This Week in Literary History: Happy Birthday to the Bard!

THIS WEEK IN

APRIL 18   -   APRIL 24

The Bard

Gets Baptized

The first time William Shakespeare’s name was ever committed to print? April 26, 1564, when his baptism was recorded in the parish register for Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon, as Gulielmus filius Johannes Shakspere—or “William, son of John Shakespeare.” The original register has been lost to time, but a copy made in 1600 still exists.

Though Shakespeare’s birthday is often celebrated on April 23, we don’t actually know the precise date of his birth. Infants were often baptized on the Sunday or next holy day after their birth, but April 26, 1564 was a decidedly unholy Wednesday. It was 18th-century antiquary William Oldys who first proposed the date—based on the parish register as well as Shakespeare’s funerary monument, which specifies that he died on April 23, 1616, in his 53rd year—and it has more or less stuck. After all, there is a certain amount of narrative symmetry to dying on your birthday, and we all know how much the Bard loved a tight plot. 

That’s because, as you may have heard, since his birth, William Shakespeare has become kinda famous. And somehow, no matter what’s going on in the world, his work is always at least a little bit relevant. After all, didn’t he write King Lear during a plague? (And how’s that novel coming?) We’ve argued over his identity and authorship (seriously, we’re obsessed), reimagined and remixed his works time and time again (but especially in the 90s), spent millions on his first folios, wondered about his thoughts on the afterlife and his religious views, and even obsessed over his stuff. It’s safe to say that we haven’t gotten bored yet. Happy baptism day, big guy. 

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Famous Last Words

“The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.”

AS YOU LIKE IT

“Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.”

ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL

“There is nothing either good or bad but thinking
makes it so.”

HAMLET

“Lord what fools these mortals be!”

MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

In other (old)

news this week

Robinson Crusoe, whose protagonist was described by James Joyce as “the true prototype of the British colonists” (um, burn) was published (April 25, 1719) • John Milton sold the copyright to Paradise Lost for a paltry ten pounds. He was robbed! (April 27, 1667) • George Orwell published Homage to Catalonia (April 25, 1938) • Eternal enigma T.S. Eliot accepted a position as an editor at Faber and Faber (April 28, 1925) • Charles Dickens embarked on his first professional tour, giving readings from his works in a whopping 129 appearances in 49 different towns throughout England, Scotland and Ireland. He did not invite Hans Christian Andersen (April 29, 1858) • Carol Ann Duffy was appointed Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, becoming just the first woman honored with the position (May 1, 2009)

“Just keep yourself with lively, laughing, thinking people, think about things yourself, and cultivate a respect for new ideas of any kind. Take care of these small ideas and the big plots will take care of themselves.”

–ANITA LOOS

Born this week in 1888

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