塞繆爾·約翰遜文學理論新說

蘇玉

【摘 要】塞繆爾·約翰遜主編的《莎士比亞集》，有校勘、注釋和評論。約翰遜認為戲劇基于想象，各幕之間在空間和時間上的變異是應該允許的。他認為三一律之中，只有行動的一致性是重要的，空間的一致性和時間的一致性是虛妄的。莎士比亞不受這一規(guī)則的束縛，正是偉大之處。本文對莎士比亞的道德缺失，粗俗語言和情節(jié)安排混亂進行討論。

【關鍵詞】塞繆爾·約翰遜；《莎士比亞全集》；個人經(jīng)歷；社會；宗教

1.Introduction to Samuel Johnson and Preface to Shakespeare

Samuel Johnson was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a essayist， poet， moralist， biographer， literary critic， editor and lexicographer. Johnson was a devout Anglican and committed Tory， and has been described as "the most distinguished man of letters in English history" and the subject of "the most famous single work of biographical art in the whole of literature".

Johnson's Preface to Shakespeare expresses his grounding of critical judgment on morality and his idea that poets should concern themselves with representing general nature than particular experience. The long-sustained experience of mankind is Johnson's test for older writers and Shakespeare is preeminent because he is the poet of "general nature." Shakespeare's appeal rests on his ability to portray human nature， not kings or Romans. This is Shakespeare's "mirror of life" that has stood the test of time and that narrower critics have misunderstood.

Above all， Johnson points out Shakespeare's three shortcomings in Preface to Shakespeare--that is-- Shakespeare's lack of morality， his vulgarity and his carelessness in crafting plots and his occasional inattentiveness when choosing words or word order. Those who are accustomed to the belief that Shakespeare could do no wrong may be surprised by Johnson's strictly judicial appraisal of the bard's faults and values. In my final thesis， I have collected many materials to plead for Shakespeare. I will analyze his shortcomings from Shakespeare's personal experience and the society in his times.

2.Explanations for Shakespeare's Shortcomings

2.1 Shakespeare's Personal Experience

Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon and baptized there on 26 April 1564. Although no attendance records for the period survive， most biographers agree that Shakespeare was probably educated at the King's New School in Stratford. Grammar schools varied in quality during the Elizabethan era， but the grammar curriculum was standardized by royal decree throughout England， and the school would have provided an intensive education in Latin grammar based upon Latin classicalauthors.At the age of 13， Shakespeare dropped out his school to help his parents to remain in business after his father had gone bankrupt. Between 1585 and 1592， he began a successful career in London as an actor， writer， and part owner of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men， later known as the King's Men.

Shakespeare's early plays were mainly comedies and histories including All's Well That Ends Well， As You Like It，Measure for Measure，A Midsummer Night's Dream and so on. In Preface to Shakespeare， Johnson mentions that the plots in Shakespeare's plays are often loosely formed， that a very slight consideration may improve them and so carelessly pursued that he seems not always fully to comprehend his own design. In addition， Johnson says that when Shakespeare found himself near the end of his work， he shortened the labor to snatch the profit. Therefore he remits his efforts where he should most vigorously exert them and his catastrophe is improbably produced or imperfectly represented.

After a fully study about Shakespeare's early life， we can understand his carelessness and vulgarity in crafting the plots. He lived in such a big family and he was responsible for supporting his family. Shakespeare was interested in plays， so he began to earn money by playing a role on stages. Later he had an idea that he can earn money by writing plays also. In my opinion， most of Shakespeare's early writings can only represent a common younger's interest in writing plays as well as a tool for food. Money were significantly vital for young Shakespeare， so he didn't have enough time to revise the writings again and again. Therefore， some loose plots in his early comedies may be neglected by himself. What's more， occasional loose plots don't have a considerably bad effect on his comedies.

2.2 Social Status in Shakespeare's Times

There're three stages in Shakespeare's creation of plays. The analysis of Shakespeare's writing stages can help us to understand the changes of Shakespeare's characters. In Preface to Shakespeare， Johnson mentions that "The censure which he has incurred by mixing comic and tragic scenes， as it extends to all his works， deserves more consideration." I think that after stating the clear partition of Shakespeare's writing period， I can try to defend Johnson's statement.

It is from 1590 to 1600 that Elizabeth's rule reached its prime. At that time， all over the UK were prosperous and flourishing which had an influence on Shakespeare's tone of creation. We can conclude Shakespeare's writing characteristics as follows. Firstly， with the attitude of the reality， Shakespeare's plays focus on praising humanistic new ideas， and new ethics， which is particularly outstanding in his comedies. Secondly， he has shaped a series of ideal characters， such as Henry V--in historical plays a glorious monarch who governs his empire orderly， and Portia and Viola， a large group of new female comedy images. Through molding these images， the author expresses that he advocates the unity of his country and he also presents his freedom in individual life. Thirdly， for the conflicts in plays， he uses misunderstandings and coincidence to weave the plot， and present the characters.

In the last paragraphs， I have divided Shakespeare's creation period into three parts， stated his writing features and analyzed the reasons for the changes of his writing from different aspects mainly from the society at his times， his humanism and so on. After the analysis of his three writing periods， I have divided his works of different times into comedy， tragedy，historic plays or legend plays.

2.3 Morality in Shakespeare's Works

In Preface to Shakespeare， Johnson mentions that Shakespeare's first defect is that to which may be imputed most of the evil in books or in men. Frankly speaking， in most plays the author needs to mould different kinds of figures including the decent and the villain. Sometimes the villain is helpful to serve as a foil. Now I will present the morality in Shakespeare's plays and trace the origin back to the Bible.

Shakespeare's tragedies are considered to be the Christian tragedies. By the most beautiful forms Shakespeare shows his Christian ideas to us and some of its most representative characteristics are connected with Christian religious sentiment and Christian understanding. Many main ideas in Shakespeare's plays are similar to the Bible. Firstly belief consciousness stands out in Macbeth. Secondly， benevolence plays a significantly important role in Shakespeare's plays. Shakespeare tends to combine kindness， compassion， forgiveness， peace and love together to serve as the true portraiture of human nature. In his plays the noble heroes share the holy spirit and lofty emotion. Thirdly， confession especially the consciousness of confession from the characters' deep heart in Shakespeare's is another embodiment of morality which also belongs to the basic ideas of Christian.

3.Conclusion

After the above analysis， I can conclude that Shakespeare's great contribution to the literature， to some extend， has covered his little mistakes. I can understand his shortcomings from his own personal experience， his social status and his religion. There is not fixed frame and school in Shakespeare's mind. He tends to combine many kinds of techniques in creating. Shakespeare's plays seem to be a rich mineral deposit. If we are just looking for an element， it is a waste of time.

It is obvious that every man has his fault which is same as an author's writings. Different readers have different ideas about Shakespeare's plays， no matter bad or good. There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand persons' eyes. So to appreciate Hamlet is to enjoy Shakespeare.

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