Naissance et vie éditoriale du recueil de sonnets amoureux anglais (1557-1599): quelques enjeux génériques et socio-littéraires

Abstract

Cécile Alduy’s and Daniel Maira’s recent works on the French canzoniere have prompted the writing of this article. Its aim is to tackle the issue of the materiality of the English sonnet sequences, exploring how they were shaped as books, and raising hypotheses about the significance of editorial forms. The sonnet sequence originated in Tottel’s Miscellany, a poetic collection first published in 1557. A lesser-known major event in the history of the sonnet sequence was the 1582 publication of Thomas Watson’s Hekatompathia or a Divine Centurie of Love, in which the codes of the published sonnet sequence are established. The 1590 sonnet sequence is then characterized by a desire for unity, and by an increased visual dimension conveyed by the use of ornament. The book then becomes akin to a precious object. If there was any mannerism in the sonneteer’s writing, it was matched by the stationers’ desire for recognition as craftsmen.