ENGL 51.05 Shakespeare and Marlowe

This course will examine changing ideas about authorship, collaboration, and originality during the English renaissance and especially in the context of London’s commercial theaters from about 1580 until their closing in 1642. We will do so through a case study of the creative rivalry between William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe. Both born in 1564, Shakespeare and Marlowe started their careers as competitors and likely collaborators; many scholars now attribute Henry VI parts 1-3 to both writers. Before his untimely death in 1593, Marlowe overshadowed Shakespeare, dazzling London with his transgressive poems and plays. Their works from that era often invite direct comparison: Edward II and Richard II; Hero and Leander and Venus and Adonis; The Jew of Malta and The Merchant of Venice. More than a decade after Marlowe’s death, it seems Shakespeare was still thinking about Doctor Faustus, Tamburlaine the Great, and Dido, Queen of Carthage when he wrote Macbeth, The Tempest, or Antony and Cleopatra. Depending on the year and instructor, our syllabus will focus on rotating pairings of texts as well as the different literary, philosophical, and social issues they raise. Special attention will be given to the bibliographical, editorial, and commercial histories that have helped produce our sense of these writers and their distinctiveness.

Degree Requirement Attributes

Dist:LIT; WCult:W

The Timetable of Class Meetings contains the most up-to-date information about a course. It includes not only the meeting time and instructor, but also its official distributive and/or world culture designation. This information supersedes any information you may see elsewhere, to include what may appear in this ORC/Catalog or on a department/program website. Note that course attributes may change term to term therefore those in effect are those (only) during the term in which you enroll in the course.

Department-Specific Course Categories

English and Creative Writing