Book contents
- Shakespeare and Lost Plays
- Shakespeare and Lost Plays
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures and Tables
- Acknowledgements
- A Note on Conventions for the Titles of Lost Plays
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Charting the Landscape of Loss
- Chapter 2 Early Shakespeare: 1594–1598
- Chapter 3 Shakespeare at the Turn of the Century: 1599–1603
- Chapter 4 Courting Controversy – Shakespeare and the King’s Men
- Chapter 5 Late Shakespeare: 1609–1613
- Chapter 6 Loose Canons
- Conclusion
- Index
Conclusion
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 March 2021
- Shakespeare and Lost Plays
- Shakespeare and Lost Plays
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures and Tables
- Acknowledgements
- A Note on Conventions for the Titles of Lost Plays
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Charting the Landscape of Loss
- Chapter 2 Early Shakespeare: 1594–1598
- Chapter 3 Shakespeare at the Turn of the Century: 1599–1603
- Chapter 4 Courting Controversy – Shakespeare and the King’s Men
- Chapter 5 Late Shakespeare: 1609–1613
- Chapter 6 Loose Canons
- Conclusion
- Index
Summary
In this brief conclusion I revisit the metaphor, running throughout this book, of Rubin’s vase and reflect on the prejudice associated with viewing the corpus of early modern drama by prioritising extant plays over lost plays. To do so is to only see half the picture. Lost plays form an indispensable role in shaping or forming the extant canon; extant plays are to a large extent ‘produced’ through their relationship not only to each other, but to their lost counterparts. I argue that a shift in perspective is required before we can see what has always already been present but not prioritised. The surviving drama comes into sharper relief when its relationship to the lost drama is better understood.
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- Shakespeare and Lost PlaysReimagining Drama in Early Modern England, pp. 205 - 207Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021