|
|
Article: Dramatic nostalgia and spectacular conversion in Dekker and Massinger's: the virgin Martyr.(Thomas Dekker and Philip Massinger)(Critical essay)
- Article from:
- Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900
- Article date:
- March 22, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Rice University. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
Holly Crawford Pickett. Dramatic Nostalgia and Spectacular Conversion in Dekker and Massinger's The Virgin Martyr
Critical debates about Thomas Dekker and Philip Massinger's The Virgin Martyr (1620) often center on the play's Protestant or Catholic sympathies, but the play's treatment of religious conversion complicates that debate. The play portrays serial or vacillating converts who not only defy easy doctrinal categorization, but also raise questions about the nature and verifiability of conversion. Namely, the play critiques early modern conversion culture by warning about the abuses of pseudoreasonable religious rhetoric and, finally, by embracing a ...