Winter's Tale. If we except the frequent references to Apollo, occasioned by the consultation of his oracle-a detail of the plot which Shakespeare took from the novel which forms his main source for the drama-and except also two references to Jove (God) due to the pagan setting of the play, we have left 13 mythological allusions in Wint. Of these 13 allusions, one, a mention of Jove's thunder, occurs in Act 3; one, a use of Neptune, by metonymy, for the sea, is in Act 5; all the rest fall in Act 4, the act of idyllic love-making and pastoral life. From the stern scenes of the earlier acts mythology is quite excluded. Even within Act 4 the mythology is confined to a few speeches: 4 of the allusions are spoken by Florizel in the course of 30 consecutive lines, and 4 are spoken by Perdita in the course of only 8 lines. The 4 allusions spoken by Florizel are taken over bodily from Dorastus and Fawnia, and thus ose much of their significance. They mention transformations of Jupiter, Neptune, and Apollo; for the last divinity Shakespeare has added the epithet 'fire-robed,' and for Neptune the adjective 'green,' thus emphasizing their physical bases. Perdita's charming speech beginning: O Proserpina, For the flowers now, that frighted thou let'st fall indicates definite acquaintance with Ovid; and the name Autolycus, and the reference to Deucalion, are also of Ovidian origin. Plays of Doubtful Authenticity 133 PLAYS OF Doubtful AuthENTICITY. Titus Andronicus. The mythology of Tit. is discussed at length in the Introduction, pp. 15-17. Henry VI. Pt. I. H6A contains 18 mythological allusions, of which 4 are to Ovidian material, 4 to the divinities, 4 to the Troy-story. Most of the mythological personages appear as types of some moral quality. Nature-myth does not occur. The treatment of the mythology does not differ essentially from that in the earlier of the authentic plays; but several of the myths alluded to do not appear in the genuine works-such are the allusions to the Minotaur, Icarus, Astræa, Nemesis, and the gardens of Adonis. One may add, too, that the typical use of mythology is not usual in Shakespeare till a later period. Henry VI. Pt. II. The 13 mythological allusions of H6B resemble those of H6A, save that they appear in formal simile rather than as mere types. Three are to Ovid, 4 to the divinities, and 5 to the Troy-story. Allusions to Medea and Absyrtus, to Iris as messenger rather than as rainbow, to the brazen caves of Æolus, and to the incident of Telephus wounded and cured by the spear of Achilles, find no counterpart in the dramas of unquestioned authenticity. Henry VI. Pt. III. Of the 24 allusions in H6C, 10 have to do with the Trojan war, 6 with Ovidian story, and 6 with the divinities, including 2 instances of nature-myth. They are usually introduced in simile. An elaborate allusion to Dædalus and Icarus is strongly suggestive of two similar allusions in H6A. The mention of the 'fatal steeds' of Rhesus, and their capture by Ulysses and Diomede, is distinctly nonShakespearian. Taming of the Shrew. If we could be sure that the play as it stands is merely Shakespeare's working over of the older Taming of A Shrew, it would be possible to ascribe to Shakespeare all the mythology of the existing play, for none of the allusions is to be found in the old play; but the probability that the play represents further collaboration makes such an ascription unsafe. The mythology of Shr. is overwhelmingly Ovidian; of the 13 allusions, 9 are to be traced either to Mct. or to Her., and from Her. we have a direct quotation. One allusion only, to Dido and Anna, is of Vergilian origin. There is no instance of nature-myth, and the greater divinities receive but scanty attention. There is nothing either in substance or in treatment to prevent one from assigning the play to about the same period as Merch., in which Ovidian influence is also very strong. Pericles. If we except frequent references to Diana, occasioned by the machinery of the play, we find in Per. 25 instances of mythological allusion, of which 15 are in the portion of the drama which may safely be assigned to Shakespeare (the last three acts, with the exception of the brothel scenes in Act 4). We are immediately impressed by the total absence of Ovidian allusion in the authentic portion; while a mention of the Harpies is the only trace of Vergilian influence. As in Cymb. and Wint., the greater divinities are often mentioned, and nature-myth is frequent. Turning to the spurious portions, we find a considerable Ovidian influence the garden of the Hesperides, Jove as a type of wantonness, and Priapus. Cupid is also mentioned. Henry VIII. The mythology of H8 is confined to a charming song of twelve lines about Orpheus and his lute, and a reference to the Phoenix. ALBERT S. Cook, EDITOR. I. The Foreign Sources of Modern English Versification. II. Elfric: A New Study of his Life and Writings. CAROLINE III. The Life of St. Cecilia, from MS. Ashmole 43 and MS. Cotton IV. Dryden's Dramatic Theory and Practice. MARGARET SHER- V. Studies in Jonson's Comedy. ELISABETH WOODBRIDGE, Ph.D. VI. A Glossary of the West Saxon Gospels, Latin-West Saxon and West Saxon-Latin. MATTIE ANSTICE HARRIS, Ph.D. $1.50. VII. Andreas: The Legend of St. Andrew, translated from the Old English, with an Introduction. ROBERT Kilburn RooT. $0.50. VIII. The Classical Mythology of Milton's English Poems. Charles GROSVENOR OSGOOD, Ph.D. $1.00. IX. A Guide to the Middle English Metrical Romances dealing with English and Germanic Legends, and with the Cycles of Charlemagne and of Arthur. ANNA HUNT BILLINGS, Ph.D. $1.50. X. The Earliest Lives of Dante, translated from the Italian of XI. A Study in Epic Development. IRENE T. MYERS, Ph.D. $1.00. XII. The Short Story. HENRY SEIDEL CANBY. $0.30. XIII. King Alfred's Old English Version of St. Augustine's Soliloquies, edited with Introduction, Notes, and Glossary. HENRY LEE HARGROVE, Ph.D. $1.00. XIV. The Phonology of the Northumbrian Gloss of St. Matthew. EMILY HOWARD FOLEY, Ph.D. $0.75. XV. Essays on the Study and Use of Poetry by Plutarch and Basil the Great, translated from the Greek, with an Introduction. FREDERICK M. Padelford, Ph.D. $0.75. XVI. The Translations of Beowulf: A Critical Bibliography. CHAUNCEY B. TINKER, Ph.D. $0.75. XVII. The Alchemist, by Ben Jonson: edited with Introduction, Notes, and Glossary. CHARLES M. HATHAWAY, JR., Ph.D. $2.50. Bound in cloth, $3.00. XVIII. The Expression of Purpose in Old English Prose. HUBERT GIBSON SHEARIN, Ph.D. $1.00. XIX. Classical Mythology in Shakespeare. ROBert Kilburn Root, Ph.D. $1.00. |