9 Misconceptions About Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was quite prolific. By one estimate, his complete works add up to 884,647 words. Hundreds of years after his death, people still refer to him and his works constantly. No one did it like the poet, so it is not surprising that some myths about him and his writings have seeped into our culture over time. Let’s debunk some of the biggest ones.

1. Misconception: Historians debate whether Shakespeare really wrote Shakespeare.
2. Misconception: Shakespeare invented 1,700 words.
3. Mistrust: saying Macbeth In the theater it is dangerous.
4. Misconception: All of Shakespeare’s plays contain original stories.
5. Misconception: Shakespeare worked alone.
6. Misconception: And that’s why It means “where”.
7. Misconception: As Hamlet says, “To be or not to be,” he is holding a skull.
8. Misconception: Shakespeare was an Elizabethan playwright.
9. Misconception: The Globe Theater was round.

Misconception: Historians debate whether Shakespeare really wrote Shakespeare.

Shakespeare wrote a lot. It was Also from the country town of Stratford-upon-Avon and did not go to university. Could this “simple” man write all these impressive works? Certainly it was someone like Sir Francis Bacon, Christopher Marlowe, Queen Elizabeth IOr Edward de Vere instead, right? But no: the general consensus among historians is that Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare. nothing Conclusive evidence Otherwise.

It is worth noting that Shakespeare died in 1616, and conspiracy theories say that he did not write his plays Didn’t show up Until the eighteenth century, many years after his death. In 1623, a few years after his death, the first folio of plays by Shakespeare, who had known him for years and which were in his will, was compiled by the actors John Heming and Henry Condell. The title page contains a portrait of Shakespeare and the plays are attributed to him. Heming and Condell are just some of Shakespeare’s peers who knew him and witnessed his writing, the writers Ben Jonson and John Webster being the others.

In addition, historians argue that Shakespeare’s background matches his writing. Maybe he was educated, even if he was He didn’t go to university. He spent a lot of time in London learning how to become a writer by doing related things like watching plays.

Misconception: Shakespeare invented 1,700 words.

we can be tracked This misunderstanding goes back to the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, which was published in volumes starting in 1884 and completed in 1928. The dictionary contained definitions of words as well as their first recorded uses. But many of these citations were written by volunteers, who often turned to Shakespeare, in large part because he is a more accessible source of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century lyrics than most of his contemporaries.

Today’s lexicographers have a lot of data and technology, and they know that Shakespeare did not coin that many words. (Jonathan Culpepper, Professor of Linguistics at Lancaster University, He’s spent decades Research into the Shakespearean language. It is believed that Shakespeare penned about 400 words.)

Some words and phrases are still falsely attributed to Shakespeare; You can find some popular ones below:

• addicted
• Assassination
• Impress
• Bold face
• Deafening
• Inhibition
• boss
• uncomfortable
• vomiting
• It’s Greek to me
• Give Satan his due
• Expectation is the root of all heartache

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Mistrust: saying Macbeth In the theater it is dangerous.

If you find yourself a little nervous when saying the word Macbeth In the theatre, don’t be afraid: it It’s all a myth Based on a complete lie. In 1898, the famous British theater critic and satirist Max Beerbohm wrote an essay for Saturday review He encouraged people to stop performing old Shakespeare classics that had been done to death, e.g village and Macbeth. In his article, Beerbohm dropped this little nugget: “Hal Berridge, the young man who was to play Lady Macbeth, ‘suddenly fell ill with pleurisy, and for this reason Mr. Shakespeare himself cast Lady Macbeth.’”

Beerbohm attributed this knowledge to the 17th-century writer John Aubrey. The problem is, as far as anyone can tell, Aubrey never said that, Hal Berridge never existed, and Shakespeare never played the role. Since Beerbohm’s article, stories have continued about… Macbeth Being cursed and even saying the word unlucky. People in the theater world often choose to call it a “Scottish play” to be safe.

Misconception: All of Shakespeare’s plays contain original stories.

The vast majority of Shakespeare’s plays were not original. They were based on other material, such as previously written stories and plays. There seems to be some conspiracy To be originallike: The Merry Wives of Windsor, Love’s Labour’s Wasted, and Storm.

What about Romeo and Juliet? This is based on an old Italian story. village? This story has been going around since about the 12th century. Othello? This stems from a tale called “Un Capitano Moro.”

And this was no dirty little secret at the time. As a law student named John Manningham wrote in his memoirs about seeing a Shakespeare play in 1602:

At our banquet we had a play called Twelfth Night, or What You Like, very similar to the Comedy of Errors, or Menachemi in Plautus, but nearer and nearer to that play in Italian called Ingani.

But Shakespeare didn’t just copy these stories, he changed the plots, developed the characters, added new characters, changed the endings, and more.

Misconception: Shakespeare worked alone.

It is a misconception that Shakespeare was a solitary genius working alone. He collaborated with other writers on his plays, not to mention the collaboration inherent in theatrical production. How many of his plays had co-authors? unknownBut linguistic experts can piece together evidence based on the quirks of different writers.

Shakespeare cooperated With John Fletcher The two dear relatives; You can probably tell who wrote which scene based on the fact that Shakespeare preferred to use the word they Where Fletcher would write “em”. The two also wrote Henry VII together.

It is also widely believed that George Bell assisted in the first chapter of Titus Andronicus. Shakespeare wrote Timon of Athens With Thomas Middleton, perhaps All’s well that ends well.

Misconception: And that’s why It means “where”.

One image that you may have seen countless times is of Juliet denouncing, “O Romeo, Romeo, why art thou Romeo?” It’s like, “Where are you, Romeo?” And some performances have Juliet physically looking for Romeo as she says those lines.

But, at the time Shakespeare was writing, And that’s why I mean basically “Why.” Juliet asks: Why are you Romeo? Because his name is linked to a family that feuds with it and separates them. That’s why you keep saying, “Deny your Father and reject your name,” and then, “What’s in a name?”

Hence, it is likely that Shakespeare meant something along the lines of “why” because he uses it And that’s why And in some of his other plays. in King JohnPhillips asks the bastard: “But why are you drooping? Why do you look sad?” Asks: Why are you hanging?

Misconception: As Hamlet says, “To be or not to be,” he is holding a skull.

Sometimes in popular culture, you come across Hamlet holding a skull and reciting the “To be or not to be” speech. (Billy Madison is one example.) But Hamlet carries a skull during his speech in the churchyard Which starts“Alas, poor Yorick!” This happens in Act Five, Scene One. “To be or not to be, that is the question” comes two acts before that, in Act III, Scene I.

No part It is a soliloquy, at least in the strictest definition of the word that requires the speaker to be alone on stage. Of course, it depends on production. But at the end of the “To be or not to be” speech, Hamlet addresses Ophelia. In the churchyard, Hamlet talks to Horatio.

Misconception: Shakespeare was an Elizabethan playwright.

It is true that Shakespeare wrote during the Elizabethan era, but that is not the whole story. People like to think Queen Elizabeth I And her connection to Shakespeare and his plays – look no further than the fact that Dame Judi Dench won an Oscar for her role in the film. Just less than 10 minutes To depict the king in Shakespeare in love. But the queen He died in 1603about 13 years before Shakespeare, so he had another royal to deal with: King James VI and I.

Shakespeare wrote some of his most popular plays during the reign of King James, including… Macbeth, King Learand Othello. Shakespeare scholars also point to parts of his plays that may have been intended to appeal to James’s specific interests, including the use of the Cyprus War as a backdrop to his play. Othello And made Witches Very prominent in Macbeth.

Misconception: The Globe Theater was round.

First Globe Theater It’s finished In 1599. Shakespeare was part owner of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, which built the place. He may or may not have Named It’s a “wooden O” in front henry f. However, it wasn’t exactly a circle. It was a polygon.

It is impossible to know the exact number of sides. We cannot access the original because it was burned in 1613 during a performance of a Shakespeare play Henry VII When a prop gun set the roof on fire. We do not have historical documents describing the architecture of the building. But, in 2022, a group of researchers Posted their attempt In a digital form of the original Globe Theatre; They concluded that the building was most likely a 20-sided polygon.