On the Edge of Truth and Honesty: Principles and Strategies of Fraud and Deceit in the Early Modern Period (Intersections, 2)

In the early modern period, deceit and fraud were common issues. Acutely aware of the ubiquity and multiplicity of simulation and dissimulation, people from this period made serious efforts to gain a better understanding of the phenomenon, trying to distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable, pleasant and unpleasant, wicked and virtuous forms of deceit, and seeking to unravel its principles, strategies, and functions. The twelve case-studies in this volume focus on the use of deceit by several groups of people in different spheres of life, as well as on its representation in literary and artistic genres, and its conceptualization in philosophical and rhetorical discourses. The studies testify to the rich variety of deceitful strategies applied by people from the early modern period, as well as to the subtlety and diversity of the conceptual frameworks they construed in order to grasp the many aspects of the elusive yet all-pervasive phenomenon of deceit. Contributors include: Daniel Acke, Jacques Bos, Wiep van Bunge, Evelien Chayes, Paul J.C.M. Franssen, Paul van Heck, Toon van Houdt, Alfons K.L. Thijs, Bert Timmermans, Johannes Trapman, Mark van Vaeck, Natascha Veldhorst, and Johan Verberckmoes. Word Histories, And Beyond : Towards A Conceptualization Of Fraud And Deceit In Early Modern Times / Toon Van Houdt -- Erasmus On Lying And Simulation / Johannes Trapman -- Cymbalum Politicorum, Consultor Dolosus : Two Dutch Academics On Niccolò Machiavelli / Paul Van Heck -- The Hidden Self Of The Hypocrite / Jacques Bos -- Dissimulation Et Secret Chez Vauvenargues / Daniel Acke -- Spinoza And The Idea Of Religious Imposture / Wiep Van Bunge -- Perceptions Of Deceit And Innovation In The Antwerp Textile Industry, Sixteenth And Seventeenth Century / Alfons K.l. Thijs -- The Seventeenth-century Antwerp Elite And Status Honor : The Presentation Of Self And The Manipulation Of Social Perception / Bert Timmermans -- Testing Or Tempting? : The Limits Of Permissible Deceit In Early Modern English Drama / Paul J.c.m. Franssen -- Tromper Les Plus Clair-voyans : The Counterfeit Of Precious Stones In The Work Of Rémy Belleau / Evelien Chayes -- 'taste The Fare And Chew It With Your Eyes' : A Painting By Pieter Pietersz And The Amusing Deceit In Sixteenth- And Seventeenth-century Dutch And Flemish Kitchen Scenes / Zoran Kwak -- A Singing Siren, Enchanting Men To Sleep : Musical Deceit In Dutch Renaissance Drama / Natascha Veldhorst -- Who Do Beggars Deceive? : Adriaen Van De Venne, Recreational Literature And The Pleasure Of Forging Texts / Marc Van Vaeck & Johan Verberckmoes. Edited By Toon Van Houdt ... [et Al.]. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 287-288) And Index. Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Table of Contents 6 List of Illustrations 8 Notes on the Editors of this Volume 12 List of Contributors 14 INTRODUCTION 16 Word Histories, and Beyond: Towards a Conceptualization of Fraud and Deceit in Early Modern Times 16 I. DISCOURSES 48 Erasmus on Lying and Simulation 48 Cymbalum Politicorum, Consultor Dolosus. Two Dutch Academics on Niccolò Machiavelli 62 The Hidden Self of the Hypocrite 82 Dissimulation et Secret chez Vauvenargues 102 Spinoza and the Idea of Religious Imposture 122 II. PRACTICES 144 Perceptions if Deceit and Innovation in the Antwerp Textile Industry (Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries) 144 The Seventeenth-Century Antwerp Elite and Status Honour. The Presentation of Self and the Manipulation of Social Perception 166 III. REPRESENTATIONS 184 Testing or Tempting? The Limits of Permissible Deceit in Early Modern English Drama 184 Tromper les Plus Clair-Voyans. The Counterfeit of Precious Stones in the Work of Rémy Belleau 200 ‘Taste the Fare and Chew it with Your Eyes’: A Painting by Pieter Pietersz and the Amusing Deceit in Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century Dutch and Flemish Kitchen Scenes 240 A Singing Siren, Enchanting Men to Sleep. Musical Deceit in Dutch Renaissance Drama 282 Who Do Beggars Deceive? Adriaen van de Venne, Recreational Literature and the Pleasure if Forging Texts 314 Index Nominum 334 "The twelve case-studies of this volume focus on the use of deceit by several groups of people in different spheres of life, as well as on its representation in literary and artistic genres, and its conceptualization in philosophical and rhetorical discourses. The studies testify to the rich variety of deceitful strategies applied by people from the Early Modern Period, as well as to the subtlety and diversity of the conceptual frameworks they construed in order to grasp the many aspects of the elusive yet all-pervasive phenomenon of deceit."--BOOK JACKET