Week 22
John Donne (1572-1631)
The life and work of John Donne is one of the most illuminating sources for understanding the transition in the English world as the English experienced the end of the long reign of Elizabeth I and the beginning of the Stuart era. It was a new world both exciting and frightening. Many Englishmen had never known another monarch other than Good Queen Bess. People looked to the Stuarts for a new beginning with both anticipation and fear.
LECTURE NOTES:
At the right you will will find a link to a one-page Chronology for the Seventeenth Century, which will be useful for the whole quarter.
And also a copy of one of John Donne's most famous works, "An Anatomie of the World" with meditations on the state of England at this moment when the old world of Elizabeth is passing and a new unknown world is ahead.
BRING YOUR COPY OF JOHN DONNE'S POETRY TO CLASS THIS WEEK SO WE CAN READ IT.
REQUIRED READING:
RECOMMENDED READING:
In 1603, the long reign of Elizabeth I came to an end and a new king brought a new dynasty to the English throne. The moment was filled with excitement and the promise of progress in a new century with new freedoms in a more open atmosphere than the controlled society dominated by the grand old queen. There is a new book on the last years of Elizabeth and the coming to the throne of James:
After Elizabeth: The Rise of James of Scotland and the Struggle for the Throne of England,
Ballantine Books; Reprint edition (January 30, 2007),
ISBN 0345450469