ENGL4390: Topics in Renaissance Lit (64193)

Jacobson, Miriam

TR 2 :20 PM

Park Hall 145

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Renaissance Literature and the Senses: This course will examine early modern poetry, drama, prose, and art from the perspective of the five senses (touch, sound, sight, taste, and smell), in order to understand both the history of perception (how did the senses figure in early modern culture and what role did they play in how people understood and interpreted meaning) and understanding in early modern Britain, as well as explore topics in contemporary sensory history: what did early modern London actually smell and taste like? We might bake some very old recipes and concoct some tinctures and perfumes based on our readings and research. Writers include, but are not limited to: Margaret Cavendish, John Donne, Hester Pulter, Ben Jonson, Shakespeare, Andrew Marvell, George Herbert, Francis Bacon, and Renaissance travel narratives, atlases, recipe books, medical treatises, and herbals.

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