Talk:Shakespearean References in Turtledove's Work

The subsection on Shakespeare's influence on RB alone--which granted will certainly prove to be the largest, but will still be only one of many--is longer than the entire sections of every other author except Marlowe and Margaret Mitchell. Makes me wonder if we should give Shakespearean allusions their own page and provide only a link to the main article under the Shakespeare section heading. Turtle Fan 19:38, March 16, 2010 (UTC)

I did an Amazon search for Shakespeare in every TL-191, Worldwar, and Atlantis book (but not LA which can't be searched inside) as well as MWIH. I also flogged my memory for the occasional line that does not mention Shakespeare specifically. And I searched GotS, HW, and both DoI books; those all turned up empty. Still, I feel like I'm missing stuff. I seem to recall there being a Hamlet crib in either BoG or TGS but I don't think I can bring myself to dig through those steaming piles of shit to find it. Also I couldn't remember Grimes referencing Caesar, which he does according to our article on that play, and I couldn't hit on the right combination of search criteria to find it.

But with the Shakespeare section approaching completion, it does seem rather large for this page, doesn't it? I'm worried it will frighten the other sections. Think it merits its own page?


 * Given the Bard's unique position in English lit (and actually global lit, if various studies are to be believed), a separate article is probably called for. TR 06:37, March 20, 2010 (UTC)


 * I'm inclined to agree with the studies on Shakespeare's position on global lit. For nearly the entire period that there's been enough of a global system to allow cultural exchange, Anglophones (first the UK and recently the US) have been in the best position to do so.  And Shakespeare being the giant of the English language, he could hardly help being transmitted into other languages' literary consciousness.  In fact I can think of no one who's  been more widely translated, except the writers of the Bible.


 * A testament to this prominence, when I moved the section from Literary Allusions to here it was quite close to 11,000 characters. And it will have passed that since I've now added the bit about General Guildenstern, shame on me for forgetting it last night.  There must be more WBtP cribs but I can't think of any offhand.  (I remember when we were trying to trace the origins of Nonesuch, Mak said he always assumed Shakespearean reference till proved otherwise.  Not unlike Dowling's mistake with Milton in TG.) Turtle Fan 17:24, March 20, 2010 (UTC)

Oh, and the 19th century German translation in ItPoME--I rummaged around a bit to see if I could find a famous 19th century translation, thinking that the translator might merit a mention himself. There were some dozen plus full and partial Germanizations of the Bard in that century. I don't suppose Susanna gave us any clues with which to whittle that down a bit? Turtle Fan 04:52, March 20, 2010 (UTC)


 * 'Fraid not. Just that he was more popular in Germany than in the English speaking world.  TR 06:37, March 20, 2010 (UTC)