Sprezzatura Avatar

She is a master of conversation and is wickedly witty. Always dressed in the latest fashions, she has droves of handsome courtier suitors. She's best friends with the queen, and she writes poetry for fun. She likes to stroll through gardens and has a secret passion for men who fence. She is well versed in the sonnets of the day, and she's a professional swooner. 

Meet Lady Annabelle, sprezzatura Avatar.

I was  going to paint some others, but it didn't happen. I wanted to paint a pirate (of sorts) for Brave New Worlds, and maybe an ancient school teacher, too. Thomas Wilson style!

Mirror Mirror on the Wall, Who Wears What and Why does it Matter?

Throughout the past 400 years, The Tempest has been performed by many companies. Each of the different companies and groups that performed The Tempest have taken their own interpretations of how the players should be dressed. Traditionally, Propsero is dressed regally, his robes are a symbol of his power. In some versions, Prospero is cast as a woman named Prospera. And of course, she dresses accordingly.



While browsing Youtube I discovered versions in which Miranda is dressed in pants; living on an island with only her father for company apparently makes the dress code a little more relaxed.





Why does this matter? What significance do the clothes make in the interpretation of the play? Do the clothes make the man? It would be worth it to consider what Miranda says:

"There's nothing ill can dwell in such a temple. If the ill spirit have so fair a house,. Good things will strive to dwell with 't."

The Brave (re)New(ed) Project

Some people write until they stumble across a good idea. Our Renaissance literature class just talks until we "stumble" upon a fantastic idea. 

All semester we've been talking about how we can avoid falling into the remake-the-Norton-Anthology-in-digital-form rut. The reason for making an eBook was to help us venture into the brave new world of technology, eBooks specifically. And up until our last class meeting, I was a little worried about where our project was going (or not going, if you know what I mean). 

But I think we've got things sorted out. It looks like we've decided to create a tiered curriculum that we can share. And let me tell you, I'm excited. I was concerned before that our eBook would get lost in the bottomless hole of literary criticism. I didn't want it to be another one of those books.

We're going to be incorporating video into our curriculum in an attempt to interest various audiences. I'm excited about the things we can do with video in both my groups. In my Ad Fontes group I was thinking maybe some interviews with authors, or for the Sprezzatura group we could have some friendly court discussions.

Whatever ensues, I'm excited. I feel like I'm finally excited about our project. I'm ready to enter this brave new world. 

Hopefully I'll learn something. Hopefully. :)

What's for Breakfast?

In our class discussion yesterday, things went a little off topic when we started talking about breakfast cereal.  With an 11:00-11:50 class time, we are frequently hungry during the eRenaissance hour. But, what originally began as a joke about reading the back of a Cheerio's box turned into an idea for innovative education. A few of us mentioned that we always read the back of the cereal box while we're eating.That's where the idea of Chaucer Charms and the Samuel Daniel Diet came in. We could give a short summary, cartoon, or comic strip that introduces some aspect of or author from Renaissance literature. Wouldn't it be a great way to introduce people to British Literary History?

"Why take only one British Literary Course when you can learn in multiple courses?" -Dr. Gideon Burton

While there may be a specific audience for the Samuel Daniel Diet, (supplement your current diet with poems like "Ulysses and the Siren" for improved intellectual vigor!) thinking about people's basic needs (i.e. the need for physical nourishment) can help us determine how best to reach our audience and engage them in our work. By connecting our work with and targeting people's basic desires and needs, we can piggyback our book into their lives.

The Digital Age is ALL About Audience

How do you get someone to read your work? Well, our class is writing an ebook on the Renaissance, and we're working closely with the new medium of digital books. But as we've begun this project, we are facing challenges, one of which is: Just how do we get people to read our book? Well, after reading chapter 11 and 12 of Writing About Literature in the Digital Age, I was happy to discover some examples of how to speak to an audience in a way that engages them, draws them in.

Chapter 11, A Letter from Hell: Screwtape on the Digital Age, was mainly written for people who had read The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. I have not read The Screwtape Letters, so parts of the essay weren't clear to me. But, I do think that he had the right idea. He knew that the people reading his chapter would probably be familiar with C.S. Lewis, and at least have heard of The Screwtape Letters enough that they could understand his approach. I felt that writing from a literary perspective was effective in helping me to look at the subject differently.The less-formal tone kept things readable. I felt like I was on the same page (pun intended) as the author.

In chapter 12 I appreciated the prominent and very real presence of the author in his writing. He mentioned his wife, and sneaking comic books into the house. He talked about his own passion, comic books. Bringing his personal interests into his work make the topic more approachable. It helps me, the reader, to step into his shoes. I can take a look at the topic from his perspective, as well as my own.