Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
While most serious literature of the time was written in scholarly Latin, the stories in
The Canterbury Tales
were written in Middle English, the language that developed after
the French invasion of 1066 added a Norman twist to Old English.
Shakespeare's First Folio
Shakespeare wrote his plays to be performed, not read. He published a few, but as his repu-
tation grew, unauthorized “bootleg” versions began to circulate. Some of these were writ-
ten by actors who were trying (with faulty memories) to re-create plays they had appeared
in years before. Publishers also put out different versions of his plays.
It wasn't until seven years after his death, in 1623, that a complete collection of
Shakespeare's plays was published, commonly known as the First Folio. Of the 700 prin-
ted, about 150 survive (most are in the US). Western literature owes much to this folio,
which collects 36 of the 37 known Shakespeare plays (
Pericles
missed out). If the First
Folio is not out for viewing, the library should have other Shakespeare items on display.
