English 711:  Shakespeare from Stage to Page  

 

Tom Bishop                                                                       Class time:    Thursday 4-7

Arts 1 (Humanities) 629                                           Location: Arts 1 (Humanities) 213 

ext 87841                                                                                                    

email:  t.bishop@auckland.ac.nz

 

Well-being always comes first We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page, which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

 

Preferred texts:

 

Shakespeare, William               Hamlet (Oxford, ed. Hibbard)

                                                                Romeo and Juliet (Oxford, ed. Levenson)

                  

Munday, Anthony et al.,  Sir Thomas More (Revels, ed. Gabrieli & Melchiori)

“The Book of Sir Thomas More” (Copy reconstructed MS; handout)

Blayney, Peter, The First Folio of Shakespeare (pdf provided)

 

 

Recommended supplementary texts:

 

W.W. Greg, The Book of Sir Thomas More (Malone Society, 1911), online at: https://archive.org/details/bookofsirthomasm00brituoft

Jowett, John     Shakespeare and Text (Oxford, 2007)

Stern, Tiffany   Making Shakespeare (Routledge, 2004)

Gurr, Andrew,   The Shakespearean Stage (4th edn., Cambridge, 2009)

 

Article readings and extracts from other texts are available on Canvas unless otherwise indicated. Students must ensure they have a regular working email address that they check regularly over which they can receive notices. Readings on Canvas can be downloaded and printed out for brining to class. I would greatly prefer use of hardcopy to attempts to read from the online versions in class.

Week One:         Introduction: script/text/book

Overview of class: materials, topics and procedures.

 

Reading:  H.R. Woudhuysen, “Shakespeare’s Writing: from manuscript to print”

from The New Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare

 

Week Two:          Writer

 

Readings:            

Jowett, from Shakespeare and Text, pp. 12-16

Riggs, from The World of Christopher Marlowe 

Peter Stallybrass/ Roger Chartier, “Hamlet’s Tables and the Technologies of Writing”

Beau Chesne, from A booke conteyning divers sortes of hands (1571)

Fugger, from Handwriting Manual  (Nuremberg, 1553)

Allot, from England’s Parnassus (available both as scanned file and whole book online)

 

Texts:  

Hamlet (1.5.92-115; 2.2.86-220; 5.2.1-62)

Romeo and Juliet (1.2.38-101)

Sir Thomas More  Act 2 scene 3

                                                     

Visit:            Online Handwriting Tutorial:  http://www.english.cam.ac.uk/ceres/ehoc/

 

Person:                                       Ralph Crane

 

Week Three:          Collaborator

 

Readings:                                  

Bentley, “Collaboration” from The Profession of Dramatist …

Hirschfeld, “Early Modern Collaboration...”  (presented by Emma)

Jowett, from Shakespeare and Text pp. 17-26

Henslowe, extracts from his “Diary” (see also online below)

                                                     

Texts: Sir Thos More esp Act Two, sc 1 + pp. 209-212; Act Three, sc 1 + pp. 213-220.

                                  

Visit:                         

http://henslowe-alleyn.org.uk/essays/henslowediary/

https://henslowe-alleyn.org.uk/catalogue/mss-7/

 

 

Person:                                       Anthony Munday

 

Week Four class cancelled

 

Week Five:            Player

 

Readings:          

Stern and Palfrey, from Shakespeare in Parts (presented by Ophelia)

Extracts from Henslowe’s “Diary” (as in Week 3)

Wiles, David, from Shakespeare’s Clown

"Orlando” part from Greene, Orlando Furioso  (and see also online below)

Kemp, “Singing Simpkin” from Baskervill, The Elizabethan Jig

[Anon], Dead Man's Fortune  “plott” (online; transcript provided)

 

Texts:                                         

Hamlet  2.2 293-605; 3.2 1-278;

Romeo and Juliet  focus on the role of Peter

Sir Thomas More  Act Three, sc 2 + pp. 220-221.

 

Visit:               

http://henslowe-alleyn.org.uk/essays/orlando/                        

https://henslowe-alleyn.org.uk/catalogue/mss-1/article-138/ 

http://henslowe-alleyn.org.uk/essays/plot/

https://henslowe-alleyn.org.uk/catalogue/mss-19/

 

Person:    William Kemp (presented by Dario)

 

Week Six:             Censor

 

Readings:         Censorship : a world encyclopedia. Ed. Derek Jones. (2001). Entry on “William Shakespeare” by Richard Dutton

                                 Clare, from Elizabethan and Jacobean Dramatic Censorship

                                 Finkelpearl, “The Comedians’ Liberty” (presented by Dario)

 

Texts:     Sir Thomas More Act 1 sc 1; Act Four scenes 1-4 plus pp. 221-225.

                  Hamlet 2.2. 293-368

 

Person:    Edmund Tilney (presented by Sarah)

MIDSEMESTER BREAK

 

Week Seven:                 Reviser

 

Readings:       

Rasmussen, “The Revision of Scripts” from Cox and Kastan, A New History        (presented by Sarah)

Stern, “Repatching the Play” from From Script to Stage in early modern England

Ioppolo, from Revising Shakespeare pp. 44-59

 

Texts:          Hamlet scenes TBA

                       Sir Thomas More Act 5.

                                                     

Person:   Ben Jonson  (presented by Emma)

 

Week Eight:         Publisher

 

Readings:     

Blayney, “The Publication of Playbooks” from Cox and Kastan, A New History

Marta Straznicky, “What is a Stationer?” from Straznicky (ed.) Shakespeare’s Stationers (Presented by Hubaan)

 

Texts:         Romeo and Juliet Q1 vs Q2

                      Hamlet Q1 vs Q2 vs F

 

Person:       Edward Blount  (presented by Ophelia)

                                                     

Week Nine:           Printer

Class will be held in the Special Collections Department of the Auckland University Library, for some practical exposure to earlier print books, including their anatomy and construction.

 

Readings:             Gaskell, from A New Intro to Bibliography (pages as online)

                                    Blayney, The First Folio of Shakespeare (Folger Library)

                                                      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwGITX06h2A

                                                      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8svE2AjQWYE

 

Person:       Isaac Jaggard (presented by Hubaan)

 

Week Ten:  Library Day at Auckland Public 

Inspection and discussion of early materials held in the Special Collections Department of the Auckland Public Library (N.B. NOT the same library as two weeks earlier).

 

Week Eleven:   Class Research presentations

In this week, students will make brief presentations (10-15 mins) on their research projects in progress, including providing an essay outline and an annotated bibliography of research materials.

 

Friday, October 23:  Substantial draft of final paper to be submitted in advance of next week’s meeting.

 

Week Twelve:       No class; Individual conferences TBA on research in progress early in the week.

 

 

Monday November 2: Final paper due – 5000-6000 words (40% of grade).

 

 

Assessment breakdown:                      

   1. Attendance/ participation                                                          5%

2. Presentation + report 1 (person)                                          20%                           
3. Presentation + report 2 (criticism)                                      20%
4. Research presentation (incl plan and bibliography)  15%
5. Final research paper                                                                     40%

 

 

                                                                       

Notes on assessment: 

1)              Students will be responsible for regular attendance and giving evidence of close reading of assigned materials through discussion and commentary and of visiting and getting acquainted with assigned resource websites. 

2)              Students will choose or be assigned one of the “persons” listed in Weeks 2- 10 to research and present to the class, including submitting a written report of their presentation at the conclusion of the session (1,500 words approx).

3)              Students will choose or be assigned one of the critical readings to read, summarise, and present to the class, including submitting a written report of their presentation at the conclusion of the session (1,500 words approx).

4)              In our week 11, students will present short reports on their research in progress for discussion, questions and response feedback. Reports will include an essay plan, abstract and a working bibliography of materials being or to be consulted.

5)              The major piece of assessment for the course will be a seminar research paper of 5000-6,000 words, for which a topic will be developed in consultation with me. You are expected to be actively working on this project as your principal assignment in this class throughout Weeks Nine to Twelve of the semester, as there is no assigned reading during those weeks. The Due Date for this research will be Monday November 2^nd.

 

 

General course policies:

 

Written work and extensions:  Written work, both individual and group, must be submitted on time or will be penalized proportionally to its lateness. Please make a note of this.

Extensions:  These are always possible, but only in advance for proper cause. If you have a problem, SEE ME.

Excuses: Excuses for late work will only be accepted in cases of documented medical or family emergency, of which I must be notified as soon as is practicable.

Work completion: Students must complete all assigned work in order to merit a passing grade in the course. Failure to submit required work by the end of the course will result in a grade of D.

Attendance:  Regular attendance is expected. Necessary absences should be cleared in advance, or formally excused afterwards by doctor’s note or other documentation. Consistent derelictions will affect the final grade. Repeated unexcused absences may result in a grade even further reduced, possibly even an F for the course.

Plagiarism:  Plagiarism is the dishonest misappropriation of other people’s words, work or ideas as your own.  In a formal academic context, it is an academic office.  It is especially important in the case of Websites information to document your sources. Proven defaulters will face failure in part or all of the course and will be reported to the University. If you are in any doubt, ASK ME.

Copies of assignments: In addition to submitting hard copies of assignments by the designated dates, students must submit electronic copies of their final essay to Canvas. These will be used to facilitate the external assessment process and, in keeping with university policy, may be reviewed against electronic source material using computerised detection mechanisms.