Sources of Shakespeare’s Plays: Four Difficulties

A writer of such prodigious and prolix nature as William Shakespeare, his primary concern was to get hold of a story that could be shaped to the needs of the theatre. For, he was essentially a man of the theatre with a practical sense and eye always on what would please the palates of his audience.

 And Shakespeare’s plays, as has already been mentioned, were meant to be enacted and not for closet reading. So, the story came first with him. William Shakespeare’s for all this popularity and universality was not an original story – writer but an original story – teller only. Shakespeare was a unique creator; but not an inventor of stories. He never took the trouble of inventing his plots. He drew upon, for the materials of his plays, such stories as had already been invented or recorded, provided only that they were suitable to his particular purpose, and were well – known or popular. Where from did William Shakespeare get so many stories for so many of his plays? It is here that we turn to the topic on hand, Shakespeare’s sources. There are four difficulties in a discussion of Shakespeare’s use of his sources.

[A] So many Elizabethan books have been lost.

So many Elizabethan books have been lost. So many plays which William Shakespeare may have known as actor or spectator were never published. The inevitable result is that we cannot always be certain that he did not derive information from them rather than form works which he seems to have used.

This is a major difficulty because it means that we cannot always be sure whether Shakespeare knew a particular book or not. For example, there is a book called "The Mirror for Magistrates" that was very popular in Shakespeare's time, but only a few copies of it survive today. It is possible that Shakespeare knew this book, but we cannot be sure.

There are a number of reasons why Elizabethan books have been lost. Some books were simply not popular and were not reprinted. Others were destroyed in fires or other disasters. And still others were simply lost or discarded over time.

The loss of these books makes it difficult to track down Shakespeare's sources. However, scholars have been able to find a number of sources for Shakespeare's plays, even though the books themselves are no longer available.

[B]There was a great deal of common knowledge repeated in book after book.

There was a great deal of common knowledge repeated in book after book. Hence a particular source for such ‘commonplaces’ is often impossible to determine. 

This is another difficulty because it means that it is often impossible to determine the source of a particular piece of information. For example, the story of Romeo and Juliet is a well-known one, and it appears in many different forms. It is possible that Shakespeare knew the story from one of these sources, but it is also possible that he created his own version of the story.

The fact that there was a great deal of common knowledge in Shakespeare's time makes it difficult to track down his sources. However, scholars have been able to use a number of methods to identify Shakespeare's sources, even when the information is repeated in many different places.

[C]The extent of Shakespeare's knowledge of foreign languages is still a matter of critical debate.

The extent of Shakespeare’s knowledge of foreign languages is still a matter of critical debate. He knew Latin and French. He probably knew some Italian. He may have known a smattering of Spanish. The only evidence that he knew any Greek is Jonson’s rather pejorative remark that Shakespeare had “small Latin and less Greek”.

This is a difficulty because it affects our understanding of Shakespeare's sources. For example, if Shakespeare knew Latin, then he could have read Roman plays and poems. If he knew French, then he could have read French plays and poems. However, if Shakespeare did not know these languages, then he would have had to rely on translations or on other sources.

There is no definitive answer to the question of Shakespeare's knowledge of foreign languages. Some scholars believe that he knew Latin and French very well, while others believe that he knew them only minimally. There is also some debate about whether Shakespeare knew Italian or Spanish.

The uncertainty about Shakespeare's knowledge of foreign languages makes it difficult to identify his sources. However, scholars have been able to make some progress in this area by comparing Shakespeare's plays to known translations of foreign works.

[D] There is itself a confusions over Shakespearean authorship.

This is a difficulty because it means that we cannot be sure who actually wrote Shakespeare's plays. There are a number of people who have been suggested as the real author, including Christopher Marlowe, Edward de Vere, and Francis Bacon. However, there is no definitive evidence to support any of these claims.

The controversy over Shakespearean authorship is a complex one, and there is no easy answer. However, it is important to be aware of this controversy when trying to determine the sources of Shakespeare's plays.

·        Despite the difficulties, scholars have made great progress in identifying Shakespeare's sources. They have found evidence that Shakespeare drew on a wide variety of sources, including books, plays, poems, and even proverbs. This evidence helps us to understand Shakespeare's work better and to appreciate his genius as a playwright.

Early Comedies: The Comedy of Errors The Two Gentlemen of Verona The Taming of the Shrew Love's Labour's Lost Middle Comedies A Midsummer Night's Dream The Merchant of Venice

·         Mature Comedies: Much Ado About Nothing As You Like It The Merry Wives of Windsor Twelfth Night

·         Problem Comedies: All's Well That Ends Well Troilus and Cressida Measure for Measure Early Histories Henry VI, Parts I, II, and III Richard III

·         Later Histories: Richard II Henry IV, Parts I and II Henry V King John Henry VIII

·         Early Tragedies: Titus Andronicus Romeo and Juliet Julius Caesar

·         Mature Tragedies: Hamlet Othello King Lear Antony and Cleopatra Macbeth Coriolanus Timon of Athens

·         The Late Plays: Pericles, Prince of Tyre Cymbeline The Winter's Tale The Tempest

Ardhendu De

References:

A Companion to Shakespeare Studies : H et al Granville-Barker : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive. (n.d.). Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/companiontoshake0000heta

British Library. (n.d.). British Library. https://www.bl.uk/shakespeare/articles/character-analysis-miranda-in-the-tempest

The Norton Shakespeare. (n.d.). The Norton Shakespeare | Stephen Greenblatt, Walter Cohen, Suzanne Gossett, Jean E Howard, Katharine Eisaman Maus, Gordon McMullan | W. W. Norton & Company. https://wwnorton.com/books/9780393264029

Shakespeare’s dramatic art. : History and character of Shakespeare’s plays : Ulrici, Hermann, 1806-1884 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive. (n.d.). Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/shakespearesdram01ulri

Full text of “Shakespeare And His Critics.” (n.d.). Full Text of “Shakespeare and His Critics.” https://archive.org/stream/shakespeareandhi030042mbp/shakespeareandhi030042mbp_djvu.txt