The Tower of London in English Renaissance Drama: Icon of Opposition (Literary Criticism and Cultural Theory)

The Tower of London in English Renaissance Drama historicizes the Tower of London's evolving meanings in English culture alongside its representations in twenty-four English history plays, 1579-c.1634, by William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe and others. While Elizabeth I, James I, and Charles I fashioned the Tower as a showplace of royal authority, magnificence, and entertainment, many playwrights of the time revealed the Tower's instability as a royal symbol and represented it, instead, as an emblem of opposition to the crown and as a bodily and spiritual icon of non-royal English identity.

The Tower of London in English Renaissance Drama historicizes the Tower of London's evolving meanings in English culture alongside its representation in twenty-four English history plays, 1579-c.1634, by Thomas Legge; Robert Greene; William Shakespeare; Shakespeare and John Fletcher; George Peele; Christopher Marlowe; Anthony Munday et. al; Munday, Michael Drayton, Robert Wilson, and Richard Hathway; Thomas Heywood; Thomas Dekker and John Webster; Samuel Rowley; Robert Davenport; John Ford; and unknown authors. While Elizabeth I, James I, and Charles I fashioned the Tower as a showplace of royal authority, magnificence, and entertainment, these playwrights revealed the Tower's instability as a royal symbol and represented it, instead, as an emblem of opposition to the crown and as a bodily and spiritual icon of non-royal English identity.

Annotation The Tower of London in English Renaissance Drama historicizes the Tower of London's evolving meanings in English culture alongside its representations in twenty-four English history plays, 1579-c.1634, by William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe and others. While Elizabeth I, James I, and Charles I fashioned the Tower as a showplace of royal authority, magnificence, and entertainment, many playwrights of the timerevealed the Tower's instability as a royal symbol and represented it, instead, as an emblem of opposition to the crown and as a bodily and spiritual icon of non-royal English identity The Tower of London in English Renaissance Drama historicizes the Tower of London's evolving meanings in English culture alongside its representations in twenty-four English history plays, 1579-c.1634, by Thomas Legge; William Shakespeare; Shakespeare and John Fletcher; George Peele; Christopher Marlowe; Anthony Munday et. al ; Munday, Michael Drayton, Robert Wilson, and Richard Hathway; Thomas Heywood; Thomas Dekker and John Webster; Samuel Rowley; Thomas Drue; Robert Davenport; John Ford; and unknown authors. While Elizabeth I, James I, and Charles I fashioned the Tower as a showplace of roy Introduction : Historicizing Original Tower Play Audiences -- The Tower Of London As A Cultural Icon Before The Tower Plays -- Stage Vs. State : The Struggle For The Tower -- The Tower Of London : Dramatic Emblem Of Opposition -- Reading English Nationhood In The Dramatic Tower Of London -- The Tower Of London : An Evolving Icon. By Kristen Deiter. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.