CMRS Seminar: “Lady Mary Wroth’s Interrogations of Nationalism”
Friday, February 9, 2007

Lady Mary Sidney Wroth came from a family with a history of strong political involvement, which included significant travel on the continent. This background was reflected in her lengthy prose romance, The Countesse of Montgomery’s Urania, by Wroth’s continual attention to issues of identity as they are affected by place, familial ties, emotional entanglements, and political responsibilities. In this talk, Prof. Sheila Cavanaugh (Department of English, Emory University) argued that Wroth’s convoluted style simultaneously establishes and undermines links between characters and their countries of origin, adoption, or sovereignty, thereby constructing a romance where emerging strategies of narratology and nationalism continually shape each other. Wroth interrogates competing personal and political allegiances, as she creates a formidable contribution to early modern prose fiction. Presented in conjunction with the annual CMRS Seminar, coordinated by Professor Lowell Gallagher.