Transparency And Dissimulation: Configurations ... Apr 2026

: The monograph connects these ideas to the wider "Transformations of Antiquity," showing how early modern writers adapted classical thought to suit contemporary theological and political contexts. The Influence of "Transformations of Antiquity"

Scholars from Spenser Online and Academia.edu have noted the book's "intellectual rigour" in linking aesthetic perfection with Neoplatonic metaphysics, cementing it as a foundational text for understanding the philosophical underpinnings of early modern prose and poetry. Verena Olejniczak Lobsien, Transparency and Dissimulation

: Specifically, the study looks at The Faerie Queene , where Neoplatonism provides the framework for understanding aesthetic perfection and moral virtue. Transparency and Dissimulation: Configurations ...

The title captures the dual nature of the Neoplatonic aesthetic during this period:

: The belief that the material world can become "transparent" to the divine, allowing the human soul to glimpse eternal truths through beauty and art. : The monograph connects these ideas to the

Transparency and Dissimulation: Configurations of Neoplatonism in Early Modern English Literature. Transformationen der Antike 16. Academia.edu A Cartesian Renaissance - Spenser Online Archive

This research was conducted within the "Transformations of Antiquity" collaborative research center in Berlin. It emphasizes that Neoplatonism was not just "inherited" from the past but was actively transformed. These transformations often involved a hybridity of ideas, where Neoplatonic love and beauty were negotiated alongside skepticism and the shifting religious identities of the Reformation. The title captures the dual nature of the

Lobsien traces these philosophical strands through the works of several major English authors, with a particular focus on: