Control of literature as a strategy of Catholic reformation: motives and modes of influence -- Approaching censorial reading -- Mechanisms of the Roman index -- Censures of the 'marvellous' -- Censures of love -- Censoring laughter -- Self-censorship and poetic counter-strategies: the case of Domenico Venier -- Conclusions
Summary
In Poetry and Censorship Jennifer Helm offers insight into motives and strategies of Counter-Reformation censorship of poetry in Italy. Materials of Roman censorial authorities reveal why the control of poetry and of its reception was crucial to Counter-Reformation cultural politics. Censorship of poetry should enable the church to influence human inner life that --from thought and belief to fantasy and feeling-- was evolving considerably at that time. The control of poetic genres and modes of writing played an important part here. Yet, to what extent censorship could affect poetic creation emerges from a manuscript of the Venetian poet Domenico Venier. The materials suggest the impact of Counter-Reformation censorship on poetry began earlier and was more extensive than has yet been propagated
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 412-434) and index
