The relation between court and literature in the seventeenth century (1579-1700)

Any attempt to trace the relation between the Court and the literature of the 17th. Century must be preceded by some definition of the Court and a brief record of the changes that came over it during the period under discussion. This will facilitate an appreciation of the nature of the relationship between the two. We are here only concerned with the social side of Court life, and its influence on the literature of the period. The royal theories and interests in matters of government, and the literature produced in support or refutation of these tenets, we need not consider, since they would necessitate our forsaking the Court for the larger field of politics. The influence too of culture on contemporary literature must be approached with care. Early in Elizabeth's reign the Court was the main abode of learning, scholar and courtier were almost interchangeable terms but in the course of time the Renaissance influence spread to other branches of society, with the result that now it is often difficult to distinguish between those things due to the court and those due to learning only