Hypocrisy and Humour in the English Reformation.

  • Published In: Studies in Church History, 2024, v. 60. P. 176 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Shagan, Ethan H. 3 of 3

Abstract

This article examines jokes about religion, particularly religious hypocrisy, in early modern English jestbooks, from the 1520s to the 1740s. It argues that over the course of England's Long Reformation, we find more and more jokes in which the solution, or alternative, to hypocrisy is not a more robust faith, making the inward heart correspond to one's outward show of religion, but rather a more profane Christianity, making one's outward face correspond to an all-too-human and worldly heart. Jokes about religious hypocrisy thus betray both a deep anxiety about piety, and the emergence of a profane species of Protestantism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additional Information

  • Source:Studies in Church History. 2024/06, Vol. 60, p176
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Literature and Writing
  • Publication Date:2024
  • ISSN:0424-2084
  • DOI:10.1017/stc.2024.5
  • Accession Number:177435538
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of Studies in Church History is the property of Cambridge University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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