C - Topical breakdown of Elizabethan popular literature

Summary

The topical breakdown of these works depends, to a certain extent, on the decisions of the person who compiles the filing system. Should Foxe's Acts and Monuments be filed under ‘religion’ or ‘history’? Does Southwell's religious poetry belong under ‘religion’ or ‘poetry and fiction’? Are descriptions of Tudor voyages ‘essays’ or ‘history’? In each of these cases, I have opted for the latter choice, but I admit that the placement of such borderline works tends to be arbitrary. For the sake of clarity, then, I have compiled the following brief sketch of my filing system so that the reader can study the choices I have made if he wishes. Works are listed under their author's name only, except in cases where confusion might arise; in these cases, I have given the STC number as well. All the works referred to here appear in full in Appendix A.