Title page of "Pierce Penilesse his Supplication to the Diuell" by Thomas NashEngraving of Thomas Nashe
Pierce Penniless his Supplication to the Divell is a tall tale, or a prose satire, written by Thomas Nashe and published in London in 1592.[1] It was among the most popular of the Elizabethan pamphlets. It was reprinted in 1593 and 1595,[2] and in 1594 was translated into French.[3][4]
It is written from the point of view of Pierce, a man who has not met with good fortune, who now bitterly complains of the world's wickedness, and addresses his complaints to the devil. At times the identity of Pierce seems to conflate with Nashe's own. But Nashe also portrays Pierce as something of an arrogant and prodigal fool. The story is told in a style that is complex, witty, fulminating, extemporaneous, digressive, anecdotal, filled with wicked descriptions, and peppered with newly minted words and Latin phrases. The satire can be mocking and bitingly sharp, and at times Nashe’s style seems to relish its own obscurity.[5][6]
^Drabble, Margaret, ed. The Oxford Companion to English Literature. Oxford University Press. 1985
^Harrison, G. B. Thomas Nashe, Pierce Penilesse, His Supplication to the Divell. Corwen Press. 1924
^Gossse, Edmund. The Unfortunate Traveller or the Life of Jack Wilton: With an Essay on the Life and Writings of Thomas Nash. The Chiswick Press. 1892
^Stapleton, Michael, editor.The Cambridge Guide to English Literature. Cambridge University Press. 1983
^The Columbia Encyclopedia. Columbia University Press. Ed. William Bridgwater. 1963
^Greenblatt, Stephen. Will in the World; How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare. Pimlico. 2005. p. 202
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