Synopses & Reviews
The Oxford History of Classical Reception (
OHCREL), of which the present volume is the first to appear, is designed to offer a comprehensive investigation of the numerous and diverse ways in which literary texts of the classical world have been responded to and refashioned by English writers. Covering the full range of English literature from the early Middle Ages to the present day,
OHCREL both synthesizes existing scholarship and presents cutting-edge new research, employing an international team of expert contributors for each of the volumes.
OHCREL endeavours to interrogate, rather than inertly reiterate, conventional assumptions about literary 'periods', the processes of canon-formation, and the relations between literary and non-literary discourse. It conceives of 'reception' as a complex process of dialogic exchange and, rather than offering large cultural generalizations, it engages in close critical analysis of literary texts. It explores in detail the ways in which English writers' engagement with classical literature casts as much light on the classical originals as it does on the English writers' own cultural context.
When completed, this 5-volume history will be one of the largest, and potentially most important projects, in the field of classical reception ever undertaken. This third volume covers the years 1660-1790.
About the Author
David Hopkins is Emeritus Professor of English Literature and Senior Research Fellow at the University of Bristol. His teaching and research interests have largely been focused on English poetry and literary criticism of the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (especially Milton, Cowley, Dryden, Pope, and Johnson) and on English/Classical literary relations.
Charles Martindale is Professor of Latin and Dean of Arts at the University of Bristol. His research interests are wide-ranging, with a particular commitment to cross-disciplinary research. He is interested in Latin poetry (particularly Catullus, Virgil, Horace, Ovid, Lucan) and its reception, especially in English literature.
Table of Contents
Preface List of Contributors
1. Introduction, David Hopkins and Charles Martindale
2. The Place of Classics in Education and Publishing, Penelope Wilson
3. Milton s Classicism, Charles Martindale
4. Dryden s Classicism, Tom Mason
5. Latin Epic, Paul Davis
6. Homer, David Hopkins
7. Ovid, David Hopkins
8. Satire and Epigram, Dan Hooley
9. Horatianiasm, Robin Sowerby
10. Georgic and Pastoral, Juan Christian Pellicer
11. Burlesque and Mock Epic, Fred Parker
12. Literary Criticism, Philip Smallwood
13. Didactic and Scientific Poetry, Martin Priestman
14. The epistolary Tradition, Bruce Redford
15. The Classics and Eighteenth-Century Theatre, Malcolm Kelsall
16. The Fabular Tradition, Jayne Lewis
17. Women Writers and the Classics, Penelope Wilson
18. Lyric and Elegy, David Fairer
19. The Classics in the English Novel, Henry Power
20. The Ancient Historians in England, Philip Hicks
21. Discursive and Philosophical Prose, Adam Potkay
22. Samuel Johnson's Classicism, Freya Johnston
Bibliography Victoria Moul
Index