Shakespeare Goes to Paris

(Hardback)

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It has sometimes been assumed that the difficulty of translating Shakespeare into French has meant that he has had little influence in France. Shakespeare Goes to Paris proves the opposite. Virtually unknown in France in his lifetime, and for well over a hundred years after his death, Shakespeare was discovered in the first half of the eighteenth century, as part of a French growing interest in England. Since then, Shakespeare's influence in France has been enormous. Writers, from Voltaire to Gide, found themselves baffled, frustrated, mesmerised but overawed by a playwright who broke all the rules of French classical theatre and challenged the primacy of French culture. Attempts to tame and translate him alternated with uncritical idolization, such as that of Berlioz. Changing attitudes to Shakespeare have also been an index of French self-esteem, as John Pemble shows in this brilliantly written book.

Reviews

'Shakespeare Goes to Paris is a fascinating and elegantly written account of the Bard's triumph over cultural adversity. Pemble's light touch with matters of politics, literary theory and philosophy makes the book a pleasure to read, and his account of the difficulties faced by translators is often very funny indeed. Highly recommended for Bardophiles and Francophiles alike!' The British Theatre Guide -- Julia D Atkinson
"...an elegant Derridean denial of the hors-texte, Pemble returns to Voltaire, noting that he's never said anything about Shakespeare that had not already often been said in English'."- Studies in English Literature 1500-1900, Vol. 47 No. 2 Spring 2007 -- Studies in English Literature

Author Bio

John Pemble is Senior Research Fellow in History at the University of Bristol, UK and author of The Mediterranean Passion, for which he won the Wolfson Prize, and Venice Rediscovered.