| Chaucer and the Making of Optical Space Contributor(s): Brown, Peter (Author) |
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ISBN: 3039113402 ISBN-13: 9783039113408 Publisher: Peter Lang Ltd, International Academic Publis OUR PRICE: $104.74 Product Type: Paperback Published: December 2007 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Poetry | European - English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh - History | Historiography - Literary Criticism | English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh |
| Dewey: 821.1 |
| LCCN: 2008399103 |
| Physical Information: 0.78" H x 6" W x 9" (1.11 lbs) 378 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - British Isles - Cultural Region - French |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: The author links Chaucer's writings with the medieval optical tradition in its various forms (scholastic texts, encyclopedias, exempla, vernacular poetry) both in general cultural terms and through the discussion of specific examples. He shows how the science of optics, or perspectiva, provides an account of spatial perception, including visual error, and demonstrates how these aspects of optical theory impact on Chaucer's poetry. He provides detailed and sustained analysis of the spatial content of narratives across the range of Chaucer's works, relating them to optical ideas and making use of Lefebvre's theory of the production of space. The texts discussed include the Book of the Duchess, House of Fame, Knight's Tale, Miller's Tale, Reeve's Tale, Merchant's Tale, Squire's Tale and Troilus and Criseyde. |