The Poetry of Immanence : Sacrament in Donne and Herbert

Turning an idea into a book is an arduous task made worthwhile by the discovery that my otherwise peculiar interests are supported by a dedicated community of scholars. Heather Ross and William Halewood listened patiently as I struggled through my earliest encounters with the poetry of immanence, and 1 am grateful to Michael Dixon and David Galbraith for their challenging questions and advice as the project began to take shape. Patricia Vicari has been throughout a mentor, valued colleague, and friend whose enthusiasm has helped in good measure to sustain my own. Michael Schoenfeldt, Nancy Lindheim, and Alexandra Johnston read drafts of the manuscript at various stages, offering both valuable suggestions and encouragement. Ray Siemens, David Shore, Michael Allen, and Richard Todd read earlier versions of chapters 4 and 5 and contributed generously to what finally emerged. For extensive and thoughtful commentary on what became chapter 3, I am indebted to Daniel Doerksen and Christopher Hodgkins. I would like also to thank Annabel Patterson and Jeanne Sharni for reading a final draft of the same and for reminding me, toiling in the editorial slough of despond, why we do what we do. Barbara Porter and Miriam Skey skilfully piloted the book through the Press. My deepest gratitude I owe to Eva, whose generosity and wisdom are inestimable.

In this extensive study of two of the most celebrated seventeenth-century religious poets, Robert Whalen examines the role of sacrament in the formation of early modern religious subjectivity. For John Donne and George Herbert, sacramental topoi became powerful conceptual tools with which to explore both the intersection of spiritual and material aspects of human experience and their competing claims to Christianity. Whalen's argument builds upon his central idea of 'sacramental Puritanism,' or the effort to cultivate a Calvinist sense of interiority through a fully ceremonial apparatus, and thereby to reconcile the potentially disparate imperatives of sacrament and devotion.

Unique in its combination of current historiography and informed analysis, its attention to the sacramental features of Donne's 'secular' lyrics, and its advancement of sacramental thought as an important element of Renaissance English culture, The Poetry of Immanence illuminates a crucial dimension of the work of two major Stuart writers. In his comprehensive critical readings, Whalen offers a substantial contribution to the increasing study of religious themes and devotion in the literature of the early modern period.

"In this extensive study of two of the most celebrated seventeenth-century religious poets, Robert Whalen examines the role of sacrament in the formation of early modern religious subjectivity. For John Donne and George Herbert, sacramental topoi became powerful conceptual tools with which to explore both the intersection of spiritual and material aspects of human experience and their competing claims to Christianity. Whalen's argument builds upon his central idea of 'sacramental Puritanism, ' or the effort to cultivate a Calvinist sense of interiority through a fully ceremonial apparatus, and thereby to reconcile the potentially disparate imperatives of sacrament and devotion." "Unique in its combination of current historiography and informed analysis, its attention to the sacramental features of Donne's 'secular' lyrics, and its advancement of sacramental thought as an important element of Renaissance English culture, The Poetry of Immanence illuminates a crucial dimension of the work of two major Stuart writers. In his comprehensive critical readings, Robert Whalen offers a substantial contribution to the increasing study of religious themes and devotion in the literature of the early modern period."--Jacket Contents 7 Acknowledgments 9 Prologue 11 Introduction: The Eucharist and the English Reformation 23 1. Secular Verse of the Religious Man: Donne and Sacrament at Play 44 2. Sacrament and Grace 83 3. Eating the Word: Donne's 1626 Christmas Sermon 105 4. Heart's Altar: Herbert arid Presence 132 5. Sacramental Puritanism: Herbert's English via media 149 6. Poetry and Self: The Eucharistic Art of Devotion 171 Conclusion: Sacramental Poetics 190 Notes 201 Works Cited 221 Index 231