Shakspeare and His Times [Vol. 2 of 2]: Including the Biography of the Poet; criticisms on his genius and writings; a new chronology of his plays; a disquisition on the on the object of his sonnets; and a history of the manners, customs, and amusements, superstitions, poetry, and elegant literature of his ageDrake, Nathan
History
Shakspeare and His Times [Vol. 2 of 2]: Including the Biography of the Poet; criticisms on his genius and writings; a new chronology of his plays; a disquisition on the on the object of his sonnets; and a history of the manners, customs, and amusements, superstitions, poetry, and elegant literature of his age
Drake, Nathan
Dramatists, English -- Early modern, 1500-1700 -- Biography; England -- Civilization -- 16th century; English literature -- Early modern, 1500-1700 -- History and criticism; Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616; Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Homes and haunts -- England
It is remarkable that the year following this notice by Meres,
appeared Jaggard's first edition of the _Passionate Pilgrim_. May we
not conclude, therefore, that this encomium on the manuscript sonnets
of Shakspeare, induced Jaggard to collect all the lyric poetry of
our author which he could obtain through his own research and that
of his friends, and to publish it surreptitiously with a title of
his own manufacture? That it was not sent into the world under the
direction, or even with the knowledge of Shakspeare, must be evident
from the circumstance of Marlowe's madrigal, _Come live with me, &c._
being inserted in the collection; nor is it likely, setting this
error aside, that Shakspeare, in his thirty-third year, at a time
when he had written several plays including some dramatic songs, and
undoubtedly had produced a large portion of the sonnets which were
given to the world in 1609, would have published a Collection so scanty
and unconnected as the _Passionate Pilgrim_, which, independent of
Marlowe's poem, contains but twenty pieces.
Indeed we are warranted in attributing not only the edition of 1599
solely to the officiousness of Jaggard, but likewise two subsequent
impressions, of which the last furnishes us with some further curious
proofs of this printer's skill in book-making, and also with an
interesting anecdote relative to our bard.
The precise period when the second edition issued from the press was
unknown to Mr. Malone[43:A], and is not yet ascertained; but the third
edition, printed in 1612, in small octavo, and published by W. Jaggard,
is connected with the following literary history.
In 1609, Thomas Heywood published a folio volume entitled "Troia
Britanica: or, Great Britaine's Troy. A Poem, devided into 17 severall
Cantons, intermixed with many pleasant poeticall Tales. Concluding with
an Universal Chronicle from the Creation, untill these present Times."
This work was printed and published by William Jaggard, and includes
two translations from Ovid, namely the epistles of Paris to Helen,
and Helen to Paris, "which being so pertinent to our historie," says
Heywood, "I thought necessary to translate."
It happened, unfortunately for the honest fame of Jaggard, that when
he published the third edition of the _Passionate Pilgrim_ in 1612, he
was tempted, with the view of increasing the size of his volume, to
insert these versions by Heywood, dropping, however, the translator's
name, and, of course, suffering them to be ascribed to Shakspeare, who
appears in the title-page as the author of the entire collection.
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