An Anthology Of Seventeenth Century Fiction

Few readers today are aware of the vigorous prose experiments undertaken in the seventeenth century. This anthology presents a representative selection of that work, with examples from Aphra Benn, John Bunyan, William Congreve, Percy Herbert, and Thomas Dangerfield. Also included are MaryWroth's feminist romance Urania and Margaret Cavendish's female utopia The Blazing World , in print here for the first time since their original publication.

From the bestselling author of Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers comes a landmark work--the first of its kind from a major trade publisher. Ideal for women's studies, and gay and lesbian studies courses. In stores for the 25th anniversary of Stonewall.

In the past few years, discussion of fiction in all sorts of media has intensified. The prominence of literary critics has increased, the awarding of lucrative book prizes has become more publicized, and reports of the formation of reading groups have proliferated. Seventeenth-Century Fiction: Text & Transmission responds to the present interest in the novel by offering a fresh approach to the history of early modern fiction that shifts away from the outmoded 'rise-of-the-novel' perspective and reaches beyond the boundaries of a single national literature. Starting from the literary text and looking outwards, this volume focuses on the changes in prose forms and their usage at a critical point in the evolution of modern fiction, and comes to grips with the instabilities of the novel and novella during this period. It explores the nature of seventeenth-century fiction and examines how authors fused fictional and non-fictional materials to create new, hybrid genres. Furthermore, it takes into consideration the cultural interchange between different geographical regions and languages (English, French, Spanish, Italian, Neo-Latin), and uncovers the deeper roots of seventeenth-century literary innovation, by casting light on the Continental influences on the formation of the English novel and on the role played by women's writings at the time. This landmark volume not only contributes to a more comprehensive history of the novel but promotes an authentic appreciation of early modern fiction.

This is the first book-length history of the range of seventeenth-century English prose writing. Roger Pooley's study begins with narrative, ranging from the fiction of Bunyan and Aphra Behn to the biographical and autobiographical work of Aubrey and Pepys. Further sections consider religious prose from the hugely influential Authorised Version to Donne's sermons, the political writing of figures as diverse as Milton, Hobbes, Locke and Marvell, cornucopian texts and the writings of the new scientists from Bacon to Newton. At a time when the boundaries of the `canon' are being increasingly revised, this is not only a major survey of a series of great works of literature, but also a fascinating social history and a guide to understanding the literature of the period as a whole.

The first comprehensive anthology of seventeenth-century English women writers

A multi-authored study of the emergence and transmission of fictional writing in in Europe in the 17th century, with the aim of improving understanding of the origins of the novel.