A Critical Companion to John Skelton

Introduces Skelton and his work to readers unfamiliar with the poet, gathers together the vibrant strands of existing research, and opens up new avenues for future studies.

John Skelton is a central literary figure and the leading poet during the first thirty years of Tudor rule. Nevertheless, he remains challenging and even contradictory for modern audiences.
This book aims to provide an authoritative guide to this complex poet and his works, setting him in his historical, religious, and social contexts. Beginning with an exploration of his life and career, it goes on to cover all the major aspects of his poetry, from the literary traditions in which he wrote and the form of his compositions to the manuscript contexts and later reception.

SEBASTIAN SOBECKI is Professor of Medieval English Literature and Culture at the University of Groningen; JOHN SCATTERGOOD is Professor (Emeritus) of Medieval and Renaissance English at Trinity College, Dublin.

Contributors: Tom Betteridge, Julia Boffey, John Burrow, David Carlson, Helen Cooper, Elisabeth Dutton,A.S.G. Edwards, Jane Griffiths, Nadine Kuipers, Carol Meale, John Scattergood, Sebastian Sobecki, Greg Waite

Introduction - Sebastian Sobecki
John Skelton (?1460-1529): A Life in Writing - John Scattergood
Religion - Thomas Betteridge
Law and Politics - Sebastian Sobecki
Classical Literature - John Scattergood
Humanism - David R. Carlson
Satires and Invectives - John A. Burrow
Lyrics and Short Poems - Julia Boffey
Skelton's Voice and Performance - Elisabeth Dutton
Literary Tradition - Jane Griffiths
Skelton and the English Language - Greg Waite
Skelton's English Works in Manuscripts and Print - Carol Meale
Skelton's English Canon - A S G Edwards
Reception and Afterlife - Helen Cooper
A Skelton Bibliography - Nadine Kuipers