Does anyone know why William Shakespeare didn't divorce Anne Hathaway??
sharon<33
In OTL? No idea. Probably too difficult.
In RB--the Catholic Church did not recognized divorce. That's why he had to ask the Queen. TR 21:31, 23 November 2006 (UTC)
Bardolating[]
How I'm enjoying the geeking-out on Shakespeare we're all taking part in these days. You know, over the weekend I used the phrase "hoisted by your own petard," then realized I had no idea of its origins. That too comes from Shakespeare--Hamlet used the phrase to explain how he'd duped Rosencrantz and Guildenstern into delivering themselves unto the King of England with their own signed death warrants, rather than delivering Hamlet with his.
Then just this morning, as I was gosipping, I surprised myself by coming out with "A custom, aye, but one that's better honored in the breech than the observance." Turtle Fan 21:47, 24 March 2009 (UTC)
- My father once lamented his decision to study Chaucer rather than Shakespeare for no other reason that nearly every metaphor in the English language stems from Shakespeare. An admitted exaggeration, but probably as good a reason as any to force people to study Shakespeare.
- Corrected to "English language". No idea what I was thinking. TR 11:24, 25 March 2009 (UTC)
- Esperanto, perhaps?
- Great, now that Eo fool will be back again. Turtle Fan 19:32, 25 March 2009 (UTC)
- Yes, I said "force". Academic freedom is all well and good, but there just some things an English speaker should study. I would say the same thing about Italian speakers and Dante. TR 21:55, 24 March 2009 (UTC)
- I agree. His influence on the English language is non-pareil. I think I once read that words he coined amounted for a full percentage point of our vocabulary, and that's not counting all the notable quotable lines.
- I would further localize the same vein by saying that Hamlet must be read early and often by every native speaker. If you tried to make a list of common expressions that began as notable lines of Hamlet, you'd practically be transcribing the play. That's it's mechanical impact, subject to etimological detail. Its artistic value is more a matter of opinion, but I believe the former alone is strong enough to make the case by itself that it's our single most influential literary work. The Bible no doubt has had a greater linguistic (to say nothing of religious, cultural, social, and political, things Hamlet can't claim) impact still on English, but the Bible comes to us from the Hebrew and the Greek, while Hamlet--That's all ours. Turtle Fan 02:16, 25 March 2009 (UTC)
Christopher Marlowe[]
"the great Christopher Marlowe, who was, like Shakespeare, a member of Lord Westmorland's Men."
I don't recall that and I don't think its accurate. As iI recall, Marlowe was an independent playwright who sold plays but not affiliated with any company of players. ML4E (talk) 18:53, January 26, 2016 (UTC)
- Yes. I'm not sure I remember him acting at all, but I am sure I remember him as an outsider whenever he visited the company. Turtle Fan (talk) 23:33, January 26, 2016 (UTC)
Wages of Sin[]
"As the OTL Shakespeare's career as a playwright began in 1588 or 1589, it is reasonable to suppose he died in the novel's world by 1587." It previously said "in 1587," I changed it to "by," but I'm not sure that's fair either. From what I can tell from a quick Google search, he didn't gain any real distinction within the theater scene till the early 90s. He could have gotten two or three plays written and performed before he died, but they didn't make enough of an impact for him to be remembered for long. I find it slightly less depressing to think he managed to put his genius to some use, even if it was just The Taming of the Shrew. Turtle Fan (talk) 20:45, 4 January 2024 (UTC)