID., Poemata, in Jean SALMON MACRIN, Salmonii Macrini Juliodunensis Odarum libri tres ad P. Castellanum Pontificem Mastisconum. Io. Bellaii amplissimi Poemata aliquot elegantissima ad eundem Matisconum Pontificem, Paris, Robert Estienne, 1546; DU BELLAY, Joachim, La Deffence et illustration de la Langue Françoyse, Paris, Arnoul l'Angelier, 1549 ; ID., L'Olive et quelques autres œuvres poeticques, Paris, Arnoul l'Angelier, 1549 ; ID., L'Olive augmentee depuis la premiere edition. La Musagnoeomachie & aultres œuvres poëtiques, Paris, G. Corrozet & A. l'Angelier, 1550 ; ID., Le quatriesme livre de l'Énéide traduict en vers françoys. La complaincte de Didon à Énée, prinse d'Ovide, autres oeuvres de l'invention du traducteur, par J. D. B. A., Paris, V. Sertenas, 1552 ; ID., Recueil de poésie présentée à... Madame Marguerite, Paris, G. Cavellat, 1553 ; ID., Divers jeux rustiques, et autres œuvres poétiques de Joachim Du Bellay, Paris, F.
    [Show full text]
  • What Persius Really Thought About Virgil, C. 1600
    International Journal of the Classical Tradition (2021) 28(2):139–158 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12138-020-00557-0 ARTICLE What Persius Really Thought about Virgil, c. 1600 Anna‑Maria Hartmann1 Published online: 28 January 2020 © The Author(s) 2020 I. Persius 1.97 on the Early Modern Stage In 1607, Lording Barry wrote a racy city comedy entitled Ram Alley, or Merry Tricks for the Children of the King’s Revels, a children’s company which occupied the Whitefriars Playhouse for a little more than a year from 1607–8.1 Ram Alley was central to the company’s repertory, which, as Mary Bly has shown in her spir- ited monograph Queer Virgins and Virgin Queans on the Early Modern Stage, was ‘strikingly abnormal’.2 One outstanding linguistic feature of their plays was the so-called Whitefriars pun. Five of the seven comedies specifcally written for this troupe showcase female leads who freely voice their desires with a degree of obscenity that is unusual for early modern comedic heroines. Because these charac- ters were played by boys, Bly argues, their phallic jests had a meta-theatrical efect that directed the audiences’ attention to the body of the actor: 1 Since 2000, a growing body of scholarship has discovered the critical potential of Ram Alley: M. Bly, Queer Virgins and Virgin Queans on the Early Modern Stage, Oxford, 2000; C. Cathcart, ‘Plural Author- ship, Attribution, and the Children of the King’s Revels’, Renaissance Forum, 4.2, 2000, pp. 1–36; id., ‘Authorship, Indebtedness, and the Children of the King’s Revels’, Studies in English Literature, 45.2, 2005, pp.
    [Show full text]