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John Gower and the structures of conversion

Name: John Gower and the structures of conversion
Author: Kurt Olsson
ISBN: 9780859913140

by Kurt Olsson

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Overview

This book examines the significance of John Gower's re-creations of the cultural past in the Confessio Amantis through the stories and teachings of the confessor, Genius. Although the poem has many of the attributes of a compilation, Gower reforms material to create a range of 'wise' responses to important moral questions, intendedto sharpen his readers' judgment and nurture their capacity to deal with the uncertainties of the moral life. Olsson analyses the poet's conversions of old to new as an effort to inspire the moral renewal of the age. He contends that the poet sees the past as the key to the regeneration of the world. In this reading, the past, a never-new and renewable repository of wisdom, also holds a promise for Amans, who learns that he is an old man unfit to serve in Venus's court. Thus the author perceives Gower to offer a strong, responsive and balanced moral vision to an age seemingly victimised by change.