This essay won the 2005 Literature Compass Graduate Essay Prize, Shakespeare Section.
This essay will involve a historical survey of the underlying theories and principles that have been instrumental in determining the formative scholarly editions of Shakespeare since the early eighteenth century. By examining representations of editorial practice – specifically representations as expressed in prefatory material as well as other editorial apparatuses such as notes and commentary in influential editions from Nicholas Rowe's (1709) through to those of the late twentieth century – this paper is aimed at providing a clear sense of the fundamental principles shaping the edited Shakespearean text.
has been an academic librarian at the Bern Dibner Library of Science and Technology for many years and is currently the librarian for Instructional Services. He has worked with science and technology resources and has delivered reference and instructional services in a multitude of subjects and venues using the full and ever changing resources of the university. Teaching users how to evaluate sources and find the information they need is his interest and specialty. In addition, he was in charge of User services for many years and has been heavily involved in outreach, collaboration and web services throughout his career at Dibner. He received his undergraduate degree from Manhattan College, his MA from Fordham University, and his MLS from Queens College.
This article explores the manner in which Cymbeline works to create a feeling of geographic scope and a sense of a coherent national space within the bounds of the theatre. To do so means examining the play’s experimentation with perspective, its fascination with the limits of eyesight, as well as its emphasis on movement and travel. Notions of perspective, time, and space are pervasive in Cymbeline ; accordingly, it is a play that frequently identifies and strains against the physical boundaries of the stage. Nevertheless, as evidenced by Simon Forman’s account of the play (1611), meta-theatrical moments that highlight the physical restrictions of the theatre coalesce with moments that revel in its physical possibilities. With references to early modern cartography, Marlowe’s Tamburlaine , Shakespeare’s Henry V , and the writings of King James, I contend that as Cymbeline telescopes between meta-theatrical and theatrical effects, the theatrical experience—the proclivity to imaginatively participate—is enhanced.
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