Romance and Rhetoric: Essays in Honour of Dhira B. Mahoney

by Georgiana Donavin, Anita Obermeier (Editor)

This volume honours the academic career of Professor Dhira B. Mahoney, recently retired from the Department of English at Arizona State University, who is well known for her rhetorical readings of medieval literature. Professor Mahoney's scholarship employs rhetorical theory in readings of late medieval literature, particularly prologues and epilogues, women's writings, and Arthuriana. As a response to her work, Romance and Rhetoric offers rhetorical readings of a variety of literary pieces from the late Middle Ages, especially for those authors and genres on which Professor Mahoney has published. Its collected essays provide interdisciplinary studies of art, social and literary history, manuscript transmission, and women's studies in relation to texts in Middle English, Latin, German, and French. In particular, the essays in this volume focus on the writings of courtly authors such as Chaucer, Lydgate, Malory, Guillaume de Machaut, Christine de Pizan, Chretien de Troyes, and others. In keeping with the ancient tradition of analysing rhetorical principles in the structure of an art work, they also examine the rhetoric of the manuscript art connected to these authors and the genres in which they wrote. This volume thus fills a gap in medieval literary scholarship, as it evaluates with scrutiny how rhetorical teachings or medieval poetic strategies inform the writing of romances.

281 pages, Hardcover

First published November 30, 2010

Reviews

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

As is always the case with edited collections, some of these essays are stronger than others, but on the whole it is a solid collection and worthy of their role as honoring Mahoney's amazing career. Particularly strong offerings include the essays by Ann Dobyns, Corine Schleif, and Alan Lupack; while Elizabeth Archibald's comparison of Margery Kempe and Christine de Pizan as compulsive autobiographers was thought-provoking and fun. Christina Francis makes interesting remarks about medieval music in her article on music in Chaucer, and Kevin Harty's Arthurian film writing is always a treat to read. Definitely worth an afternoon or two, especially if you are working with the subjects being covered in any of the essays.