The Italian World of English Renaissance Drama

Cultural Exchange and Intertextuality

It is widely accepted that English Renaissance drama owes its extraordinary richness and variety to the blending of elements originating from the medieval heritage and classical and Italian dramatic traditions. This grafting of the "Italian world" onto the English Renaissance goes far beyond the conventional research of the literary sources. The articles in this collection explore English Renaissance drama through new and challenging aspects of influence and through investigations into classical and Italian theater. The volume moves from early Elizabethan to late Jacobean drama. The area of research ranges from New Classical Comedy to commedia erudita, from the Renaissance theory of tragedy and tragicomedy to the birth of pastoral drama and beyond.

Much attention has been devoted to the impact of Machiavelli's political works,
their impact on English politics as well as English literature, and Mario Praz's
long essay, "Machiavelli and the Elizabethans," is still useful as a critical survey.1
The influence of Machiavelli's literary work outside Italy has also been thoroughly
investigated. Machiavelli's comedy The Mandragola has received ample
attention, as have his Clizia, the Dialogue on Language, and even The Golden
Ass. However, ...