Themes
Themes prominent among the manuscript contents are identified, using a standardized list
Displaying 1–25 themes out of 38 total
Theme | Description | Major Theme | Minor Theme |
---|---|---|---|
Alcohol, other beverages, tobacco | Discussion of drinking alcohol, tea, or coffee, or inhaling tobacco; drinking songs. |
2 | 32 |
Animals, pets | Pets; deaths of pets; animal fables; animal speakers. |
7 | 70 |
Bodily functions | Generally impolite subjects related to the physical body, such as elimination and sexual acts. |
3 | 10 |
Celebrities | Includes aristocrats, politicians, theatre figures, various artists and authors when the focus is on their personalities, behaviour, or reputations, rather than their political or artistic contributions. |
40 | 22 |
Classical themes | English-language rewritings, or discussions of, stories or passages or characters from the Greek and Roman classical tradition. |
16 | 27 |
Conduct, morality | Includes behavioural advice to women, young male travellers, and other groups; also discussion of modes of life such as retirement; contemporary trends (see also Satire - social). |
74 | 31 |
Courtship, marriage | Social practices and dynamics of courtship and marriage (see also Family; Love; Satire-social). |
58 | 36 |
Death, afterlife | Expressions of mourning; grief; hope or fear regarding life after death; discussions of heaven, Last Judgement. |
110 | 36 |
Devotional writing, religious belief | Expressions of Christian devotion; prayers and meditations; creeds; theological arguments (see also Satire-religious). |
61 | 27 |
Domestic life | Discussion of domestic activities such as cooking, dressing, washing; portraits of domestic life (see also Courtship, marriage; Family; Solitude, loneliness, retirement). |
11 | 12 |
Education | Related to educational institutions or educational experiences; schoolmasters; events at university colleges; school exercises. |
17 | 21 |
Family | Includes parent-child relations and sibling relations; spousal relationships are generally included in Courtship, marriage. |
28 | 28 |
French poetry | Items in French, which may or may not be presented in translation also. |
0 | 18 |
Friendship | Discussions of same-sex friendship or of friendship between members of a club or social group; generally celebratory or commemorative. |
40 | 29 |
German poetry | Items in German, which may or may not be presented in translation also. |
0 | 1 |
Greek poetry | Items in Greek, which may or may not be presented in translation also. |
0 | 8 |
Historical subjects | Imaginative recreations or reponses to past events and characters. |
11 | 19 |
Humour, wordplay | Jokes; whimsy; wordplay; items with a humourous punchline (see also Satire; Imitation, parody). |
49 | 24 |
Illness | Prayers and reflections on illness; discussions of medical treatments (see also Death, afterlife). |
8 | 44 |
Imitation, parody | Items identified as imitating the style of well-known poets or poems, often with parodic intent. |
10 | 46 |
Italian poetry | Items in Italian, which may or may not be presented in translation also. |
0 | 6 |
Latin poetry | Items in Latin, which may or may not be presented in translation also. |
15 | 34 |
Literature | Discussions of a particular work, or the works of a particular author or authors; includes discussions of letters, manuscript poetry books (see also Shakespeare). |
23 | 41 |
Local interest | Related to local events, country houses, gardens, other landmarks. |
26 | 13 |
Love | Expressions of romantic feeling, love for a partner; wooing poems; love lyrics (see also Courtship, marriage). |
39 | 30 |