New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-03-17
SUAKESPE1RE'S WOMEN.
GERMAN STUDIES OF THE DRAMAS TRANS
LATED.

THE WOMEN or sHAK ,3 lA, n BY e t9aS
by Helen Iimmern. PIP xix. Isl G. T. Put
mans sons
FIVE LECTURES Oh snAKESPEARE. by
ErppR9 i3 Ten Ten ri Tn S rdn4 rS Hot Co. ''
II is a fact worth noting that Two great drama:-
lists who excellel in deiineitng womanly character
were unfortunate. 30 far the world knows. tn
their relations with the Euripides. who created
the heal OF self-sacrih.c In the figure OF Alcestls
and awokc Il Just compassion for Medea. was called
by hi enemies a woman-h1tcr. ana the memory OF
Shakespeare has had much to bear relative to Anne
Hathaway II this were all II would nave 10 be
imagined that both the Greek ana the EnSshman
had 10 create femal, characters OUT OF their own
ho,!s Both had t. 10 thls fJg stage on wA1ch
an the actors men OF boys II is NOT easy 10
cstlrat. the power ~ genius. but the man who couh
create an Acests or Beatrice our OF his unassls;el
Imagination must surely have been more than NOR
,al /, is more cons1nant Win human nature to
think that real women were ID" models Tor these
wonderful portrlyals ~ womannn"ss In Saak'"-
pclr,'. "a and this fac; Is admirably brought oni
IN the book ol Dr L,Nc.-thcTr "ls notification
In his y.ows about women which could only De due
L, experience There was a time wncn ne WIS un-
wIlAnr or unable % depict women a. h. did u IL
later PLAYS The dlccreuc" j. very great between
n. r. nv-nilonalsm ~ "i'crcl"s or even OF "IAe
Comedy 90 Errors" am tn rounded completeness
OF You Like H. or tuc pTotounu psSN"'''ss
~ Macbeth" There - % course difncuy IN
N,rnr on, details ~ criticism based On the chr"n-
o,..,v ~ the plays. Wtc. Tor example. DE- le"e@
ri,c,s "P.tlc.s in wrlt he cai- the trst period Oh
S.skesp.lrc.s dramatic activity. Professor Ten
r-.nk make. f the ast play touched bf ih' p''
before bus retirement 90 S'ratf1ri Bii u U'gAi
4t.N boz true that Shakespeare IN late work hai
,krn 4 l.ss mature Wow II hts characters for r"a-
sons ~ his OVID The fact that in this ease he "is
r,toIchlne ar oil play would hc npi 20 lea1 nun
back Q, ths Views that hc.1nG"i 10 MS OWN I'M
maturity In a general way. however. tine Two crit
les agree Both make Titus AndronruS anu
Henry VIZ and The Comedy u Errors carry
works They attribute ucar.y al tnr comedies from
The Two Gentlemen - Verona 10 l"eHth
Might" inclusive a arranged ~ the Globe EDITION.
- a period following that OF the earliest "orKS ana
h,th include Romeo AMI Juliet with these comet
les Both set down the histories before the Ronin
,rccl lies or the great tragedies. and reegate wv m
tors Tale "Cymbeline' ana The Tempest 10 the
late period OF rcposc and retirement az Stra'Ior'
# may b. willingly granted that II Shakespeare
knew one woman rich In natural gifts' as t''y
~ wit a. full of the experience Of IN" as b'atr'c
he nigh, have ina gncd many Of the rest 9uch 4
,.on,n As Beatrice nigh; In her time play many
p,ris She could have interpreted juliet or oph'"a
she could nave been either Viola or DIVA pN turnS
and she would have felt In Porua or kosaHhd oh'y
her other self IN grave or light"r nood. TN" wise
and beautiful and bewltching woman might well
h, ,iven N, glow of her life and her personality
90 many Of the names which Shakespeare chose 10
clothe with reality. But he must have studied this
woman I'm all her moods. In glrlhood as wen ~ J."
maturcr years. when she was gay ana wheh sac
..s grave when she provoked the Jealousy and III
,cnuer of Others and when she herself was jealous
I'D ,ru az wrath He must have known her long
and we'll Now suppose at the last that she was
taken from him in some way. Unless the parting
were marked with profound resentment and anguish
no would gladly recall 10 mind her hgnre ana her
varied moods. As he had once depicted them from
NE he would renew them from memory In
,h LIGHT of this suggestion. there is something pro
foundly interesting for the student OF mental states
I'm the peculiaritics OF the plays which l"wcs ana
Ten Brink both agree were written at Striuord The
latter has pointed the fact. though he does not
draw the inference THAT watch was done by an
ticlpation" ne says lin the three brilliant comedies
of the second period. appears here "a the perfectly
rlpened fruit Of a life rich In experience Here TOO
are We transpOl ted 10 Arcadia. but never more TO
leave Il. Thus some OF the motives OF the
comedies OF the las period reappear. but In richer
rrayer character We are reminded Of AS You Like
L. In all three of the dramas. but notably In The
Tempest' where. In the cxiled Prospero. living on
the lonely island We have the good duke OF the
Forest Of Arden In idealized form. The Hero of
Much Ado About Nothing rises In "A Winters
Tale to the lofty figure OF Hermone. and 1mogene
I'm 'Cymbellne' reminds US In many ways OF Viola
in Twelfth Night" In the idylic repose OF STRAIT
ford the poet may thus be- imagined az recording
what was beautiful In thu "reminiscences or an old
love a love that was dead perhaps but not forgotten
After all these came character In many senses
nobler than ali the rest of Shakespeare women.
Not witty like Beatrice. nor volatile like Rosaind,
nor all youthful passion like Juliet. nor all I'M
thinking devotion like Desdemona. nor loving Ike
Viola but steadfas and sef-cOntaincd Catherine In
Henry VIII stands alone one would like TO think
that here Shakespeare did Justice TO his own long
neglected wife In her he might well have seen the
counterpart OF the Satlent unattractive woman.
beautiful In irreproachabe life and in the good
ness OF her heart whom Henry VIII prosecuted and
reverenced. /, In this character and the drama
to which It belonged that the poet relied. as he
said or Ms perhaps Jonson said for him. upon THE
merclful construction of good women words that
like echo OF self-confession. Surely there
was no need ask good women To revere the char
acter OF a good woman though they might well feel
a new sense OF gratitude toward the poet who
represents n queen and heroine as DR.. Lewes
says "who IL above all things an excellent woman.
displaying the midst Of frghtu trials all the best
womany qualities. thus proving that noble. pure
feminine heart Is the home OF the nobest virtue.
the highest truth and purity
The books In hand evidence that the
task OF Interpreting Shakespeare Is endless one.
Each new writer finds new aspect OF the theme
which seems az boundless human nature. Or.