The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-02-18
SHAKESPEARE POPULARITY
1t Has Grown. Steadily. During the
. Present Century.
Hartford Century.

l.. Hartford Century.
Professor LOunsbury of Yale. in 1fis fifth lec-
!. ture on Shakespeare at Hosnief Hafflasr even.
i0g. discussed The pOpularityef the poet with
the critics and the reading public during- The
eighteenth ctntury:aud down to the present
day. Starting with the assumption that a.
writer's popularity means The extent. to:whicn
:he-is read, the lecturer remarked that Shakes
peare's vogue Is now immense aud still In.
creasing, and this TOO, when at present. the
dramatiSt DOES have the adventurous aid of
that reading of plays which was common in. the
last century. The. state of the Tendon Iheaters
at that time was: described, with its two fine
stock companies at Concert: Garden and aT
.DEuEy Lane, lis absence of the star system and
It's short rnns When Garrick took charge of
the tterplayhouSe he gathered the: best pos
sible company about him, and the. statistics of
the seasons OF 1900 and '51 show. that Shakes
peare's dramas were played about one third Of
The time as against all other dEamatlStS.
This being the testimony of the stage to his
popularity, that of bibliography furnishes the
same conclusion; adverse criticism there was,
haweVef, and as "A matter OF COURSE, notably
aeXampled IN Rymer, whose dStOundingIv. SCI
we're and absurd onslaught in. his ''Sh0rt View
OF Tragedy" published in 1893; was graphi-
ealy and amusingly set olth. The attack of
Mus. LennoX. wyInSn of American birth, was
also refaryed 10 as a eeple. echo. of Rymer in
the next century. her attempt III The .s'Shakes-
:peare Illustrated being 10 show THAT the poet
invariably e! below the original. sources of his
plays RemarRing on The. eutl0us. fact that so
:SWeel -natured man as Shakespeare has been.
the begetter of the fefcest critical wars of lit
eTaTy history Professor Bloomsbury described
the famous Pope. Theobatt controversy as Il
typical battle of the commentators, which has
.Deen going on ever:Since down To FurnevalI VS..
SwinebHrne. The leclnrer polluted out how
:TbeObald, whose edition was so superior 10
Popes and has remained in scholarly repute,
nevertheless has never recovered from the
stigma of.duilness fixed upon him by the Dun
clad" :,
The three classes of eftfics VINO have been
active during the past 100 years were Then
passed in review. The first which predom-
mated in the eighteenth century, looked on
Shakespeare as an inspired barbarian. whose
power was not under the restraint OF art. This
was the: established position in l roo and Hume
wis quoted as IN example,. The second chlsS
granted the dramausSs irregularlty Judged by
iha canons of taste and art. but claimed that he .
had commission from nature herself and so,
despite artlessness, irresisthy won The heart.
ahiS position gatned on The earlier as the
eighteenth century adyauced. The third class
OF critics took the ground that those who denied
ART as well as genius TO Shakespeare did NOT
know what the broad laws of art were. but sub-
stituled. therefor mere tradition. and conven-
. ton. They claimed that the poet was both a.
genius and great artist This is the critical
position to-day. ...@.;:. -. -