Jiayi Xu

Renaissance literature is abundant in mirror-metaphors of different shades of meaning, of which the flattering glass is worthy of attention and a more detailed discussion. The flatterer as a mirror-metaphor frequently appears in the passages of Renaissance writers, such as Edmund Spenser, William Shakespeare and John Lyly. This paper aims at introducing the convention of metaphorical mirrors, and then exploring the flattering mirror-imagery, including both its qualities and influence on the beholder revealed in specific literary texts. Through the analysis of this selective example of mirror metaphors, it helps to have an insight of the rich connotation and effect of the Renaissance writing of the “mirror”.

mirror; flattering glass; English Renaissance

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