This collection of essays, written by distinguished international scholars, focuses on the structural influence of Italian literature, culture and society at large on Shakespeare's dramatic canon. Exploring recent methodological trends coming from Anglo-American new historicism and cultural materialism and innovative analyses of intertextuality, the volume's four thematic sections deal with "Theory and practice," "Culture and tradition," "Text and ideology," and "Stage and spectacle."

This Research Companion provides a comprehensive survey of the most significant topics related to Anglo-Italian Renaissance studies. Written by a team of international scholars and experts in the field, the chapters are grouped into two large areas of influence and intertextuality, seen from the English perspective: Part I "Italian Literature"; Part II "Italian Culture." In the first section, the greatest Italian authors and artists are examined as a direct source of inspiration, appropriation, and divergence. The cultural, ideological, and political implications of Italian pervasive...

Applying recent developments in new historicism and cultural materialism - along with the new perspectives opened up by the current debate on intertextuality and the construction of the theatrical text - the essays collected here reconsider the pervasive influence of Italian culture, literature, and traditions on early modern English drama. The volume focuses strongly on Shakespeare but also includes contributions on Marston, Middleton, Ford, Brome, Aretino, and other early modern dramatists. The pervasive influence of Italian culture, literature, and traditions on the European Renaissance,...