Religion of Shakespeare - Essay Example

William Shakespeare’s life Introduction William Shakespeare was the greatest literary genius ever born. His works are equally popular all over the world and the fame achieved by him was enjoyed by none in our history. But it is ironic that the writer who is widely read is scarcely known in the world. Much of his biography is the accumulation of speculations about this genius and the knowledge about the person becomes hazy even after so much has been written about him. We know more than enough about literary acumen, the imaginative skills and the knack of his characterization but we do not have sufficient information about the person named William Shakespeare. In the following paragraphs, we will try to extract the information about the life of this great man from the biographies written about William Shakespeare. Birth and family Shakespeare was the offspring of an alderman, John Shakespeare and Mary Arden, a daughter of a wealthy farmer. The birthplace of this great poet is Stratford-upon-Avon. No exact information is available about is date of birth but he was known to have been baptized on 26th April, 1564. There is no record of date of birth in church’s register but “traditionally, Shakespeare’s birthday has been 23rd April, which was feast of St.George” ( Potter 1). William Shakespeare was named after his godfather, William and “ according to Camden, this name has been most common in England since king William the Conqueror “ ( qtd. in Potter 5). The early schooling of the bard was done at King’ s New School situated at Stratford. At the age of 18 he married Anne Hathaway who was eight years older than he. The couple had to hasten their marriage due to the pregnancy of Anne. The couple had three children, the eldest a daughter name Susanna and twins Hamnet and Judith. The son died in childhood at the age of 11. Religion of Shakespeare Bevington refers to the controversy regarding the religious affiliations of Shakespeare and suggests that no one has the sure knowledge whether he belonged to Anglican church or was a covert believer of Catholic church. He also alludes to the skeptic mind of the great poet ( Bevington ch. 2). Schoenbaum reveals that during Shakespeare’s time church going was compulsory and the people who did not attend the church were dragged to church by church court and were imposed heavy fines. Throwing light on religious leanings of William Shakespeare, Schoenbaum declares that “ the religious training provided for Shakespeare by his community was orthodox and Protestant” ( 55). He also clarifies the claims that Shakespeare was a papist are based on traditions and are not supported by facts. Shakespeare has given references from holy books in his plays. Shakespeare’s range of religious reference is not limited to the Bible. Sometimes he quotes Scripture by way of the Prayer Book, as when the Fifth Commandment becomes ‘ thou shalt do no murder’ and the words of the Psalmist, ‘ we bring our years to an end, as it were a tale that is told’ ( we have spent our years as a thought’ in the Genevan Bible), metamorphose into the tale told by an idiot”(Schoenbaum 59). All the religious ceremonies and the services and modes of worship found their account in Shakespeare’s plays which show the religious bent of mind of the great writer. A close reading of Shakespeare’s plays show how deeply the man’s mind was in religious ideas prevailing in his time. The influence of religion on politics seen in Hamlet and other plays is the direct outcome of poet’s realization of the sentiments of his own time. “The dramatist derived his ideas of divine right of kings, the subjects’ duty to obey, and the mischief and wickedness of rebellion— ideas that so powerfully inform the English History plays—not from his narrative sources, Holinshed and the rest, but either directly or indirectly from the politico-religious creed set forth in the Homilies” ( Schoenbaum 59). Shakespeare’s career as dramatist First account of Shakespeare’s professional life seems to be Greene’s attack which he supposed to have written on his death bed. Schoone-Jongen in Chapter 2 of his book gives the details of Greene’s pamphlet. Greene has mentioned this upcoming writer as “ Shake-scene” and has mocked at the skills of the “ upstart”. But Greene’s editor, Henry Chettle made amends for this insult by publishing an apology. This thing shows that at that Shakespeare might have established his career as a popular playwright and his skills were well acknowledged by the great writers of his time. During this time Shakespeare produced his plays with a company named Pembroke’s Men. Earl of Pembroke patronized this company. Henry VI, The Comedy of Error and Titus Andronicus supposed to have been staged under Pembroke’s Men. “ Most critics conclude that Shakespeare spent time as both writer and an actor for Pembroke’s Men before 1592”( Mabillard par. 5 ) Thomson records that Shakespeare was among one of Lord Chamberlain’s Men during their performance at Court in 1594. He also states that from the payment records of Treasury accounts, it can be inferred that he was with the company since its “ re-formation in May or June of 1594, just when Richard Field was printing The Rape of Lucrece” ( Thomson 111). The bard’s nexus with Lord Chamberlain’ Men later named as King’s Men seems to be the peak of his dramatic career. The company enjoyed the “ royal patronage” and most of the plays were presented at the court. Lamb records that at that time Privy Council declared “ that only two companies would be licensed to perform at fixed locations in the city” ( Lamb 259). Lord Admiral’s Men and Lord Chamberlain’ Men were among those chosen companies. Shakespeare’s famous plays, Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth were performed by Lord Chamberlain’s Men which later in 1603 was known as King’s men. People’s opinion about Shakespeare In spite of his universal fame and popularity, much doubt has been cast about his creativity and personality. There have been many writers who even claim that there was no such man in history. They attribute the authorship of those masterpieces to some other men. Edmondson and Wells in their book give an account of those skeptics who formulated alternative authorship theories for Shakespeare’s works. One person named “ Wilmot amused himself in his retirement by trying to write a life of Shakespeare and tell how, losing faith in Shakespeare, he constructed a theory that true author of the works was Francis Bacon” (Edmonson and Wells 1). There was a woman Delia Bacon who “ believed that the plays were written by consortium of writers including Francis Bacon” ( Edmondson and Wells 2). Another candidate for alternative authorship was famous author of Doctor Faustus and Jew of Malta, Christopher Marlowe. But Edmondson and Wells reject this theory as absurd as they suggest that Marlowe died much earlier than Shakespeare and they also mention that Marlowe has been referred to as “dead shepherd ” in Shakespeare’s As You Like It. Hence, the claims seem to be baseless. Thomas Looney put forth the candidature of Edward de Vere, who was seventeenth Earl of Oxford and a clandestine lover of Queen Elizabeth. Hope and Holston sum up the debate with their own comments on the issue and say that , “ we will use Shakespeare to refer to the citizen of Stratford and Shakespeare to refer to the author of the plays and poems, except for when we are quoting others” (5). Allusions to Shakespeare’s Homosexuality Thomson while tracing the publication of Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece in 1594 suggests that the dedication of two poems to a noble youth, Earl of Southampton might have given birth to speculations that Shakespeare was involved in some sort of homosexual relationship. Though he further dispels this impression by stating there was unacceptability of such relationships in Elizabethan society and laws against homosexuality were very strict ( Thomson 109). Lost ( undocumented ) Years of Shakespeare’s life There is insufficient material available about the life of Shakespeare and perhaps that is the reason which according to Danver has made Shakepeasere’s biographies the account of “ time and world” of Shakespeare. The biographers have been unable to give exhaustive account of Shakespeare as a man. Brenda James and William Rubinstein state that “ there is complete lack of nexus between [Shakespeare of Stratford’s] life and the evolution and the development of plays” ( qtd. in Danver 195). In this connection, Danver gives key importance to those years which are missing from the biography of William Shakespeare. The years between 1585 and 1592 seem to be missing from the biography of William Shakespeare were very important. Perhaps these were the years which were crucial in the making of the writer and the Shakespeare we know. The experiences of these years may have lasting influence on the literary acumen of the author. “ These lost years have thus variously been claimed to have been spent as a law clerk, a private tutor, a soldier” ( Danver 195). My impression of Shakespeare’s Life After reading different biographical accounts of Shakespeare, I am inclined to conclude that little is known about this well known writer in the history of English literature. The biographers have based much of their impressions on the basis of speculations. Shakespeare’s early life is a sort of mystery for us and we do not know for sure what were the factors that shaped the mind of such a great genius. Little is known about Shakespeare’s boyhood and youth. We have no accounts of Shakespeare’s love life and his struggle to establish a financial career for him. This missing link in his biography might have emboldened different biographers like Wilmot and Delia Bacon to come up with the theories of alternative authorship. The blurred knowledge about the great poet became an excuse for even denial of the existence of such a man in the history of literature. That’s why Shakespeare becomes a mysterious character himself. We know him through his plays only. We know him through Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth only. No authentic biographical record is available through which we could get Shakespeare’s personal opinion about different things of life. Through the biographies I come to know Shakespeare as common country lad who was brought up in a family which was struggling for financial gains. He married a woman who was many years older than he. Perhaps that thing might have influenced his life but no authentic account is available in this connection and we fail to know whether this marriage was happy or unhappy. Shakespeare’s son Hamnet’s early death might have been a shock for the writer but even this tragedy is scarcely documented. We do not know how our great poet reacted to that tragic event of his life. The crucial period of Shakespeare’s life after 1585 is missing from the biography of the poet. This missing link has further put curtains on the life of the bard. Only the theatrical performances at Lord Chamberlain’s Men, Globe and court of queen give some hint that the man had got some sort of popularity in his own time. The life of Shakespeare shows him as a common man who had no eccentricities in his personality. Though there are some hints to some abnormal sexual behavior but even those are based on speculations. Our poet seems to have led a smooth life struggling for his family and his own career. He seems to have been a man of humility as we find no account where the poet was seen in limelight. He remained in the background and produced great works of art. He reflected whatever the philosophy he had through his presentation of great plays ever produced in the history of literature. The readings of the biographies of this great poet make us realize that how common events of life contribute in making of a great genius like William Shakespeare. Great people are not born in palaces or in the houses of great fame and name, rather , they open their eyes in little known places like Stratford-on-Avon . They do not get their knowledge of life not from the great learning places like Oxford or Cambridge, rather, they glean the enlightenment from their own surroundings and from the common events of life. Nobody knew that the baby born in John Shakespeare household had to make the world realize that “life… is a tale /Told by an idiot full of sound and fury /Signifying nothing”. Works Cited Bevington, David. Shakespeare and Biography. Oxford: OUP Oxford, 2010. Print. Danver, Steven L. Popular Controversies in World History: Investigating Historys Intriguing Questions. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO, 2011. Print. Edmondson, Paul, and Stanley Wells. Shakespeare Beyond Doubt: Evidence, Argument , Controversy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press , 2013. Print. Hope, Warren, and Kim R. Holston. The Shakespeare Controversy: An Analysis of the Authorship Theories. Jefferson, N.C: McFarland & Co, 2009. Print. Lamb, Edel,.. “Shakespeare and the Renaissance Stage”.The Edinburgh Companion to Shakespeare and the Arts. Ed . Burnett, Mark T. 358-273. Edinburgh: Edinburgh Univ. Press, 2011. Print Mabillard, Amanda. “Shakespeare as Actor and Playwright”. Shakespeare Online.N.p. 12 Nov. 2000. Web. 25 April. 2014. < http://www.shakespeare- online.com/biography/shakespeareactor.html >. Potter, Alex. The Life of William Shakespeare. Malden, Mass. [u.a.: Blackwell, 2008. Print. Schoenbaum, S. William Shakespeare: A Compact Documentary Life. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987. Print. Schoone-Jongen, Terence. Shakespeares Companies: William Shakespeares Early Career and the Acting Companies, 1577-1594. Aldershot, Hants, England: Ashgate, 2008. Print. Thomson, Peter. Shakespeares Professional Career. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1992. Print. Read More