2023-11-07 10:02:52
It is considered a miracle of literature: a few years after the death of William Shakespeare, the “Folio” collected the works of the famous playwright.
London.
Literature as we know it would be unimaginable without this anthology. William Shakespeare? Probably just one name among many, but not the iconic poet that we know the British playwright as. It is probably no exaggeration that “Folio” – the first complete edition of Shakespeare’s plays – is one of the most important literary works in history.
“Without the weight of the collected edition – both culturally and literally – few people might be interested in the surviving plays,” emphasizes Shakespeare scholar Emma Smith of the University of Oxford.
It has now been 400 years since the first edition, the “First Folio”, appeared, around seven and a half years after the playwright’s death in 1616. The original title was: “Mr. William Shakespeare’s comedies, histories, & tragedies.” (German: Mister William Shakespeare’s comedies, history plays and tragedies). Experts date the deadline to this Wednesday (November 8th). For months now, the United Kingdom has been honoring the work of its most famous literary figure, King Charles III. and his wife Queen Camilla found out more at an exhibition.
Remembering a “worthy friend”
The title of the monumental work was intended to “perform a service for the dead” and “keep the memory of such a worthy friend and comrade alive.” It was most likely the actors John Heminges and Henry Condell, who worked with Shakespeare, who prepared their companion’s works for posterity – and thus revived them in a way.
“Shakespeare changed the way we speak, the words we use, our films, books, catchphrases and memes, the way we think – and yet we know very little about him,” says Suzy Klein from the BBC, which is honoring the “Folio” with a multi-part documentary.
Half of Shakespeare’s work – according to the BBC, probably the greatest work of English literature – would probably be lost without the anthology, emphasizes the anniversary page “folio400.com”. No “Storm”, no “Macbeth”, “Julius Caesar” or “What You Wish”.
Since the original manuscripts have long been lost, some of the most famous plays would hardly have been known to a wider public. “They would just be names,” Adrian Edwards of the British Library told the New York Times books podcast. “People looked at them, people printed them, but we wouldn’t know what text these pieces had.”
Millions of dollars for one issue
In his time, Shakespeare was an influential, wealthy man who was well-known beyond the developing cultural scene. With his acting troupe “Lord Chamberlain’s Men”, which then called themselves “King’s Men” in honor of King James I, the playwright, who also repeatedly starred in his plays, also appeared at court. His works were widely played and popular.
But it was only with the “Folio” that they became known to a wider public. 36 dramas are summarized here. An estimated 750 copies were printed, and around 230 are said to still be preserved, mainly in libraries, but also in private hands. Around three years ago, an edition was auctioned for almost ten million US dollars.
“Most importantly, without ‘Folio’ there would not be the cultural icon we know as ‘Shakespeare’,” says researcher Smith. “The surviving works would be scattered across numerous poor early editions and would not be collected in this impressive and serious volume.” Early editions of “Romeo and Juliet” or “Henry V.” If Shakespeare were not mentioned as an author, his authorship would not be clear.
In return, without “First Folio” it would probably not be clear that plays like “The London Prodigal” or “A Yorkshire Tragedy” do not come from the literary giant – they are not included in the anthology. “Without him, the canon of Shakespeare’s plays would have changed significantly,” emphasizes Smith.
Star actresses like Judi Dench, who won an Oscar for her performance as Queen Elizabeth I in the Hollywood film “Shakespeare in Love,” became famous through the Bard’s works. “His understanding of everything – love, anger, jealousy, melancholy – who has ever done it better?” says the 88-year-old in the BBC documentary. “I wish I had met him, oh, I wish I had met him.” And her colleague Harriet Walter emphasized at a special performance in July: “I can’t imagine a world without Shakespeare.” (dpa)
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