Title: Particular saints
First published: 1997
Description: Why do characters named Antonio proliferate on the English Renaissance stage? Why are they so often paired with other characters named Sebastian? And more significantly, why are they repeatedly characterized by Shakespeare and his contemporaries as fools for love?

Particular Saints draws on church history, art history, and theater history to address these questions by illustrating that Renaissance stage Antonios are a type, representing a tradition familiar to early modern audiences and exploited by Shakespeare in portraying his four major characters named Antonio.

Such characters ultimately derive from the rich medieval iconography and hagiography of Saint Anthony of Egypt. How this knowledge reinforms our late-twentieth-century understanding of the four plays in question is addressed in separate chapters that range widely across each work: The Merchant of Venice, Twelfth Night, Antony and Cleopatra, and The Tempest.
Subjects: History, Christianity and literature, Religion in literature, Characters, Influence, Christian saints in literature, Antonio, Antony and Cleopatra (Shakespeare, William), Heiligen, Merchant of Venice (Shakespeare, William), Anthony (Name), Tempest (Shakespeare, William), Engels, Christianisme et littérature, Personages, Twelfth night (Shakespeare, William), Influence (Literary, artistic, etc.), Toneelstukken, Shakespeare, william, 1564-1616, characters, Shakespeare, william, 1564-1616, antony and cleopatra, Shakespeare, william, 1564-1616, merchant of venice, Anthony, of egypt, saint, approximately 250-355 or 356
Places: England
People: William Shakespeare (1564-1616), Anthony (Name), Anthony of Egypt, Saint (ca. 250-355 or 6)
Time periods: 17th century, 16th century
LC classification: PR2993.A58 L48 1997