Richard Barnefield, baptized on 29 June 1574 and buried in 1627, occupies a small but remarkably provocative place in the history of English Renaissance poetry. He was not among the most prolific writers of the Elizabethan age, nor did he sustain a public literary career over decades as Edmund Spenser, Ben Jonson, or William Shakespeare did. Yet the poems he published during a brief period in the 1590s have continued…
“Small is the gift, but great is my good-will; the which, by how much the lesse I am able to expresse it, by so much the more it is infinite.”
Neighbourhood:
Cavalier Poets, Elizabethan Poets, LGBTQ+ Poets
Emotional landscape: Sensuality, Longing, Wonder
In the golden autumn of French Renaissance literature, one name shines with particular brilliance: Pierre de Ronsard, the master lyricist who transformed French poetry and established himself as the supreme voice of his generation. Born in September 1524 at the Château de la Possonnière in the Vendômois region of France, Ronsard would live until December 27, 1585, leaving behind a literary legacy that would influence…
“It is better to serve truth than the opinion of the people, who will know only what they see.”
Neighbourhood:
Italian Renaissance Poets, Love Poets, Political Poets, Renaissance Poets
Emotional landscape: Longing, Sensuality, Tenderness
