Monday, February 17, 2014
A New Approach to Othello: Shakespeare's Dark Lady
HowlRound: In March 2014, Amberley Publishing is releasing Shakespeare’s Dark Lady, my biography of the feminist poet Amelia Bassano Lanier, in which I claim that she was not only the “dark lady” of Shakespeare’s sonnets but a major co-author of his plays. Five years younger than Shakespeare, she came from a family of Venetian Jews who worked as Queen Elizabeth’s recorder troupe; for a decade was mistress to Lord Hunsdon, the man in charge of the English theater, who later became Patron of the Chamberlain’s Men. She became the first woman in England to publish a book of original poetry with the publication in 1611 of her collection Salve Deus, a religious satire that has odd resemblances to the Shakespearean romances. What is unusual is that this radical research is being supported by a number of Shakespeare and theater scholars.
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4 comments:
Very exciting! It's no news that much of what we receive as Shakespearean today isn't exactly 100% pure Shakespeare, although, the implications of a co-author are tremendous; especially a female co-author, and a Jew. While much of Shakespeare's literature is considered Christian in its allusions (whether a celebration or criticism), learning that there are non-Christian undertones as well present a real consideration. Knowing a possible identity of not only the Dark Lady, but of Emilia (at least), makes Amelia Bassano Lanier a major player Shakespearean lore.
At first i thought that this article was going to be a far-out-there explanation of how Shakespeare never wrote any of his own plays, but as i read, i see that that is not the case. The article presents a well thought through representations of her ideals. I think, instead of being a firebrand feminist, the article is muck more affective as a piece of information that could possibly inform a show or production of Otheello
It's absolutely incredible the effect and controversy that Shakespeare still has in the modern world, and how many interpretations and viewpoints have stemmed from his texts. I agree with Clayton in that this idea of Jewish undertones in Shakespeare has tremendous implications, and this concept of the 'Dark Lady' is really interesting especially when held up next to many other theories about the originality of Shakespeare's work.
Sorry about the few typos earlier:
At first I thought that this article was going to be a far-out-there explanation of how Shakespeare never wrote any of his own plays, but as I read, I see that that is not the case. The article presents a well thought through representations of her ideals. I think, instead of being a firebrand feminist, the article is muck more affective as a piece of information that could possibly inform a show or production of Othello
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