Courteous Exchanges
Spenser's and Shakespeare's Gentle Dialogues with Readers and Audiences
Will be published approx. on 20. January 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
288 pages
978-1-5261-9548-7 (ISBN)
Description
Courteous Exchanges explores the significant overlap between Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queene and Shakespeare's plays, showing how both facilitate the critique of Renaissance aristocratic identity. Moving from a consideration of Castiglione's Book of the Courtier as a text that encouraged reader engagement, the book offers new readings of Shakespeare's plays in conjunction with Spenser. It pairs Love's Labour's Lost, Much Ado About Nothing, The Merchant of Venice, and The Winter's Tale with The Faerie Queene in order to explore how topics such as education, gender, religion, race, and aristocratic identity are offered up to reader and audience interpretation. -- .
Reviews / Votes
'Courteous exchanges is a needed addition to not only Spenser studies and Shakespeare studies but also the study of courtly rhetoric and performance.'-John Garrison, Renaissance and Reformation / Renaissance et Reforme
'A number of critical conversations ought to change in response to Courteous exchanges.'
-Vincent Mennella, Spenser Review -- .
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Manchester
United Kingdom
Target group
Adult education
Illustrations
0 illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 16 mm
Weight
368 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5261-9548-7 (9781526195487)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Patricia Wareh is professor of English at Union College -- .
Content
Introduction: Courteous exchanges: Spenser's and Shakespeare's gentle dialogues with readers and audiences
1 Imprinting and performance in Castiglione's Book of the Courtier
2 Playing by the rules? Pedagogies of pleasure and inset audiences in Spenser's Faerie Queene and Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost
3 Honorable action upstaged by theatrical wordplay in The Faerie Queene and Much Ado About Nothing
4 Courteous competitions: Blood, gold, and outward shows in Nennio, Spenser's Book of Courtesy, and The Merchant of Venice
5 Literary mirrors of aristocratic performance: Readers and audiences of The Faerie Queene and The Winter's Tale
Conclusion: Courteous farewells in Spenser and Shakespeare
Index -- .
1 Imprinting and performance in Castiglione's Book of the Courtier
2 Playing by the rules? Pedagogies of pleasure and inset audiences in Spenser's Faerie Queene and Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost
3 Honorable action upstaged by theatrical wordplay in The Faerie Queene and Much Ado About Nothing
4 Courteous competitions: Blood, gold, and outward shows in Nennio, Spenser's Book of Courtesy, and The Merchant of Venice
5 Literary mirrors of aristocratic performance: Readers and audiences of The Faerie Queene and The Winter's Tale
Conclusion: Courteous farewells in Spenser and Shakespeare
Index -- .