M a K in G a N D U N M a K in Gin Early Modern English Drama
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Porter MAKING AND Chloe Porter UNMAKING IN EARLY MODERN ENGLISH DRAMA Why are early modern English dramatists preoccupied with unfinished processes of ‘making’ and ‘unmaking’? And what did ‘finished’ or ‘incomplete’ mean for spectators of plays and visual works in this period? Making and unmaking in early IN EARLY MODERN ENGLISH DRAMA IN EARLY UNMAKING AND MAKING modern English drama is about the prevalence and significance of visual things that are ‘under construction’ in early modern plays. Contributing to challenges to the well-worn narrative of ‘iconophobic’ early modern English culture, it explores the drama as a part of a lively post-Reformation visual world. Interrogating the centrality of concepts of ‘fragmentation’ and ‘wholeness’ in critical approaches to this period, it opens up new interpretations of the place of aesthetic form in early modern culture. An interdisciplinary study, this book argues that the idea of ‘finish’ had transgressive associations in the early modern imagination. It centres on the depiction of incomplete visual practices in works by playwrights including Shakespeare, John Lyly, and Robert Greene. The first book of its kind to connect dramatists’ attitudes to the visual with questions of materiality, Making and Unmaking in Early Modern English Drama draws on a rich range of illustrated examples. Plays are discussed alongside contexts and themes, including iconoclasm, painting, sculpture, clothing and jewellery, automata, and invisibility. Asking what it meant for Shakespeare and his contemporaries to ‘begin’ or ‘end’ a literary or visual work, this book is invaluable for scholars and students of early modern English literature, drama, visual culture, material culture, theatre history, history and aesthetics. Chloe Porter is Lecturer in English Literature 1500–1700 at the University of Sussex MAKING AND UNMAKING Cover image: Follower of Quinten Massys, Saint Luke Painting the Virgin ISBN 978-0-7190-8497-3 and Child (1520?). By kind permission IN EARLY MODERN of the National Gallery, London Cover design: riverdesign.co.uk ENGLISH DRAMA 9 780719 084973 Spectators, aesthetics www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk and incompletion Making and unmaking in early modern English drama Making and unmaking in early modern English drama Spectators, aesthetics and incompletion Chloe PortEr Manchester University Press Manchester and New York distributed in the United States exclusively by PalgravE MacmillaN Copyright © Chloe Porter 2013 the right of Chloe Porter to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents act 1988. Published by Manchester University Press oxford road, Manchester M13 9Nr, UK and room 400, 175 Fifth avenue, New York, NY 10010, USa www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk Distributed in the United States exclusively by Palgrave Macmillan, 175 Fifth avenue, New York, NY 10010, USa Distributed in Canada exclusively by UBC Press, University of British Columbia, 2029 West Mall, vancouver, BC, Canada v6t 1Z2 British library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data a catalogue record for this book is available from the British library library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data applied for iSBN 978 0 7190 8497 3 hardback First published 2013 the publisher has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of Urls for any external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. typeset by Servis Filmsetting ltd, Stockport, Cheshire Printed in great Britain by tJ international ltd, Padstow Contents list of figures page vii acknowledgements ix abbreviations x introduction: speaking pictures? 1 1 Early modern English drama and visual culture 18 inTheWinter’s image unknowable the Paulina’: of keeping the in‘ 2 Tale 64 3 ‘But begun for others to end’: the ends of incompletion 98 FriarBacon in destruction divine broken’: lies head brazen the‘ 4 andFriarBungay 129 TheTwoMerryMilkmaids 155 in erasure and invisibility unseen: going 5 Conclusion: behind the screen 183 Bibliography 202 index 227 Figures 1 Rowland Buckett, detail of painted decoration of John haan’s chamber organ at hatfield house (1611–12) (by courtesy of hatfield house/heritage house group) page 19 TheMysteryesofNature,andArt:Conteinedinfoureseverall Bate, John 2 Tretises,ThefirstofWaterworkesthesecondofFyerworkes,Thethirdof Drawing,Colouring,Painting,andEngraving,Thefourthofdivers Experiments,aswelServiceableasdelightful:partlyCollected,andpartly page title (1634), oftheAuthorsPeculiarPractice,andInvention,byJ.B (by kind permission of the Folger Shakespeare library) 21 3 Ely Cathedral – the lady Chapel (by kind permission of the photographer, Evelyn Simak. Creative Commons licence) 26 4 St Nicholas’ church, Salthouse, Norfolk - rood screen panels (by kind permission of the photographer, John Salmon. Creative Commons licence) 27 5 Jacket, possibly remade for masquing (1600–20). (© victoria and albert Museum, london) 29 6 Shirt ensemble (1600–1700) (© Museum of london) 30 7 The Mildmay monument, attr. Maximilian Colt (1621), Church of St leonard, apethorpe, England (photograph author’s own, taken 20 June 2010) 46 8 Detail of sculpture of grace, lady Mildmay, the Mildmay monument, attr. Maximilian Colt (1621), Church of St leonard, apethorpe, England (photograph author’s own, taken 20 June 2010) 46 9 Painted glass window, attr. Baptista Sutton (1621), Church of St leonard, apethorpe, England (photograph author’s own, taken 20 June 2010) 47 TheGreatBook live’, to Dye life: mans of miser ‘the Thomas Trevilian, 10 (1616), fol. 371r (by kind permission of the Wormsley Library, England) 50 TheGreat dye’, to live life: mans of misery ‘the trevilian, Thomas 11 Book (1616), fol. 375r (by kind permission of the Wormsley library, England) 51 Listoffigures viii Trevelyon day’, sixth world: the of ‘Creation trevilian, Thomas 12 of permission kind (by 39v fol. (1608) miscellany[manuscript],1608 the Folger Shakespeare library) 69 .sig (1568) TheHolieBible Eve’, of creation ‘the showing Woodcut 13 a3r (by kind permission of the huntington library, San Marino) 70 author’s (photograph England Penrith, (1656), TheCountessPillar 14 own, taken 24 March 2010) 74 oil (1646), TheGreatPictureTriptych Belcamp, van to Jan Attributed 15 on canvas. Centre panel: 254 3 254 cm. Side panels: 254 3 119.38 cm (© abbot hall art gallery Courtesy of the lakeland arts trust) 75 16 Conrad goltzius, Pride (1600), view with flap down. rosenwald Collection (courtesy National gallery of art, Washington) 89 17 Conrad Goltzius, Pride (1600), view with flap raised. Rosenwald Collection (courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington) 90 ,(?(1555 Thefyrstbokeoftheintroductionofknowledge Boorde, Andrew 18 sig. a3v. Woodcut (by kind permission of the huntington library, San Marino) 109 19 Jost amman, ‘an empty shield with a male figure holding a lute; Anthologia Posthius, Johann to illustration right’; at standing Gnomica (Frankfurt: rab for Feyerabend, 1579) (by kind permission of the British Museum, london) 112 SaintLukePaintingtheVirginandChild Massys, Quinten of Follower 20 (1520?). oil on oak. 113.7 3 34.9 cm (by kind permission of the National gallery, london) 117 .panel on oil (1520–25). SaintLukePaintingtheVirgin gossaert, Jan 21 110.5 3 83.5 cm (by kind permission of the Kunsthistorisches Museum, vienna) 118 3 130 (1570–71). SaintLukePaintingtheMadonna vasari, Giorgio 22 180cm Florence, Church of Santissima annunziata (© 2013. Photo Scala, Florence) 119 23 Ceiling panel from Dean house, Edinburgh, showing St luke (1605–27). 1070 mm h 3 750 mm W 3 40 mm th. Wood, painted. C. K. Sharpe Collection (© National Museums Scotland) 120 permission kind (by 1 p. (1612), MinervaBritanna Peacham, Henry 24 of the huntington library, San Marino) 132 kind (by page title (1612), MinervaBritanna Peacham, Henry 25 permission of the huntington library, San Marino) 133 permission kind (by 24 p. (1612), MinervaBritanna Peacham, Henry 26 of the huntington library, San Marino) 143 27 Signet ring (1600–50), © victoria and albert Museum, london 161 permission kind (by 193 p. (1612), MinervaBritanna Peacham, Henry 28 of the huntington library, San Marino) 193 acknowledgements Many people have helped me in the making of this book. My first thanks are to Leah Scragg, Suzanne B. Butters and Naomi Baker. Their long- standing sup- port and enthusiasm for my work made it possible for me to write this book. i am also extremely grateful to Catherine Richardson, Jerome De Groot and Jacqueline Pearson for their invaluable advice in the early stages of planning and writing the book. I am deeply indebted to the anonymous readers who looked at the initial book proposal, and especially to the reader who offered incisive, rigorous and detailed comments on an earlier draft of the manuscript. Huge thanks to Naomi Baker, Paul Harvey and Charlie Porter for reading and com- menting on the manuscript as it neared completion. I’m also very grateful to a number of friends and colleagues including Carolyn Broomhead, Hannah Coles, hannah Crawforth, Andrew Frayn, Florence Grant, Gavin Grindon, Margaret harvey, andy Kesson, Sonia Massai, lucy Munro, gordon McMullan, ann thompson and J. T. Welsch. In the very late stages of writing this book I joined the University of Sussex, and would like to thank Matthew Dimmock, Andrew hadfield, Margaret Healy and Tom Healy for their help and support. Thank you also to Manchester University Press for seeing the book to publication. My greatest thanks are to my family: Sarah, Sophie, Charlie and especially my parents. My mum and dad have supported my research in every way possible, and I have loved talking about ‘making and unmaking’ with them. Finally, much love and thanks to Paul. abbreviations http://eebo.chadwyck.com EEBO EarlyEnglishBooksOnline.