During his eight-year Italian sojourn (1600-1608), Sir Peter Paul Rubens became familiar with villeggiatura, a form of villa life (unique to Italy) modeled on the antique garden. Rubens' experience was personal, for a close examination of a select number of his works demonstrates that he fully assimilated this humanistic tradition. He participated in the intellectual currents of his time, the source of ars hortulorum. In his pictures, Rubens took over forms found in gardens of antiquity, the Renaissance or the Baroque and, in certain instances, recreated the mood, function and sense found in these gardens and as described by literary works. Most important, Rubens' own life of villeggiatura is clearly made evident in several of these paintings. / His preference for the humanistic hortus over the garden traditions of other countries reveals Rubens' admiration, shared with other humanists for the ancients and their culture which provided personal models for poise and enlightenment. / The result of this study focuses on a new dimension to our understanding of Rubens' oeuvre, his involvement with villeggiatura and the ars hortulorum.

No description available.

This thesis studies in a comparative framework the impact of colonial experience on the religious and social thought of two modernists, Ahmad Kh an of India and Ahmad Hassan of Indonesia. At the religious level, both modernists were much concerned with the purification of Islam. They called upon the Muslims to return to the Qur' an and hadith, abandon taqlid and to undertake ijtihad. Ahmad Kh an, influenced by the natural sciences and rationalism of the West, was also inclined to interpret Islam in a naturalistic and rational manner. Ahmad Hassan, on the other hand, was very much preoccupied with the purification of Islam and the return to the Qur' an and hadith, and was little influenced by the Western impact through colonialism. At the social level, both modernists considered education to be the essential means to social betterment. But whereas Ahmad Kh an also believed in cooperation with the British, Ahmad Hassan was opposed to the Dutch. / This study concludes by showing that, given the Western colonial experience, Ahmad Kh an's socio-religious thought was rational, realistic, liberal and dynamic. While Ahmad Hassan too lived in a colonial society, his socio-religious thought was puritanical, defensive and ideological.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1979.

This thesis is the study of one of the most consistently used primary sources of early seventeenth century Mughal India. The Embassy of Sir Thomas Roe, written by England's first ambassador to the court of Jahangi r, has traditionally been construed to be a succinct and perceptive account. Moreover, historians have relied on Thomas Roe's observations and conclusions to offer certain interpretations of Jahangi r's court: most notably, its decline as a forum of centralized absolutism into an arena of intrigue and rivalry. / Roe, as a product of Jacobean society, perceived Mughal events and institutions from an early seventeenth century English context, thus limiting any hope of "objective" reporting. To substantiate this assertation, this thesis investigates (a) Roe's life in England and how it related to ongoing literary and political movements; (b) the appearance of Jacobean language and metaphors in his text; (c) and highlighting these incongruencies by examining indigenous Mughal documents. Lastly, the study researches historiographical trends of the colonial era and why they have contributed to the consistent use of this source.

When considering the patronage of Maria de Medici following her return from exile in 1621, one must take into account the forty-eight monumental paintings she commissioned from Peter Paul Rubens. The contract between artist and patron specified two sets of twenty-four canvases: one dedicated to the life of Maria and the other to the life of King Henry IV. Maria intended the paintings to illustrate her continuation of the King's policies and the legitimacy of her own rule---themes that echoed her vast propaganda campaign. One reason for numerous scholarly interpretations of the Medici series is the incomplete nature of the Henry cycle. This thesis supports the idea espoused by one, and possibly two scholars (and then only in a selected fashion), that Maria and Henry's lives must be understood as unified and complementary in order to interpret the original commission correctly. Through the investigation of all extant material relating to the king's gallery, and how it contributes to the viewer's understanding of the Queen's gallery, as well as Maria's objectives, this idea comes into focus.

In 1622 Maria de Medici commissioned two series of twenty four paintings for the galleries in her new home in the Palais du Luxembourg from the renowned artist Peter Paul Rubens. The Henri cycle was to illustrate the "triumphs" of her late husband the King, and the Maria cycle was to illustrate the Queen's "illustrious life and heroic deeds". This thesis proposes that the Maria de Medici cycle cannot be disassociated from the Henri IV cycle because the Queen's intention was to present her reign as a continuation of his and to prove that she was equally capable to rule the French nation. Chosen by Henri as his successor, Maria overcame obstacles that originated in his reign and that jeopardised the throne for her son and the Bourbon line. / Although the Henri IV cycle was never completed, the paintings and sketches that exist make it possible to link the two galleries by the pivotal event of marriage. The Maria cycle addresses and resolves issues stemming from this union. The repetition of specific images and themes in the two cycles represents Maria's unique qualifications and reinforces the equality of the two sovereigns. Maria completed the mandate that Henri authorised her to carry out, ensuring peace at home and in Europe, thus justifying her designation as a heroine Queen.

The name of Sir David Dalrymple, Lord Hailes has always been known to students of Scottish history by reason of his 'Annals of Scotland', long accepted as a fundamental reference book for that period of Scottish history which it covers. It is safe to say, however that few of his other historical publications are now read. Those familiar with the anti-Gibbon literature also know him as one of Gibbon's most respected critics, while the recent studies of the 18th Century revival of interest in early and medieval literature have revealed his key position in this movement, both as an editor, and as an adviser and helper to others. In the legal profession, he was highly thought of as a lawyer and judge, and the number and importance of his correspondents testify to his wide acquaintance and high reputation amongst men of learning. Despite all this, no full account of the man and his work has previously been made, although there have been several unfinished attempts. [...] An attempt has been made to fit Hailes into the cultural and social background of his times, and to make some estimate of the influence and importance of his published work, with particular reference to the fields of history and literature. Much of the basic research in this thesis was done in compiling Appendices A and B. No reliable list of Hailes's publications has ever been drawn up, and Appendix A is a serious attempt to fill this gap. A complete check-list of Hailes's extant correspondence has not been attempted previously and Appendix B is designed to supply this omission.

This study is an attempt to describe the critical reputation of Richard Steele's role in the Tatler as it has evolved through three centuries, from Steele's own time to 1965. The study provides for the first time a considerable and representative sampling of critical comment from the eighteenth century through the twentieth century, determines significant trends in the criticism, observes how earlier commentary affects later statements, and evaluates in some measure the validity of critical opinion.The student who seeks a full and accurate understanding of Steele's role in and contribution to the Tatler encounters particular difficulty because critical opinion has differed widely from Steele's own age to the present, and many commentaries fail to describe these differences fully or accurately. Critical opinion through the years has varied from unbridled praise of Steele to conscious deprecation of his abilities. Some writers credit Steele with very little responsibility for the success of the Tatler, yet some cite him as the major architect of the paper. Some critics view the Tatler, as merely a more undeveloped precursor of the Spectator, less perfect in plan or purpose, while others consider the earlier periodical superior to the later one. To add to the confusion, commentators have occasionally embroiled themselves in controversy over the relative literary merits and abilities of Steele and Addison, and some have gone even farther afield, diverting attention from both writers' literary merits by discussing individual character traits or personal habits. These differences of opinion and irrelevancies have resulted in a somewhat confused view of Steele and his contributions to the Tatler, leaving the student with no clear statement which summarizes adequately the variety of opinions which exists.What emerges from this study of the critical reputation of Steele's role in the Tatler is that Steele has been variously and inconsistently described by the writers of three centuries. His early reputation as an expert prose stylist gave way to descriptions of his neglect and carelessness in his writing, aggravated by attacks on his character and personal habits. Early descriptions of the Tatler as a journal of morals and manners and as a reformer of society obscured other features of the paper, and the exalting of Addison's role in the periodical obscured the importance and nature of Steele's contributions.The idea that the Tatler was essentially an imperfect predecessor of the spectator, obscured Steele's efforts to give it both variety and unity, and diverted attention from detailed study of the periodical. Generalizations about the various features of the paper such as its alleged avoidance of politics or its gallant treatment of women similarly obscured accurate descriptions of Steele's writing.The studies of modern scholars suggest that Steele was not only a competent writer, but a journalist of extraordinary ability who planned his periodical carefully and tailored it to the interests and tastes of his readers. These studies also suggest that the reforming influence of Steele and the Tatler has been exaggerated and that Steele was more likely only reflecting the changing standards of the times. Modern scholars recognize Steele as the originator of, responsible editor of, and chief contributor to the Tatler, and while many of the devices used in the earlier periodical were also used in the Spectator, the Tatler has its own unique and distinguishing features.Thus, a synthesis of critical opinion on Steele's role in the Tatler places Steele in a newer and clearer perspective while indicating the main interests, methods, and approaches of literary criticism in English over a period of the past 250 years.

Peter Paul Rubens' creative genius, as expressed with consummate mastery in his paintings, is but one of the many elements that have compounded to establish his fame. He is also renowned as a man of immense erudition. Indeed, his reputation is such that it is taken for granted that his great learning informed all aspects of his art in a fundamental way. / In accordance with this kind of thinking, current scholarship on Rubens accepts, as a matter of course, that the artist, whilst creating his painted works, followed the dictates of a colour theory, as we would know it today. In fact, on the basis of circumstantial evidence, it has been accepted that Rubens invented a colour theory that may be seen as innovative for his time. / This thesis assesses the evidence which has led researchers to formulate such a conclusion. As a consequence, it investigates the circumstances of Rubens association with Francois de Aguilon during the final stages of the latter's publication of his book on optics, the Opticorum libri sex. ... As well, the artist's correspondence with his friend, Nicolas Fabri de Peiresc, which contains allusions to an autograph manuscript purported to contain Rubens' thoughts on colour, is re-examined. Indeed, this very correspondence reveals that Rubens did not consider himself particularly knowledgeable about the theoretical aspects colour. / On the basis of a thorough review of these existing documents; an investigation into relevant biographical circumstances; and an examination of the artist's technique, it is here proposed that Rubens did not consciously apply theoretical principles to his craft, but rather, that any of the discernable elements of what is considered to be modern colour theory are in the paintings only because the demands of the painter's craft serendipitously parallel art historians' theoretical hindsight.