This article describes how I use Marlowe’s “Hero and Leander” in the class room to talk about rape and sexual assault. It also argues that Marlowe is aware of what we know refer to as rape culture and uses this concept to add context to the violent sexual encounter in the poem. For Marlowe this means a critique of the Petrarchian tradition and an…[Read more]

This paper argues that Massinger’s The Roman Actor attempts to construct stage performance as non-effective in reaction to the riotous actions of early modern London audiences.

This paper argues that Epicene, Jonson’s first public play after being made official court masque writer, is unusually optimistic about the possibilities of drama. The play explores the possibility of creating an authentic personality through performance, an idea that Jonson is often hostile towards. However, Jonson’s flirtation with this…[Read more]