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Reading for Moral and Spiritual Acuity in a Selection of Writings by King James VI and I

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Reading for Moral and Spiritual Acuity in a Selection of Writings by King James VI and I Sargent, Gillian (2013) "Happy are they that read and understand" reading for moral and spiritual acuity in a selection of writings by King James VI and I. PhD thesis. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/4906/ Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Glasgow Theses Service http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] “Happy are they that read and understand” Reading for Moral and Spiritual Acuity in a Selection of Writings by King James VI and I Gillian Sargent In fulfilment of the degree of Ph.D. Scottish Literature School of Critical Studies College of Arts University of Glasgow © Gillian Sargent 2013 2 Abstract This thesis attempts to offer a consideration of some of the many questions raised by the significant literary revisionism focussed on the writing of King James VI and I published during the past decade (such as Bawcutt 2001, van Heijnsbergen and Royan 2002, Fischlin and Fortier 2002, Rickard 2007, and McGinley and Royan 2010). Notwithstanding the importance of previous scholarship for opening up the field of study on King James VI and I and his authorial corpus, there nevertheless remain imperative questions to be asked, not least in relation to the cultural function of a man who was in the course of his lifetime as revered an intellect as he was an antagonistic politician and monarch. If, as Bawcutt (2001) identified, the previously prevalent critical idiom of the ‘Castalian band’ is nothing more than a retrospective sobriquet for a grouping of writers who clearly did not define themselves by those terms, then how ought we to regard those – including James himself – previously encompassed by the ‘Castalian’ epithet? Recent scholarship in the field has started to bridge the gap between the now-outmoded narratives of ‘Castalian’ coteries on the one hand, and the study of individual writers on the other. Whilst scholarship has also sought to re-evaluate James’s portfolio in terms of individual works or indeed in terms of how his authority as king impacted or even forged his authorial identity, questions still remain about James’s cultural sovereignty. How exactly should we define the cultural remit of the man once regarded as the figurehead of the ‘Castalian band’? When we dissolve the ‘Castalian band’ and transfer critical attention away from the courtly puy towards the site of individual writers and their individual contexts, what cultural role is left for King James and his own writing to play? If the Castalians are to be ‘dis-banded’, then where do we place the ‘poetic manifesto’ (‘Reulis and Cautelis’), and his Essayes more specifically, in the literary trajectory of late sixteenth-century Scotland? Finally, moving beyond 1603, is it possible to locate a thematic or ideological strand proceeding from the outset of James’s literary career in Edinburgh to its end in London in 3 1625 which could bind an ostensibly diverse literary portfolio together in a more coherent whole? These questions represent the starting point, as well as providing a framework, for the present study which reads a selection of James’s literary writings in order to explore his cultural function in more depth. In order to analyse the role and position of James’s writing in this ‘critically revised’ cultural context, the ensuing thesis attempts to offer a theoretical repositioning of James not as a ‘writer’ per se, but rather as a ‘reader’ who feels compelled to then write about his reading. When the critical kaleidoscope is altered thus, what becomes visible is the culturally and politically central function of reading as a means of securing enduement with heightened moral authority in a Christian humanist context. By adopting the tutelary position as an author, the king opens up his ideas to the reader, guiding them through the perils and pitfalls of a detached approach to writing in which poets write for the cause célèbre or monetary lucre rather than for heightened spiritual gain. James shows the able and willing reader (arguably those reasonably well acquainted with poetic endeavour and scripture) of his literature just how to transform bookish scriptural learning into scripturally-informed writing. There are necessarily limits to what this thesis can achieve in the given space and time, and it cannot therefore admit to being exhaustive in scope. Within its five chapters, critical focus falls on three major literary publications within James’s literary oeuvre; The Essayes of a Prentise in the Divine Arte of Poesie (1584), James’s ‘royal gift’ to his son, the Basilikon Doron (1596), and finally James’s prose magnum opus, The Workes of 1616. In presenting these three texts (from the beginning, middle and later years of James’s career) for scrutiny it is hoped to show two things: firstly, that in his ‘prentise’ piece of 1584, James made a conscious decision to embed within his Essayes a clear-cut literary agenda which was predicated on shaping a body of readers (in his native land and beyond) who might eventually be viewed in terms comparable to the king in both reading ability and religio-political interests; and, secondly, it is hoped to show that continuity and 4 coherence does exist within a corpus of writing which has generally been viewed as generically diverse and thematically miscellaneous. It is the contention of this thesis that by paying closer attention to Basilikon Doron and The Workes and to how such texts were informed by James’s approach to reading, it is possible to read in James’s writing a continual consolidation of the agenda set out in his first publication. Even as James’s politics became more tapered, opportunistic and divisive, his cultural insistence on the primacy of God’s word (as outlined in 1584) continued to dominate his literary endeavour. The fundamental purpose of this thesis is, therefore, to define what James’s readerly objectives were, and how these were shaped and moulded from his adolescene to his later years. Once defined, this ‘schema’ of reading objectives will be applied to a reading of James’s later works. In so doing, it is hoped that it will be possible to chart the evolution of the king’s outlook on practices of reading over a prolonged period of time. Although the focus will remain firmly on the literature of James VI and I, apposite discussion of other writers and readers who can either be seen to influence or embody the cultural directives of the Scottish monarch will also take place. To this end, three short vignettes are included at various junctures throughout this thesis. The first is an analysis in Chapter Two of the Young Copybook, a carefully maintained inventory of the holdings of the royal library from 1573 to 1583, the second is a reading of Thomas Hudson’s Judtih in Chapter Three, the third an analysis of William Alexander’s Anacrisis in Chapter Six. These will serve as a complement to the chapters on Essayes, Basilikon, and The Workes. 5 Acknowledgements I would like to extend my gratitude towards the Arts and Humanities Research Council for funding this doctoral research project. I would likewise wish to thank those members of staff within the Department of Scottish Literature at the University of Glasgow who helped me secure such generous funding back in 2009. The department has often felt like a home- from-home, and I have thoroughly enjoyed each one of the ten years spent studying in 7 University Gardens. In particular, sincerest thanks go to my second supervisor, Dr Kirsteen McCue, and also equally to Dr Rhona Brown, for their supportive ears and strong guidance, with the PhD and more. I would also like to thank my dear friend, Dr Linden Bicket, for being there with tea and sympathy when the going got tough. I will be forever indebted to the rigorous feedback, tireless pastoral support, insight, patience, academic challenge and good humour offered to me over the course of the last five years by my primary supervisor, Dr Theo van Heijnsbergen. Without Dr van Heijnsbergen’s guidance, and his belief in what I have to say, this PhD would never have come to fruition. I am sincerely grateful to my examiners, Dr Sarah Dunnigan and Dr Robert Maslen, for taking the time to read this thesis, and for preparing such rigorous feedback. To my parents, my brother, family and friends – the debt of gratitude I have for you is truly insurmountable. I can only hope that, one day, I might begin to repay a little of your enduring faith, unconditional support and love. This thesis is for my best friends, Elizabeth and Cameron, who have given me the resilience and determination to complete this project. They have been, and continue to be, my guiding lights: I owe them the world and more. ‘Wee Jamie eh? Born tae be King James the Saxt o’Scotland. Some day. If ye live sae lang [...] An awfy big name for sicc a wee rid-faced scrawny shilpit wee scrap o’ humanity, eh? Dinna greet. Aye wha’s the lucky laddie tae have made it this faur, eh?’ (La Corbie, Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off) 6 Table of Contents Abstract pp.
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