Vernulaeus´ Henricus Octavus: a confessionally propagandistic tragedy.
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2015-07-16
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en
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Nicolaus Vernulaeus (1583-1649) wrote his neo-Latin tragedy Henricus Octavus in 1623. It treats the history of king Henry VIII of England and his forceful secession from the Catholic Church through his marriage to Anne Boleyn from a decidedly Catholic viewpoint, as Vernulaeus was a Jesuit playwright from the Southern Low Countries who was deeply concerned with the continuing struggles between Protestants and Catholics after the Reformation in Northern Europe. This thesis considers the playwright's confessional message in relationship with 'aesthetic' concerns regarding tragedy by discussing Vernulaeus' adherence to neoclassical 'rules' and central concepts regarding tragedy that were derived from Aristotle and Horace by neoclassical theorists in the sixteenth century. The complicated matter of neoclassical dramatic theory will be briefly considered first, while the remaining chapters will deal with Henricus Octavus´ pl! ot, chara cters and language. To what extent did Vernulaeus succeed in effectively combining confessional, Catholic propaganda with the tragic form?
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Faculteit der Letteren