Performance and the “Holy Purse”: Ben Jonson’s Attack on Puritan Value(s)

Preedy discusses the attack of Ben Jonson on Puritan value(s). Jonson's antagonism toward the early modern "Puritans" is well documented. Mocking asides and satirical characterizations discrediting Puritanism abound in his drama, and scholars from Anne Barton to Jonathan Haynes have c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Renaissance drama 2014-09, Vol.42 (2), p.217-242
Main Author: Preedy, Chloe
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alchemy
Anabaptist
Compositional styles
Confidence tricksters
Cultural factors
Drama
Dramatists
Economic value
Imagery
Jonson, Ben (1573-1637)
Literary devices
Playhouses
Preachers
Puritanism
Separatism
Social criticism & satire
Theater
Wealth
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Summary:Preedy discusses the attack of Ben Jonson on Puritan value(s). Jonson's antagonism toward the early modern "Puritans" is well documented. Mocking asides and satirical characterizations discrediting Puritanism abound in his drama, and scholars from Anne Barton to Jonathan Haynes have charted the political, economic, and cultural factors that shaped Jonson's hostility. Jonson's extensive use of contractual and economic imagery is equally well known and has been investigated by Julie Sanders and Kate McLuskie, among others; Sanders and McLuskie conclude that Jonson was responding to the commercialization of the public theaters. By treating such features as discrete themes, however, recent scholarship has largely obscured a striking development in Jonson's thinking.
ISSN:0486-3739
2164-3415
DOI:10.1086/678155