Summary of Week 4
It has been a pleasure to read your responses to this week’s work after another exhausting two weeks of online teaching at Lancaster. Victoria attached a link to one of …
Course: Penshurst Place and the Sidney Family of Writers
Read Lady Mary Wroth’s Sonnet ‘In this strange labyrinth how shall I turn?’
In this step we will explore Lady Mary Wroth’s sonnet ‘In this strange labyrinth how shall I turn?’ by reading its turns and twists. Print out and read through Lady …
Philip Sidney’s Psalm 23 Read by Rev. Tom Holme
This, probably the most familiar psalm, was popular in the early modern period too as an expression of confidence in God’s infinite love. The image of a caring God is …
To the Angel Spirit by Mary Sidney Herbert
‘To the Angel Spirit’ is Mary Sidney Herbert’s dedicatory poem to her brother, Sir Philip Sidney, written when she had completed their translation of the Psalms of David. After Sir …
Sir Henry Sidney’s Funeral Sermon
Sir Henry Sidney, the father of the first generation of Sidney writers, died in 1586. We will examine the sermon preached at his funeral in Penshurst Church which gives a …
Spaces for Women’s drama: an interview with Marion Wynne-Davies
In this interview, Professor Marion Wynne-Davie discusses the use of household spaces for women’s drama, the banqueting house at Nonesuch for Lumley’s “Iphigenia,” (1557) and the Sidney-Herbert country houses from …
Introduction: Shakespeare’s sisters and household theatre
This week we will study how the men and women of the Sidney family made different kinds of theatre from those which took place in the London playhouses of Shakespeare …
Watch an interview with actress Charlie Mulliner
Watch this interview with actress Charlie Mulliner who played the role of Venus in the 2018 production of Love’s Victory at Penshurst Place. How does the role link to Lady …
Writing Sonnets, imitation and decoration
Sonnets were handwritten and circulated in manuscript between intimates at the court, as critic Patricia Fumerton has argued, so the writing of a sonnet was a physical as well as …
Interview with Professor Richard Dutton
This step introduces Jonson’s poem in an interview with Professor Richard Dutton. Listen to Richard speaking and then read the poem which you will find in the downloads section below, …
Listen to the poem read by Richard Dutton
Listen to the poem read by Richard Dutton and watch images of Penshurst place today. (The video transcript does not set out the poem in lines so, if you wish …
Introduction by Philip Sidney to his family home, Penshurst Place
Watch this video Introduction by Philip Sidney to his family home, Penshurst Place. Then post a comment on your impressions of the house and its meaning to the family. Tag …
Mary Sidney, Robert Sidney, Mary Wroth and William Herbert
In this step we will learn about Philip’s sister, Mary Sidney Herbert, his brother, Robert Sidney, who became the owner of Penshurst Place, and their children who became the next …
The parents of the Sidney writers and Sir Philip Sidney
In this step we will learn about Sir Henry Sidney and Mary Dudley Sidney, the parents of the Sidney writers, and their eldest son, Sir Philip Sidney. Watch this video …
Women and Nature: The Countesse of Montgomery’s Urania
How does the landscape of pastoral change in the hand of a female Sidney writer? In this article we will read the beginning “The Countess of Montgomery’s Urania” (1621), written …
These articles are from the online course:
Penshurst Place and the Sidney Family of Writers