Italian treaties on literature as the style model for English secular early Renaissance literature

Abstract

The article deals with the matter of the English belles-lettres style of the 16th century. The style phenomenon is interpreted as some representative of the whole in particular. The fact in turn makes condition of interpreting the work of literature as belonging to some type of culture. Within the scope of the interpretation of the kind the style phenomenon is considered within the scope of the global context of changes which took place in European Renaissance. The notions of culture and literature are identified, the latter is believed to be one of the principle sphere of intellectual activity of the representatives of the humanistic thought devoted their time. The kind is marked by an outstanding rise during the analysed period of time. Perceiving the analysed time period culture as one of the cultures’ communication gives an opportunity to trace the ways of artistic transforming of the ideas about particular features of stylistic construction of a piece of literature. The study is based on the material of the creative heritage of Philip Sidney, the salient representative of the Elizabethan culture, whose individuality and style were under the influence of Italian humanistic thought.