Contagion and the Shakespearean stage

Edited book

Chalk, Darryl and Floyd-Wilson, Mary. 2019. Contagion and the Shakespearean stage. Cham, Switzerland. Palgrave Macmillan.
Book Title

Contagion and the Shakespearean stage

Book CategoryEdited book
ERA Publisher ID2865
AuthorsChalk, Darryl (Editor) and Floyd-Wilson, Mary (Editor)
Number of Pages292
SeriesPalgrave Studies in Literature, Science and Medicine
Year2019
PublisherPalgrave Macmillan
Place of PublicationCham, Switzerland
ISBN9783030144272
9783030144289
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14428-9
Abstract

This collection of essays considers what constituted contagion in the minds of early moderns in the absence of modern germ theory. In a wide range of essays focused on early modern drama and the culture of theatre, contributors explore how ideas of contagion not only inform representations of the senses (such as smell and touch) and emotions (such as disgust, pity, and shame) but also shape how people understood belief, narrative, and political agency. Epidemic thinking was not limited to medical inquiry or the narrow study of a particular disease. Shakespeare, Thomas Middleton, Ben Jonson, Thomas Dekker and other early modern writers understood that someone might be infected or transformed by the presence of others, through various kinds of exchange, or if exposed to certain ideas, practices, or environmental conditions. The discourse and concept of contagion provides a lens for understanding early modern theatrical performance, dramatic plots, and theatre-going itself.

KeywordsShakespeare, Shakespearean theatre, contagion, plague, history of emotions, the senses, early modern drama, germ theory
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020470507. Comparative and transnational literature
360403. Drama, theatre and performance studies
Public Notes

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Byline AffiliationsSchool of Creative Arts
University of North Carolina, United States
Institution of OriginUniversity of Southern Queensland
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