The Trials of Frances Howard : Fact and Fiction at the Court of King James

ISBN-13: 9780415052061 / Angielski / Twarda / 1993 / 227 str.

David Lindley

Opis

It was the greatest scandal of the Jacobean age. In 1616, Frances Howard and her husband the Earl of Somerset were found guilty of the murder of Sir Thomas Overbury. Frances Howard was branded a lewd woman, a wife, a witch, a murderess and a whore, and has gone down in history as the model of female villainy. But has she been misjudged? In a fascinating examination of both the historical evidence and cultural representations of Howard, David Lindley presents important new insights into the case against her. In doing so, he challenges the assumptions that have constructed Howard as a deviant woman, raising questions not only about how women were perceived in the 17th century, but how society still judges women today. Not just a historical biography, this book is also a close examination of the relationship between history and literature, the place of women in society, and the relationship between the law, politics and ideology.

Recenzje

'This is an acute, scrupulous, and at times disturbing analysis of the Overbury affair.' - Charles Nicholl, Times Literary Supplement

'His interdisciplinary approach, the new questions he has asked of family sources, and his recovery of neglected ones combine to make The Trials of Frances Howard the most stimulating and scholarly study yet published in the Overbury scandal.' - Alastair Bellany, The Huntingdon Library Quarterly

'By laying out for us the comment on one extraordinary woman [Lindley] sheds brilliant light how all women were perceived in early modern England.' - Diarmaid MacCulloch, New Statesman

'A spendid piece of cultural history, subtle, scholarly and very well written.' - The Observer

Spis treści

Chapter 1 Introduction; Chapter 2 The first trial: An arranged marriage; Chapter 3 Interlude: Filling in the blanks; Chapter 4 The second trial: Seeking an annulment; Chapter 5 Interlude: Celebration; Chapter 6 The third trial: Murder;

O autorze

David Lindley