Book launch: Gabriel Harvey and the History of Reading

Gabriel Harvey and the History of Reading: Essays by Lisa Jardine and others
Edited by Anthony Grafton, Nicholas Popper, and William H. Sherman (published by UCL Press, Jan 2024)

Few articles in the humanities have had the impact of Lisa Jardine and Anthony Grafton’s seminal ‘Studied for Action: How Gabriel Harvey Read His Livy’ (published in Past & Present in 1990). Their excavation of the setting, methods and ambitions of Gabriel Harvey’s encounters with his books gave new life to the History of Reading, an interdisciplinary field which quickly became one of the most exciting corners of the scholarly cosmos. A generation inspired by the model of Harvey fanned out across the world’s libraries and archives, seeking to reveal the many creative, unexpected and curious ways that individuals throughout history responded to texts, and how these interpretations in turn illuminate past worlds.

Three decades on, Harvey’s example and Jardine’s work remain central to cutting-edge scholarship in the History of Reading--particularly with the advent of digital tools such as The Archaeology of Reading. This event will celebrate the recent publication (by UCL Press) of Gabriel Harvey and the History of Reading: Essays by Lisa Jardine and Others. By uniting ‘Studied for Action’ with published and unpublished studies on Harvey by Jardine, Grafton and the scholars they have influenced, this collection provides a unique lens on the place of marginalia in textual, intellectual and cultural history. The chapters capture subsequent work on Harvey and map the fields opened by Jardine and Grafton’s original article, collectively offering a posthumous tribute to Lisa Jardine and an authoritative overview of the History of Reading.

5-6pm: Roundtable

The volume’s editors and contributors will reflect on their contributions to the project and offer current perspectives on the History of Reading.
Chair: Bill Sherman (Director, Warburg Institute)
Speakers:

• Robyn Adams and Matthew Symonds (UCL’s Centre for Editing Lives and Letters)
• Nicholas Popper (Associate Professor of History, William & Mary)
• Earle Havens (Nancy H. Hall Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts, Johns Hopkins University)
• Sara Miglietti (Senior Lecturer in Cultural and Intellectual History, Warburg Institute)
• Anthony Grafton (Henry Putnam University Professor of History, Princeton University)

6-7pm: Celebration

The rountable will be followed by a drinks reception. Please ensure you register to attend.