Witnessing to the faith
Absolutism and the conscience in John Donne's England
By Shanyn Altman
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- Format: Hardcover
- Pages: 200
- Price: £85.00
- Published Date: July 2023
- Series: Politics, Culture and Society in Early Modern Britain
Description
This study utilises John Donne's works concerning the Jacobean Settlement as a contextualised case study to examine a seriously pressing issue in contemporary society: the issue of Catholic loyalism post-1603 and the disputes that thistopic sparked over the matter of conformity.Altman examines Donne's polemic in line with the vast expanse of literature relating to the pamphlet war and situates Donne's arguments within a strong contemporary tradition of conformist thought. Within this context, the study argues that Donne articulated a theory of royal absolutism that would have struck home with many contemporaries who, whether Catholic or not, were faced with a regime determined to bring them into conformity. It further contends that the religio-political standpoint represented by Donne was not only fairly obvious to the English state but was also widely accepted by it.
Reviews
'Witnessing to the Faith offers a fresh perspective on how Donne studies can move beyond debates about conversion and absolutism by resisting biographical interpretations and paying increased attention to the concerns of Catholics. Altman's case is made in clear prose with abundant use of both primary and secondary source materials, including references to many of Donne's other writings, including poetry, prose letters, and sermons.'
Journal of British Studies
Contents
Introduction: Situating John Donne within post-Reformation studies
1 Absolutism and the moderation of religion
2 Resistance theory, tyrannicide and the trope of the 'Evil Jesuit'
3 Volunteerism and self- sovereignty in discourses on martyrdom
Conclusion: John Donne studies and the "Revisionist" paradigm
Index
Author
Shanyn Altman is a Teaching Fellow in English Literature at the University of Leicester