The Glimmerglass Opera Book Club is launched with the reading of Bill Bryson’s Shakespeare: the World as Stage, a biography that celebrates Shakespeare as a writer of extraordinary talent and great inventiveness. Several books have been written posing the theory that Shakespeare was not Shakespeare, but rather Edward De Vere, Francis Bacon, Christopher Marlowe or others, but James Shapiro, author of A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare: 1599, said of the book, “Bryson cuts through the wild speculation and conspiracy theory surrounding Shakespeare to get at what matters most: the writer’s life.”
What do you think?
7 comments:
I started reading Shakespeare: The World as Stage partly for professional reasons - to prepare for Glimmerglass Opera's 2008 season - and partly to reacquaint myself with the author of much of my high school required reading, having realized that I knew nearly nothing about the man himself.
There is certainly no shortage of Shakespeare biographies and anti-biographies (e.g., Shakespeare was not Shakespeare, but someone else), but Bryson's book is brand new, benefits from scads of research, and is is reader-friendly. It's a fascinating look not only at what is known about Shakespeare, but at the monumental amount of speculation surrounding what is not known.
I especially enjoyed the detail of Shakespeare's world - a time when language and spelling were not yet standardized; when legal records of birth, death, and governed interactions were only beginning to be kept; when a monarch's Protestant or Catholic affinity directed one's personal religious observances, and when the re-emergence of the plague could literally stop the world.
Whether or not you agree that Shakespeare was Shakespeare, you'll enjoy this "vivid, unsentimental, witty, and fast-paced"* look at his world, his works, and his legacy. I look forward to seeing your thoughts here on Glimmerglass Opera's Book Club! - Debra Bell, Marketing Director, Glimmerglass Opera
*[James Shapiro, author of A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare: 1599]
Please give a few instructions ab out how to use this page. I would be glad to enter a real comment, but need a little help on how to proceed.
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Bryson's book is informative and entertaining. He simply says, "Where's the evidence?" That works well; he cuts through a lot of junk. I found myself particularly interested in all the "borrowing" that Shakespeare did. Thomas Mann, much later, did the same thing. And so do composers. Handel, whom we will hear next summer was a great borrower. I wonder where the cut-off point is. When does borrowing become plagiarism?
Pat
I saw this book while strolling through Borders over Thanksgiving and picked it up. I'm a big fan of the author's work as a travel writer and didn't realize he also did biographies. This was a real treat. Reader-friendly, while immensely informative.
I never knew how little is actually known about Shakespeare and his times. It's amazing that we even have the plays at all. The universality and depth of his themes make his plays imminently watchable even if the language sometimes borders on archaic.
Plays are meant to be seen and heard, not just read. Each time they are presented, different directors and actors will add to your understanding. Bryson makes it clear that there is no single approach or analysis of the plays. They meant one thing to the author, another to the audience, another to the actors, another to the Queen.
I look forward to how the various composers (and directors) have adapted them. The summer should be very enlightening.
Bryson is a good start.
Dennis
December 1, 2007
I have found Bryson’s Shakespeare: The World as Stage an excellent short introduction to the Bard. I particularly like the attention Bryson paid to the social, political, and economic environment of Shakespeare’s age. I also liked the way in which Bryson was able to summarize work on compilation by later individuals of Shakespeare’s works, the information of later scholarship, and his handling of the authorship issue.
What I missed were illustrations. His beginning chapter spoke of several portraits of Shakespeare (which he described excellently). How I wish copies of them were actually shown. Then as he wrote about the theaters in which the works were performed I wish there were illustrations or floorplans given, particularly for the Globe and Blackfriars. I imagine illustrations were ruled out because of production costs.
Whatever, I found it a good read.
R.D. Johnson, Oneonta, New York.
I have found illustrations and a great deal of excellent information at shakespeare-online.com, which is sponsored by the NEW YORK TIMES. The Globe in London also has a website.
If you are a Netflix member, Michael Wood's 4 part series, "In Search of Shakespeare," is available for viewing on line or as 2 snail-mail DVDs.
I'm looking forward to reading the first two books. Bill Bryson's account of his trip to Norway to see the Northern Lights is one of my favorite pieces of travel writing.
Constance in Cherry Valley
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