Maria Wickert: Studies in John Gower, 2nd rev. ed.
Studien zu John Gower.

Author/Editor
Meindl, Robert J., ed.
Wickert, Maria.

Title
Maria Wickert: Studies in John Gower, 2nd rev. ed.
Studien zu John Gower.

Published
Meindl, Robert J., trans. Maria Wickert: Studies in John Gower, 2nd rev. ed. (Tempe, AZ: Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies, 2016). ISBN: 9780866985413.

Review
Maria Wickert's 1953 "Studien zu John Gower" is a foundational and influential work in Gower studies. Focusing primarily upon the VC, Wickert examines the poem's formal traits and its recensions to argue that Gower was composing the Vox throughout the end of Richard II's reign and even after Richard's deposition. Wickert's study has become central for Gowerians beyond even those who focus primarily on the Vox. Her examination of Gower's voice, of his political and social ties and interests, of his trilingual project, of his use of homiletic, Ovidian, and other materials, especially the iconographic archer, all hold central positions in our understanding of Gower over fifty years after her work was first published. Robert Meindl first translated and published an English edition of Wickert's work in 1981, and this second edition incorporates a number of useful updates. Notes include references to publications that have appeared since the original 1953 German edition. The text has been modernized both with respect to current scholarly standards and usage, such as current manuscript designations. Some German passages have been retranslated for clarity. And most significantly, translation of Latin citations has been largely redone to address some problematic translations noted in first edition. R. F. Yeager's Introduction to this edition succinctly and effectively summarizes and assesses Wickert's contribution to Gower studies. [BWG. Copyright. The John Gower Society. eJGN 36.1]

Date
2016

Gower Subjects
Backgrounds and General Criticism
Vox Clamantis