1637 in literature
Encyclopedia
The year 1637 in literature involved some significant events.
Events
- January 24 - HamletHamletThe Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
is performed before King Charles ICharles I of EnglandCharles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
and Queen Henrietta MariaHenrietta Maria of FranceHenrietta Maria of France ; was the Queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland as the wife of King Charles I...
at Hampton Court PalaceHampton Court PalaceHampton Court Palace is a royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, Greater London; it has not been inhabited by the British royal family since the 18th century. The palace is located south west of Charing Cross and upstream of Central London on the River Thames...
. - October 2 - The London theatres re-open, having been closed almost continuously since May 1636 because of a severe outbreak of bubonic plagueBubonic plaguePlague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...
. - The King's MenKing's Men (playing company)The King's Men was the company of actors to which William Shakespeare belonged through most of his career. Formerly known as The Lord Chamberlain's Men during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, it became The King's Men in 1603 when King James ascended the throne and became the company's patron.The...
mount a production for the Court of William Cartwright's The Royal Slave, a play that was first staged at Christ Church, OxfordChrist Church, OxfordChrist Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...
the previous year. The company is paid an extra £30 "for their pains in studying and acting" the drama.
New books
- René DescartesRené DescartesRené Descartes ; was a French philosopher and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day...
- Discours de la Méthode - Thomas HeywoodThomas HeywoodThomas Heywood was a prominent English playwright, actor, and author whose peak period of activity falls between late Elizabethan and early Jacobean theatre.-Early years:...
- Pleasant Dialogues and Dramas - Marin MersenneMarin MersenneMarin Mersenne, Marin Mersennus or le Père Mersenne was a French theologian, philosopher, mathematician and music theorist, often referred to as the "father of acoustics"...
- Universal Harmony - María de Zayas y Sotomayor - Novelas amorosas y ejemplares
- Five plays by James ShirleyJames ShirleyJames Shirley was an English dramatist.He belonged to the great period of English dramatic literature, but, in Lamb's words, he "claims a place among the worthies of this period, not so much for any transcendent genius in himself, as that he was the last of a great race, all of whom spoke nearly...
are published in individual editions - The ExampleThe ExampleThe Example is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy written by James Shirley, first published in 1637. The play has repeatedly been acclaimed both as one of Shirley's best comedies and one of the best works of its generation...
, The GamesterThe GamesterThe Gamester is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy of manners written by James Shirley, premiered in 1633 and first published in 1637. The play is noteworthy for its realistic and detailed picture of gambling in its era....
, Hyde ParkHyde Park (play)Hyde Park is a Caroline era comedy of manners written by James Shirley, and first published in 1637.Hyde Park was licensed for performance by Sir Henry Herbert, the Master of the Revels, on April 20, 1632, and acted at the Cockpit Theatre by Queen Henrietta's Men...
, The Lady of PleasureThe Lady of PleasureThe Lady of Pleasure is a Caroline era comedy of manners written by James Shirley, first published in 1637. It has often been cited as among the best, and sometimes as the single best, the "most brilliant," of the dramatist's comic works....
, and The Young AdmiralThe Young AdmiralThe Young Admiral is a Caroline era tragicomedy written by James Shirley, and first published in 1637. It has often been considered Shirley's best tragicomedy, and one of his best plays....
New drama
- Pedro Calderón de la BarcaPedro Calderón de la BarcaPedro Calderón de la Barca y Barreda González de Henao Ruiz de Blasco y Riaño usually referred as Pedro Calderón de la Barca , was a dramatist, poet and writer of the Spanish Golden Age. During certain periods of his life he was also a soldier and a Roman Catholic priest...
- El Tetrarca published - John FletcherJohn Fletcher (playwright)John Fletcher was a Jacobean playwright. Following William Shakespeare as house playwright for the King's Men, he was among the most prolific and influential dramatists of his day; both during his lifetime and in the early Restoration, his fame rivalled Shakespeare's...
and Philip MassingerPhilip MassingerPhilip Massinger was an English dramatist. His finely plotted plays, including A New Way to Pay Old Debts, The City Madam and The Roman Actor, are noted for their satire and realism, and their political and social themes.-Early life:The son of Arthur Massinger or Messenger, he was baptized at St....
- The Elder BrotherThe Elder BrotherThe Elder Brother is an early seventeenth-century stage play, a comedy written by John Fletcher and Philip Massinger. Apparently dating from 1625, it may have been the last play Fletcher worked on before his August 1625 death.-Date:...
published. - François Tristan l'HermiteFrançois Tristan l'HermiteFrançois l'Hermite was a French dramatist who wrote under the name Tristan l'Hermite. He was born at the Château de Soliers in the Haute Marche....
- Penthée - Thomas HeywoodThomas HeywoodThomas Heywood was a prominent English playwright, actor, and author whose peak period of activity falls between late Elizabethan and early Jacobean theatre.-Early years:...
- The Royal King and the Loyal Subject published - John MiltonJohn MiltonJohn Milton was an English poet, polemicist, a scholarly man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell...
- ComusComus (John Milton)Comus is a masque in honour of chastity, written by John Milton. It was first presented on Michaelmas, 1634, before John Egerton, 1st Earl of Bridgewater at Ludlow Castle in celebration of the Earl's new post as Lord President of Wales.Known colloquially as Comus, the mask's actual full title is A...
(masqueMasqueThe masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment which flourished in 16th and early 17th century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio...
) published - Thomas NabbesThomas NabbesThomas Nabbes was an English dramatist.He was born in humble circumstances in Worcestershire, and educated at Exeter College, Oxford in 1621...
- Microcosmus, a Moral Masque - Thomas Neale - The Warde
- Joseph Rutter - The Cid, Part 1 published
- James ShirleyJames ShirleyJames Shirley was an English dramatist.He belonged to the great period of English dramatic literature, but, in Lamb's words, he "claims a place among the worthies of this period, not so much for any transcendent genius in himself, as that he was the last of a great race, all of whom spoke nearly...
- five plays published in five single-play quartosBook sizeThe size of a book is generally measured by the height against the width of a leaf, or sometimes the height and width of its cover. A series of terms is commonly used by libraries and publishers for the general sizes of modern books, ranging from "folio" , to "quarto" and "octavo"...
: The ExampleThe ExampleThe Example is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy written by James Shirley, first published in 1637. The play has repeatedly been acclaimed both as one of Shirley's best comedies and one of the best works of its generation...
, The GamesterThe GamesterThe Gamester is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy of manners written by James Shirley, premiered in 1633 and first published in 1637. The play is noteworthy for its realistic and detailed picture of gambling in its era....
, Hyde ParkHyde Park (play)Hyde Park is a Caroline era comedy of manners written by James Shirley, and first published in 1637.Hyde Park was licensed for performance by Sir Henry Herbert, the Master of the Revels, on April 20, 1632, and acted at the Cockpit Theatre by Queen Henrietta's Men...
, The Lady of PleasureThe Lady of PleasureThe Lady of Pleasure is a Caroline era comedy of manners written by James Shirley, first published in 1637. It has often been cited as among the best, and sometimes as the single best, the "most brilliant," of the dramatist's comic works....
, and The Young AdmiralThe Young AdmiralThe Young Admiral is a Caroline era tragicomedy written by James Shirley, and first published in 1637. It has often been considered Shirley's best tragicomedy, and one of his best plays.... - Sir John SucklingJohn Suckling (poet)Sir John Suckling was an English poet and one prominent figure among those renowned for careless gaiety, wit, and all the accomplishments of a Cavalier poet; and also the inventor of the card game Cribbage...
- AglauraAglaura (play)Aglaura is a late Caroline era stage play, written by Sir John Suckling. Several aspects of the play have led critics to treat it as a key development and a marker of the final decadent phase of English Renaissance drama.-Performance:... - George Wilde - The Converted Robber
Poetry
- William Alexander, 1st Earl of StirlingWilliam Alexander, 1st Earl of StirlingWilliam Alexander, Earl of Stirling was a Scotsman who was an early developer of Scottish colonisation of Port Royal, Nova Scotia and Long Island, New York...
- Recreations of the Muses - James Day - A New Spring of Divine Poetry
- Thomas Jordan - Poetical Varieties
- Shackerley MarmionShackerley MarmionShackerley Marmion , also Shakerley, Shakerly, Schackerley, Marmyon, Marmyun, or Mermion, was an early 17th-century dramatist, often classed among the Sons of Ben, the followers of Ben Jonson who continued his style of comedy...
- Cupid and Psyche, a 2000-line translation and adaptation of The Golden AssThe Golden AssThe Metamorphoses of Apuleius, which St. Augustine referred to as The Golden Ass , is the only Latin novel to survive in its entirety....
of ApuleiusApuleiusApuleius was a Latin prose writer. He was a Berber, from Madaurus . He studied Platonist philosophy in Athens; travelled to Italy, Asia Minor and Egypt; and was an initiate in several cults or mysteries. The most famous incident in his life was when he was accused of using magic to gain the...
Births
- December 24 - Pierre JurieuPierre JurieuPierre Jurieu was a French Protestant leader.-Life:He was born at Mer, in Orléanais, where his father was a Protestant pastor. He studied at the Academy of Saumur and the Academy of Sedan under his grandfather, Pierre Du Moulin, and under Leblanc de Beaulieu...
, Protestant theologian (died 1713) - December 27 - Petar KanavelićPetar KanavelićPetar Kanavelić was a Croatian writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest Croatian writers of the 17th century. He signed himself as Pietro Canaveli or De Canavellis...
, Croatian poet and songwriter (died 1719) - December 30 - William CaveWilliam CaveWilliam Cave was an English divine and patristic scholar.-Life:Cave was born at Pickwell, Leicestershire, of which parish his father, John Cave was vicar. He was educated at Oakham School and St. John's College, Cambridge. He took his B.A. degree in 1656, his M.A. in 1660, his D.D. in 1672, and...
, theologian (died 1713) - date unknown - Zeb-un-Nisa, Sufi poet (died 1702)
- probable - Robert Ferguson, pamphleteer (died 1714)
Deaths
- February - Gervase MarkhamGervase MarkhamGervase Markham was an English poet and writer, best known for his work The English Huswife, Containing the Inward and Outward Virtues Which Ought to Be in a Complete Woman first published in London in 1615.-Life:Markham was the third son of Sir Robert Markham of Cotham, Nottinghamshire, and was...
, poet (born c.1568) - February 24 - Dominicus ArumaeusDominicus ArumaeusDominicus Arumaeus was a Dutch jurist.Born Douwe van Arum in Friesland, he studied law in Franeker , Oxford, Rostock and finally Jena, where he married Anna Pingitzer on March 31, 1600...
, Dutch legal writer (born 1579) - March 19 - Péter PázmányPéter PázmányPéter Pázmány de Panasz was a Hungarian philosopher, theologian, catholic cardinal, pulpit orator and statesman. He was an important figure in the Counter-Reformation in Royal Hungary. He worked to convert Protestants back to Catholicism in Hungary.His most important legacy was his creation of the...
, Hungarian philosopher and theologian (born 1570) - May 19 - Isaac BeeckmanIsaac BeeckmanIsaac Beeckman was a Dutch philosopher and scientist, who, through his studies and contact with leading natural philosophers, may have "virtually given birth to modern atomism".-Biography:...
, philosopher and diarist (born 1588) - August 6 - Ben JonsonBen JonsonBenjamin Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems...
, poet and dramatist (born c.1572) - August 10 - Johann GerhardJohann GerhardJohann Gerhard was a Lutheran church leader and Lutheran Scholastic theologian during the period of Orthodoxy.-Biography:He was born in the German city of Quedlinburg...
, Lutheran theologian (born 1582) - October 5 - Daniel CramerDaniel CramerDaniel Cramer was a German Lutheran theologian and writer from Reetz , Brandenburg. He was an opponent of the Ramists and the Jesuits.-Life:He became professor and archdeacon at Stettin...
, Lutheran theologian and dramatist (born 1568)