Arjan van Dixhoorn

Theatre Society in the Early Modern Low Countries: Theatricality, Controversy, and Publicity in Amsterdam in the 1530s

This chapter shows how an early modern theatre society facilitated forms of public debate and the formation of public opinion which Habermas believed to have been absent at the time for lack of proper media and of an engaged and informed public. Using the case of Amsterdam in the 1530s it argues that a sophisticated interplay of theatrical, visual, oral, manuscript and printed media increased public debate, and helped create an interregional movement and the formation of its leadership. Theatrical means were used by various layers of society to create maximum publicity effects. Finally, the chapter argues that, if societies can be characterized by their dominant communication systems, then, given the example of Amsterdam and many other places in and outside the Low Countries, early modern urban society can be termed a theatre society. Keywords:Amsterdam; early modern theatre society; Low Countries; public debate; public opinion

Literary cultures and public opinion in the early modern Low Countries

Sixteenth-century political, religious and intellectual authorities were themselves concerned about the persuasive power of songs and poems. Fearing the divisive potential of such works, they developed special censorship rules such as bans on the treatment of certain subjects, the checking of texts prior to performance, and thereafter prosecution and, where deemed necessary, sanctions. This chapter examines the process of the formation of public opinion in the early modern Low Countries with a special focus on the insufficiently examined role of literature in forming opinions and ways of thinking. It shows that the early modern Low Countries did in fact have the potential to develop a public opinion, and that literary works were important in this regard. The chapter demonstrates that it should be no less natural for historians to use responses to social, political, religious and other issues which appeared in a literary form as well as other sources. Keywords: early modern Low Countries; public opinion

Early Modern Literary Cultures And Public Opinion: An Epilogue In The Form Of A Discussion

This chapter discusses the relevance of the notion of public opinion to the study of the literary culture of an early modern society. The link between spaces and publics is crucial to the study of public opinion since views and texts have their origins in communities and networks. The appearance of the fictitious representation of public opinion in many texts shows that people were familiar with the notion, and quite likely were aware of the problematic nature of such representations as well as of their impact on the way people estimated mainstream views and trends. A literary work could reflect the opinion of a single individual or a small group, and at the same time claim to represent the opinion of a larger group or community. Keywords: literary culture; public opinion