Writing and the English Renaissance is a collection of essays exploring the full creative richness of Renaissance culture during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. As well as considering major literary figures such as Spenser, Marlowe, Donne and Milton, lesser known - especially women - writers are also examined. Radical writing and popular culture are considered as well. The scope of the study not only extends the parameters for debate in Renaissance studies, but also adopts a radical interdisciplinary approach, bridging the gap between literary, historical, cultural and women's studies, leading to a much fuller picture of life in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

The authors discussed are placed in their full historical and literary context, with an extensive selection of original documentation included in the text - for example, from The Book of Common Prayer or the Homilies to contextualize the writing under discussion. This distinctive approach, combined with a detailed chronology of the period and bibliography, embracing both canonical and non-canonical writers, makes this volume a unique reference resource and course reader for Renaissance studies.