Until the early 1960s John Lyly's reputation as playwright and prose writer rested largely upon the influence his plays were thought to have exerted upon the work of later dramatists (notably Shakespeare) and upon his creation of a unique prose style...

C. S. Lewis's remark in English Literature in the Sixteenth Century, Excluding Drama (1954) about Philip Sidney's Arcadia that "What a man thinks of it ... tests the depth of his sympathy with the sixteenth century," is perhaps even truer of John...

Endymion: John Lyly. Ed. by David Bevington. (The Revels Plays) Manchester and New York: Manchester University Press. 1996. xvi+206 pp. [pound]40. The Plays of John Lyly: 'Eros and Eliza'. Ed. by Michael Pincombe. (The Revels Plays Companion Library) Manchester and New York:...

The most common assumption about John Lyly's court comedies has been that they embody an unproblematic celebration of Queen Elizabeth and her rule. (1) Recent critics, however, have problematized such a reading by arguing that the apparent allusions to the queen are often...

In the following excerpt, Hunter investigates the "debate-theme" of Midas, Endimion, and Gallathea.

In the following excerpt from an essay originally published in 1905, Wilson explains the importance of Euphues in literary history, discussing Lyly's emphasis on diction, precision, and lucidity; the significance of Lyly's insistence that Euphues and His England was written "for the eyes of ladies"; and the reasons that, although euphuism itself failed, its influence on English prose was profound.

In the following excerpt, Bond praises Lyly for his constant attention to form, and examines his writing style, its sources, and its influence on Shakespeare and other writers.