In this article, Ong reviews literature of Renaissance scholars.\u00a0 In the first part of this seven-part essay, Ong writes about the early English Renaissance, and in the second, he writes about Spenser and two “noteworthy” studies of Spenser’s work.\u00a0 The third section of the article delves into other non-dramatic poetry, which is followed by remarks on scholarly work being done on Milton.\u00a0 Next, Ong examines “Later Prose Works and Writers” and writing about criticism and literary theory.\u00a0 Finally, Ong explores the interpretation of literary history, which includes mention of Marshall McLuhan’s “The Gutenberg Galaxy.”<\/p>\n
Ong begins this essay by exploring the background of the early English Renaissance.\u00a0 He notes the unusual amount of attention given to the works of Thomas More and comments that More’s works have never been examined with as much precision as they are now.\u00a0 The next section looks at two studies, A Preface to The Faerie Queen<\/span><\/i> by Graham Hough and William Nelson’s The Poetry of Edmund Spenser.\u00a0 <\/i>In A Preface to The Faerie Queen<\/span><\/i>, Hough uses Spenser’s idea of a dream, which is about epic form rather than about chivalry or the national scene, as his basic structure.\u00a0 In The Poetry of Edmund Spenser<\/i>, Nelson examines Spenser’s own poetic development and shows interest in structure as determined by specific themes not consciously controlled by Spenser.<\/p>\n Ong’s third section looks into non-dramatic poetry and the importance of literary relationships between England, France, and the Low Countries.\u00a0 In the next section, Ong writes about the editing to Milton’s work being done at Yale, and he also writes about the many works that have been influenced by Milton’s style.\u00a0 This is followed by a discussion of Joan Webber’s Contrary Music:\u00a0 The Prose Style of John Donne<\/i>.\u00a0 Ong points out that Webber examines Donne’s style and uses distinctions between Ciceronian and Senecan to show how Donne uses a mix of both of these styles rather than limiting himself to one or the other.\u00a0 Ong continues by writing about Joel Spingarn’s A History of Literary Criticism in the Renaissance<\/i>.\u00a0 Ong believes this book is a pioneering achievement, yet is also the reason for the lack of originality in Renaissance writing.<\/p>\n Finally, Ong delves into Marshall McLuhan’s The Gutenberg Galaxy<\/i> (another essay by Ong which looks into McLuhan’s work is “McLuhan as Teacher”<\/a>).\u00a0 Ong points out that although The Gutenberg Galaxy <\/i>has a “mosaic” quality, there are indications that Renaissance writings are central to its purpose.\u00a0 Ong concludes with one major question to be answered by readers:\u00a0 Where has good Renaissance writing been and where is it going?<\/p>\n Jon C. Lippert In this article, Ong reviews literature of Renaissance scholars.\u00a0 In the first part of this seven-part essay, Ong writes about the early English Renaissance, and in the second, he writes about Spenser and two “noteworthy” studies of Spenser’s work.\u00a0 The third section of the article delves into other non-dramatic poetry, which is followed by remarks … Continue reading Annotation: Recent Studies in the English Renaissance<\/span>
\nUniversity of Dayton<\/p>\n
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