'Hac ex consilio meo via progredieris': Courtly Reading and Secretarial Mediation in Donne's The Courtier's Library

• Published in: Renaissance quarterly Vol. 61; no. 3; pp. 833 - 866
• Main Author: Brown, Piers
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge Renaissance Society of America 2008; The Renaissance Society of America; Cambridge University Press
• Subjects: British & Irish literature; Donne, John (1572-1631); English literature; Learning; Literary criticism; Literary translation; Mediation; Negotiation; Note taking; Portrayals; Public figures; Renaissance period; Secretaries; Secretaries (Office); Social criticism & satire; Social satire; United Kingdom
• ISSN: 0034-4338; 1935-0236
• DOI: 10.1353/ren.0.0178

John Donne's The Courtier's Library (ca. 1603–11) is a catalogue of imaginary books that derives its inspiration from Rabelais's satirical description of the Library of St. Victor. Donne's depiction of courtly knowledge parodies the humanist work that secretaries performed for their masters by offering a path to ignorance and mockery rather than a path to learning and advancement. This essay investigates The Courtier's Library , published here in a new translation (see Appendix), in the context of Donne's habits of reading, marginal annotation, and note-taking, examining both the complicated negotiation involved in producing knowledge for courtly display, and Donne's own attempts to reconcile the roles of secretary, scholar, and gentleman.