Foreword    A new light on Shakespeare studies

For the last 400 odd years since William Shakespeare passed away, countless researches have been done on this great man and his great works. However, as Shakespeare is considered both ancient and modern, no books can be exhaustive in revealing the depths of his thoughts and of his art, and fresh topics keep popping up.

So here we see a new book, Shakespeare’s Cradle: Titchfield Abbey and the Dark Theaters of 1592-1594. As the title shows, the book is intended to discover Shakespeare’s artistic metamorphosis from an emerging actor and playwright to a successful dramatist, focusing on his scarcely noticed life around 1592-1594 against the background of the social changes in England. Such a focus, as far as I know, is rarely found in other books on Shakespeare.

Dr. Patt McDermid was enchanted by Renaissance Literature, particularly the works of Shakespeare, while a student at Stanford University in the 1960s. He continued to study the subjects, first at San Francisco State University, and then at Southern Illinois University where he received his PhD Degree. During his entire teaching career he has taught these subjects, in addition to English, as professor in colleges and universities, public and private, including Nankai University in Tianjin, China.

While the author was teaching at Nankai in 1981-1982, the seed of the present topic began to germinate in his mind. In one of his lectures, a Chinese student asked him how it happened that Shakespeare had suddenly become so important when the London theaters reopened and he came out of “the dark.” The author could not give a satisfactory answer, but promised to find it out. For the last 34 years, Dr. McDermid has made consistent researches on this subject and published a number of essays. Now, having assembled his research results and completed his “Nankai Project,” he presents us with this book, as an anniversary tribute to Shakespeare, as well as a token of fulfillment of his promise.

Based on his meticulous study of historical facts, the author points out that Shakespeare did not suspend his career as playwright during the Dark Theaters period because of his connection with his patron Henry Wriothesley, the 3rd Earl of Southampton, who was an unconventional young man and a fervent drama lover. This patronage provided Shakespeare with protection and financial backing. And what is more important, it provided him with almost all other necessary conditions and facilities to further his writing and his drama production. To name just a few: a sanctuary at the Earl’s family home in the renovated Titchfield Abbey and unrestricted use of the private theater there, opportunities to meet with influential nobility, opportunities to have close contacts with professional actors and their patrons, a sophisticated and appreciative audience, the complete freedom to write for this audience without being censored by the crown’s Master of Revels, and the potential resources of Titchfield’s history. Under these circumstances, Shakespeare developed his talent and created, besides poetry, new plays. These experiences are crucial to his professional career. Without this “audition” and experiment, Shakespeare could not have emerged out of the Dark Theaters period as the leading dramatist in England’s dominant acting company.

Of the works Shakespeare produced in this period, the author has chiefly analyzed four plays—Romeo and Juliet (Tragedy), Love’s Labour’s Lost (Comedy), Richard II (History), and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Fantasy). They are grouped as “The Love Quartet,” not only for stylistic affinities, but also for a shared love theme—“love in youth,” “love in adulthood,” “love of country and honor,” and “love of theatre and art.” The Love Quartet is significant because it set basic patterns and principles for a new type of play, which would shape Shakespeare’s subsequent plays.

The author also analyzes Shakespeare’s exploration of human nature through drama, with an emphasis on the subconscious and unconscious levels of the human mind and the functions of dreams. This exploration endows the plays with modernist features, and consequently, ever-lasting charm.

Apart from the above, readers may find more puzzle-solving details about Shakespeare’s life and times. And with the help of some photos and originally designed Figures and Charts, readers may get more insights into the plays and into the man.

In a word, this book has indeed cast a new light on the studies of Shakespeare, and is a fitting contribution to the world’s commemoration of this cultural giant who belongs to all times.

Gu Qi’nan