‘Ev’ry Gamester winneth by the sport’: George Wither’s Emblem Lottery (1635)
George Wither, a notoriously controversial poet of the 17th century, wrote in the introductory text to his Collection of Emblemes in 1635 that he was adding a “harmless […] recreation”, referring to the lottery game he included in his book, which contains two hundred emblems. Wither goes to great le...
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| Опубликовано в: : | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles, |
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| Главный автор: | |
| Формат: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Язык: | Anglais |
| Опубликовано: |
Angles
2020
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| Предметы: | |
| Online-ссылка: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:angles_2956 |
|---|---|
| record_format |
openedition |
| collection |
OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
rhétorique jeux Wither George emblèmes jeu de loterie satire rhetoric games emblems Wither George lottery game satire |
| spellingShingle |
rhétorique jeux Wither George emblèmes jeu de loterie satire rhetoric games emblems Wither George lottery game satire Duff, Pierre Le ‘Ev’ry Gamester winneth by the sport’: George Wither’s Emblem Lottery (1635) |
| description |
George Wither, a notoriously controversial poet of the 17th century, wrote in the introductory text to his Collection of Emblemes in 1635 that he was adding a “harmless […] recreation”, referring to the lottery game he included in his book, which contains two hundred emblems. Wither goes to great length to claim that his lottery is merely an innocent pastime that was added to the work to make it less “over-solid and serious”, but a careful examination of the game in relation to the rest of the volume reveals a more complex rhetorical and aesthetic purpose. The lottery game is allegorically represented in the middle of the frontispiece on the first page of the book, an intricate engraving by William Marshall representing the pilgrimage of life on the paths of virtue and vice, where the pilgrims draw their metaphorical lots from an ewer under the supervision of Fortune personified. As the frontispiece can be read as an emblematic representation of the volume, this mise-en-abyme contradicts the poet’s assertions about the lottery’s incidental nature, and therefore raises questions on its true place in the work. Through his game, Wither establishes a close, personal, often tongue-in-cheek and multi-faceted relationship with his readers, addressing them directly and creating the impression that the broad and general advice provided in the emblems is in fact tailored to their very personal needs. It is an original vector for social criticism and satire, and mirrors the author’s own religious and philosophical ambiguities with respect to notions such as free will, personal responsibility, and fortune. It grants the emblems a theatrical, dynamic, and social dimension that testifies to Wither’s profound understanding of the rhetorical possibilities granted to him both by the emblematic genre and by the nature of a game. |
| author |
Duff, Pierre Le |
| author_facet |
Duff, Pierre Le |
| author_sort |
Duff, Pierre Le |
| title |
‘Ev’ry Gamester winneth by the sport’: George Wither’s Emblem Lottery (1635) |
| title_short |
‘Ev’ry Gamester winneth by the sport’: George Wither’s Emblem Lottery (1635) |
| title_full |
‘Ev’ry Gamester winneth by the sport’: George Wither’s Emblem Lottery (1635) |
| title_fullStr |
‘Ev’ry Gamester winneth by the sport’: George Wither’s Emblem Lottery (1635) |
| title_full_unstemmed |
‘Ev’ry Gamester winneth by the sport’: George Wither’s Emblem Lottery (1635) |
| title_sort |
‘ev’ry gamester winneth by the sport’: george wither’s emblem lottery (1635) |
| publisher |
Angles |
| publishDate |
2020 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/angles.2956 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/angles/2956 |
| _version_ |
1877293836389056512 |
| spelling |
openedition-oai:revues.org:angles_2956 https://doi.org/10.4000/angles.2956 urn:doi:10.4000/angles.2956 en https://journals.openedition.org/angles/2956 2020-11-11T01:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/9n18 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ‘Ev’ry Gamester winneth by the sport’: George Wither’s Emblem Lottery (1635) Angles Société des Anglicistes de l'Enseignement Supérieur info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2274-2042 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles Duff, Pierre Le rhétorique jeux Wither George emblèmes jeu de loterie satire rhetoric games emblems Wither George lottery game satire George Wither, a notoriously controversial poet of the 17th century, wrote in the introductory text to his Collection of Emblemes in 1635 that he was adding a “harmless […] recreation”, referring to the lottery game he included in his book, which contains two hundred emblems. Wither goes to great length to claim that his lottery is merely an innocent pastime that was added to the work to make it less “over-solid and serious”, but a careful examination of the game in relation to the rest of the volume reveals a more complex rhetorical and aesthetic purpose. The lottery game is allegorically represented in the middle of the frontispiece on the first page of the book, an intricate engraving by William Marshall representing the pilgrimage of life on the paths of virtue and vice, where the pilgrims draw their metaphorical lots from an ewer under the supervision of Fortune personified. As the frontispiece can be read as an emblematic representation of the volume, this mise-en-abyme contradicts the poet’s assertions about the lottery’s incidental nature, and therefore raises questions on its true place in the work. Through his game, Wither establishes a close, personal, often tongue-in-cheek and multi-faceted relationship with his readers, addressing them directly and creating the impression that the broad and general advice provided in the emblems is in fact tailored to their very personal needs. It is an original vector for social criticism and satire, and mirrors the author’s own religious and philosophical ambiguities with respect to notions such as free will, personal responsibility, and fortune. It grants the emblems a theatrical, dynamic, and social dimension that testifies to Wither’s profound understanding of the rhetorical possibilities granted to him both by the emblematic genre and by the nature of a game. George Wither, poète anglais controversé du dix-septième siècle, écrivit dans l’un des textes d’introduction à son œuvre A Collection of Emblemes en 1635 qu’il ajoutait un « divertissement […] innocent », faisant référence au jeu de loterie qu’il avait inclus dans l’ouvrage, un livre de deux cents emblèmes. Wither insiste sur le caractère innocent de sa loterie, et affirme qu’il n’a consenti à l’inclure dans le volume que pour que celui-ci soit moins aride et moralisateur. Néanmoins, une analyse du jeu à la lumière du volume dans son intégralité permet de discerner son rôle au sein d’un projet rhétorique et esthétique complexe. La loterie fait l’objet d’une représentation méta-emblématique au centre du frontispice de l’ouvrage, une imposante gravure de l’artiste William Marshall qui représente le pèlerinage de la vie, tantôt sur le chemin du vice, tantôt sur celui de la vertu. Lorsque les pèlerins atteignent la croisée des chemins, sous la supervision de dame Fortune, ils plongent la main dans une urne afin d’y trouver le lot qui les accompagnera tout au long du périple. Le jeu de loterie fait ainsi partie intégrante du volume, et ne peut être relégué à une simple annexe ludique, nonobstant ce qu’en dit l’auteur. À travers le jeu, Wither construit une relation interpersonnelle complexe avec ses lecteurs, s’adresse à eux directement et crée l’impression que les emblèmes, malgré leur portée générale, constituent en réalité des conseils et des avertissements personnalisés à l’égard des joueurs à qui le sort les aura réservés. De plus, la spécificité du jeu permet à Wither d’exprimer ses opinions parfois subversives, mais également de participer à un débat philosophique de son époque, celui du libre-arbitre, de la responsabilité individuelle et de la fortune. Le jeu de loterie confère aux emblèmes une dimension théâtrale et dynamique qui témoigne du potentiel rhétorique de l’activité ludique, potentiel dont Wither avait saisi la subtilité. |