Subject collection: Literary Studies (221 titles, 1971–2015)

Dutch literature of the 17th century, while not as famous as other elements of the culture of the Dutch Golden Age, deserves independent focus, not only because of its own intrinsic worth, but also because of the evidence of strong social concern that it presents and the light it sheds on other aspects of the Golden Age. Despite this, outside the Netherlands the literature has not been examined closely, undoubtedly because of the language barrier, but also because there is no reasonable introduction to the material in English. This book fills that lacuna. Richly illustrated, it groups its subjects thematically: politics, religion, nature, daily life. Because Golden Age painting, in particular, is so famous, the book devotes a special chapter to the connection between poetry and painting. A concluding chapter shows the republic's function as a European literary trading center with brisk import and export. Included also are texts and translations of poems and extensive bibliographies for further study.

The guiding principle of this volume is the concept of the artes liberales, the trivium and quadrivium, as branches of learning that are rooted in Dante Alighieri’s mind. The present volume contains essays by leading international scholars on the various scientific and artistic disciplines which form the background, sources, and presence in Dante’s opus.

La Egloga II propone el caos, lo diverso, el error, y también la posibilidad de orden. Sólo en el contexto de una especie literaria flexible y multiforme — la pastoral — y de una forma de expresión proteica — el discurso — esa vasta tarea de conciliación era posible. Discurso y pastoral constituyen el ámbito dialéctico de esa armonía discorde que la Egloga II consigue por medio de un enciclopédico esfuerzo humanístico.