Our Scene Is London Ben Jonson's London And the Space of the Author

In a study that takes in Ben Jonson's epigrams, prose, and verse satire, but focuses mainly on his theatrical appropriations of London space both in and out of the playhouse, the author argues that the strategies of authorial definition that Jonson pursued throughout his career as a poet and playwright were in large part determined by two intersecting factors: first, his complicated relationship with London's physical places and its institutional topography, and secondly - challenging commonplace assumptions about Jonson's anti-theatricality - the distinctly theatrical model of spatial practice that he brought to bear on his representation of the urban experience. A great deal of criticism has focused on Jonson's role in the emergence of modern definitions of authorship, but most has focused on the material contexts of the book trade, on the politics of Jonson's patronage, or on Jonson's self-construction as a neoclassical and primarily textual poet. The author engages with all these considerations, but with a focus on the the dramatic practices of urban space - a growing concern among scholars of early-modern drama - Las a consistent factor in Jonson's authorial claims.Mardock, James D. is the author of 'Our Scene Is London Ben Jonson's London And the Space of the Author', published 2007 under ISBN 9780415977630 and ISBN 0415977630.