The pale cast of thought
Subtitle: hesitation and decision in the Renaissance epic
By: James Lawrence Shulman.
Publisher: University of Delaware Press; Associated University Presses
Published: 1998
Place of publication: Newark; London
Language: eng
Number of pages: 196
Subjects: Epic poetry, English -- History and criticism; English poetry -- Early modern, 1500-1700 -- History and criticism; Italian poetry -- 16th century -- History and criticism; Characters and characteristics in literature; Literature, Comparative -- English and Italian; Literature, Comparative -- Italian and English; Epic poetry, Italian -- History and criticism; Poetry -- Psychological aspects; Decision making in literature; Hesitation in literature
Description: This book focuses on specific moments of decision-making in the epic poems of Ariosto, Tasso, Spenser, and Milton. In each of the poems, the hero must ultimately confront the choice of Aeneas at the end of the Aeneid - either to kill or to stay his hand. These later epic poems contain reflective heroes who resist the impulses of traditional martial heroism.

As they deliberate, the progress of the narrative is suspended, and elements of comedy, lyric, picaresque, and romance threaten to fragment authority of the epic genre. Each of these moments reveals a particularly rich locus for observing the movement of the epic toward the novel.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 157-191) and index.