Call for Papers for a Special Issue of the Journal of the Northern Renaissance: Numbers in Early Modern Writing
Call for Papers for a Special Issue of the Journal of the
Northern
Renaissance: Numbers in Early Modern Writing
Submission deadline: 1 December 2013. Estimated date of
publication:
September 2014
Early modern books are full of numbers, representing both
practicality and mystery. The Journal of the Northern Renaissance invites
contributions for a special issue exploring numbers in early modern literature
and textual culture. How were numbers and numerical techniques used in drama,
dance, and music? What were the practical issues arising from printing
numerical texts, and how were numbers represented on the page? How were the
index and the cross-reference created and used? To what extent would an early
modern audience recognize mathematical references in literary texts and
performance? Who would buy an arithmetic book and how might they use it?
Articles are invited on, but not confined to, the
following subject areas:
Ways of counting and things to count: inventories and
accounts; time and tempo; feet and metre.
Numbers in print: reference tables, logarithms,
cross-referencing, indices.
Ciphering and deciphering.
The use of zero and other mathematical symbols in
literature and drama.
Dance, music and other numerical art forms.
Making a reckoning: performing numbers on stage.
Numbers in the material text: ways of using numerical
books, and their owners.
Mystical numbers, kaballah, numerology.
Mathematical methodologies; measuring, mapping and
quantifying.
This issue will be guest-edited by Dr Katherine Hunt and
Rebecca Tomlin, organisers of a conference on the topic held at Birkbeck,
University of London, in May 2013, from which some of the papers are expected
to be taken. Potential contributors are advised to consult the notes on
submissions procedure and style guidelines http://www.northernrenaissance.org/information/.
Initial enquiries regarding possible contributions can be
sent to