Download or read book Vernacular Literature and Current Affairs in the Early Sixteenth Century written by Jennifer Britnell and published by Ashgate Publishing. This book was released on 2000 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The printed writings of the most important authors of the sixteenth century are characterised by frequent references to current affairs. This collection brings together essays by literary scholars and historians of the era to discuss various ways in which those writing in the vernacular during the early sixteenth century responded to contemporary events. The papers in this volume also demonstrate how the spread of literacy was of fundamental significance for the economics of book production, and for ways in which political power was exercised and expressed, as well as for the development of new literary forms of critical and occasional writing.