Shakespeare & Early Modern Proverbial Culture

Research Aims

By offering a fresh examination of early modern proverbs, this project aims substantially to advance scholarly and public understanding of their literary and cultural significance.T his project has the potential to reshape how scholars, editors, and students engage with proverbs in early modern literature and culture.

Our specific aims are as follows:

1. To create new frameworks for studying proverbs in early modern texts that incorporate different disciplinary approaches, and to instigate a fresh investigation into the formal and functional characteristics of early modern proverbs

2. To investigate the distribution and function of early modern proverbs across different media and social boundaries, and consider how proverbs construct cultural norms and social relationships 

3. To enhance public understanding of proverbs by demonstrating both their transhistorical reach and their ability to capture culturally specific world-views

4. To evaluate relevant tools and techniques for identifying and classifying early modern proverbs, including digital methods and artificial intelligence

5. To foster dialogue and knowledge exchange between academic and non-academic partners

6. To produce world-leading publications exploring the use of proverbs by Shakespeare and his contemporaries

7. To bring together an international network of leading experts from different disciplines to explore these questions collaboratively. 

8. Coordinate three interdisciplinary workshops, an international conference, and linked public engagement events

9. Disseminate research via an essay collection, blogs, and online resources that will inform scholarly practice and engage non-academic audiences