Shakespeare Electronic Conference, Vol. 4, No. 362. Thursday, 10 June 1993.
(1) From: Jon Enriquez <
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Date: Wednesday, 09 Jun 1993 09:49:50 -0400 (EDT)
Subj: Re: SHK 4.0361 Margaret, Lilith, and Shakespeare
(2) From: Phyllis Rackin <
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Date: Wednesday, 9 Jun 1993 12:01:19 +22306256 (EST)
Subj: Re: SHK 4.0361 Margaret, Lilith, and Shakespeare
(1)----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Jon Enriquez <
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Date: Wednesday, 09 Jun 1993 09:49:50 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: 4.0361 Margaret, Lilith, and Shakespeare
Comment: Re: SHK 4.0361 Margaret, Lilith, and Shakespeare
As others will undoubtedly point out, we had a lively discussion about
Shakespeare's anti-Semitism in February and March, mostly in the
context of *Merchant of Venice*; you should send a message to the
LISTSERV to get those files. They include many useful references to
literature on the subject, and make for good reading in themselves.
To sum up: One camp holds that, since the characters in the plays
make various unfavorable references to Jews and Jewry, Bill *is*
anti-Semitic. A second camp points out that by 20C standards,
Elizabethan Britain as a whole was anti-Semitic, and Shakespeare
was a man of his time. A third camp (to which I belong) says it's
pointless to attempt to characterize a playwright or fictionwright
on the basis of what some of his characters may or may not say,
since we cannot attribute *all* feelings and beliefs of *all*
characters to their authors. But, as I say, get the log files,
read for yourself, and make up your own mind.
By the way, thanks for suggesting the parallel between Margaret and
Lilith; this poorly read correspondent hasn't seen it before, and it
makes for interesting food for thought.
Jon Enriquez
The Graduate School
Georgetown University
ENRIQUEZJ@guvax (Bitnet)
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(2)----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Phyllis Rackin <
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Date: Wednesday, 9 Jun 1993 12:01:19 +22306256 (EST)
Subject: 4.0361 Margaret, Lilith, and Shakespeare
Comment: Re: SHK 4.0361 Margaret, Lilith, and Shakespeare
James H. Forse in "Why Boys for (wo)Men's Roles? or Pardon the delay, 'the
Queen was shaving'" *Selected Papers from the West Virginia Shakespeare and
Renaissance Association*, 15 (1992), pp. 6-27, makes the intriguing
suggestion that Margaret's part was played by Shakespeare and that
Greene's reference to the "upstart Crow" as a "tiger's heart wrapt in a
woman's hide" alludes to that fact.
P.S. I don't understand why a Lilith connection would imply that
Shakespeare was antisemitic. To my mind, MV provides much better
evidence, but I hope we won't open that discussion again because it never
seems to lead anywhere.
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