Thomas Deloney
Thomas Deloney was a notable Elizabethan writer from London, recognized for his contributions to both balladry and prose fiction. Initially trained as a weaver in Norwich, Deloney began crafting ballads on contemporary events, which became popular among the public as they were printed on single sheets and sold on the streets. By around 1585, he had relocated to London and focused entirely on his writing career. Although many of his ballads have been lost to time, two significant collections of his work, "The Garland of Good Will" and "Strange Histories of Kings, Princes, Dukes," are still acknowledged today.
Deloney's most acclaimed prose work is "The Pleasant History of John Winchcomb in His Younger Days Called Jack of Newbery," which celebrates the virtues of weavers. He also wrote "The Gentle Craft," a two-part narrative honoring shoemakers, likely influencing later plays such as Thomas Dekker's "The Shoemaker's Holiday." Additionally, "Thomas of Reading" showcases the clothiers of England. His narratives skillfully blend romantic and realistic elements, portraying the lives of trades and crafts during the Elizabethan era against semi-historical backdrops, making his work significant in the context of early English literature.
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Thomas Deloney
English novelist
- Born: 1543?
- Birthplace: Norwich, England
- Died: 1600
- Place of death: Unknown
Biography
Thomas Deloney was a hack writer of Elizabethan London and the author of innumerable occasional ballads and broadside sheets as well as a pioneer in English prose fiction. As a boy, he learned the trade of a weaver, and he began writing ballads on contemporary events while working at his trade in Norwich. About 1585, he moved to London, where he seems to have devoted all of his time to writing. He was the author of many ballads, which at the time were printed on single sheets of paper and hawked about the streets. Deloney, according to tradition, was the successor to William Elderton, the chief balladeer of the early 1580’s. Although many of his ballads have long since been lost, there are two collections of his work: The Garland of Good Will and Strange Histories of Kings, Princes, Dukes.
It is for his work as a writer of prose narratives that Deloney is usually remembered. His best-known work is The Pleasant History of John Winchcomb in His Younger Days Called Jack of Newbery, usually referred to as Jack of Newbery. The volume is a realistic prose narrative extolling the virtues of weavers, the author’s fellow tradesmen. Another prose narrative by Deloney, the two-part The Gentle Craft, in which he glorifies shoemakers, probably influenced Thomas Dekker’s popular play The Shoemaker’s Holiday (1599). A third prose narrative by Deloney is Thomas of Reading, which praises the clothiers of England. All three narratives combine romantic and realistic techniques in dealing with phases of the life of Elizabethan trades and crafts against semihistorical backgrounds.
Bibliography
Howarth, R. G. Two Elizabethan Writers of Fiction: Thomas Nashe and Thomas Deloney. 1956. Reprint. Folcroft, Pa.: Folcroft Library Editions, 1970.
Lawlis, Merritt E. Apology for the Middle Class: The Dramatic Novels of Thomas Deloney. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1960.
Reuter, O. R. Proverbs, Proverbial Sentences, and Phrases in Thomas Deloney’s Works. Helsinki, Finland: Finnish Society of Sciences and Letters, 1986.
Simons, John. Realistic Romance: The Prose Fiction of Thomas Deloney. Winchester, England: King Alfred’s College, 1983.
Stemmler, Theo. “The Rise of a New Literary Genre: Thomas Deloney’s Bourgeois Novel Jack of Newbury.” In Telling Stories: Studies in Honour of Ulrich Broich on the Occasion of His Sixtieth Birthday, edited by Elmar Lehmann and Bernd Lenz. Philadelphia: B. R. Grüner, 1992.
Wright, Eugene Patrick. Thomas Deloney. Boston: Twayne, 1981.