Topic: Shakespeare in the Eighteenth Century: How the Playwright Became a Cultural Icon

Date & time: 7:00-9:00PM, April 2 (Thursday)

Location: ACC 3#

Presenter: Prof. Fiona Ritchie，McGill University

Abstract:

This talk will examine the attitude to Shakespeare of eighteenth-century editors, critics and theatre professionals to explore how during the period 1660 to 1769 the playwright from a small English town came to be regarded as the country’s (and perhaps the world’s) pre-eminent cultural icon. Examining critical responses to the dramatist’s works as well as adaptations of his plays and various efforts to memorialize the man, I will demonstrate that the eighteenth century elevated Shakespeare to the status he enjoys today for the first time. Simultaneously, at this time Shakespeare’s works and reputation were used by eighteenth-century writers and actors to achieve their own critical and artistic ends.

Biography:

Fiona Ritchie is an Associate Professor of Drama and Theatre in the Department of English at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Her research focuses on Shakespeare and eighteenth-century drama and theatre history with a particular interest in gender. Her monograph Women and Shakespeare in the Eighteenth Century was published by Cambridge University Press in 2014. She has also co-edited, with Peter Sabor, an essay collection entitled Shakespeare in the Eighteenth Century (Cambridge University Press, 2012).