2020/01/01 by David S. Weiss · 1 citation
Arts and Humanities · #Art #Art history #Classics #EPIC #Extant taxon #History #Literature #Performance art #Poetry #Renaissance Literature and Culture #Stanza
paper · doi:10.1353/hlq.2020.0009
published in Huntington Library Quarterly 83(2), 235-267 (University of Pennsylvania Press)
openalex publication_date 2020/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2025/11/06
Evidence indicates that Shakespeare may have used a scribal version of Samuel Daniel's The Civil Wars, rather than the first printed edition, while writing Richard II. There are two extant manuscripts of portions of Daniel's epic poem. A never-printed stanza in one manuscript employs imagery similar to Shakespeare's to describe the same invented episode. To investigate possible influence, this essay assesses the dates of the manuscripts, analyzes variants from the printed edition, evaluates the shared imagery, and considers how Shakespeare's possible use of a manuscript impacts the dating of Richard II. It also identifies social connections between the authors that explain how the playwright could have obtained access to an early version of the poet's work.