Two Brits have coldly admonished me, with sniffs and noses in the air, that the Shakespearean Authorship Question is “merely an American question.” End of discussion. And that is one of Peter Holland’s two “arguments” against the authorship issue in his article about WS in the Dictionary of National [British] Biography (his other argument is, “You’re just a snob”).
Claiming it to be merely an American question (because Americans are somehow prone as a nation to conspiracy theories, Holland claims) seems to be almost as popular a line as “You're just a snob,” particular with the British. It’s also an ad hominem argument, as if somehow being an “American question” automatically makes it an inferior or stupid question or you are an inferior or stupid American for thinking such a thing (and consequently, the speaker is the superior English person). AND IT DOES NOT ADDRESS THE ISSUE.
And like “You’re just a snob,” it skirts the issue without the speaker having to know anything about the question at all. Very convenient.
Funny, the Brits who told me this and the British Peter Holland all live in America.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I am sometimes fascinated by put-downs, as they usually reveal wiggly stuff about the people who use them. The "merely an American question" statement as refers to the Shakespeare Authorship issue seems particularly silly; we do, over here on this side of the pond, rather admire much of what can be called British, and of course, the sonnets and plays, which often have been attributed to Shakespeare, are much studied and enjoyed -- and not just because they were probably written somewhere in the British Isles. Those great plays and extraordinary sonnets are for all the world, influencing all kinds of people, everywhere, perhaps even influencing the wiggly ones who have a difficult time with true consideration.
ReplyDeleteYes, Ms. Williams is absolutely right: let's address the issue.