Renaissance Women Poets

Whitney''s two volumes of verse miscellany, ''Sweet Nosegay'' (1573) and ''The Copy of a Letter'' (1567), were part of a literary trend of combining classical and Biblical references with popular and vernacular sources, and reflect the growing literary appetites of the urban population. As well a selection of her original poetry, this volume includes Sidney''s version of the Psalms of David and Petrach''s ''Triumph of Death''. Lanyer''s poetry is devotional and is the most single-minded and explicit inits advocacy of female spirituality and virtue. Included here are ''Salve Deus Rex Judaeorum'' and ''The Description of Cooke-ham''.