Lying in early modern culture

Abstract

This essay explores the issue of lying in early modern English literature and culture and argues that we need a theory of lying to understand how truth was understood. It asks where we might find evidence of lies and why people might lie, as well as examining how writers explored the issue of lies and lying in their work. It concludes that religion was often the main reason why people lied, thought about lying and expected others to lie, given the serious punishments meted out to heretic. Thinking about lying should prompt us to rethink our understanding of early modern religious culture and we should certainly look more closely at religious groups that countenanced lying, such as Family of Love. Writers discussed include John Donne, Robert Greene, Sir Philip Sidney, and Edmund Spenser.