C. Elliot Browne on Francisco, Bernardo, & Pazzi Conspiracy
C. ELLIOT BROWNE WROTE IN 1876 that the names of the first two characters on stage in Hamlet may allude to assassins in the Pazzi conspiracy.* Modern readers may think: Never heard of that! Are there Pazzi allusions in other Elizabethan plays?
In a 1995 book, Frank Ardolino shows that Thomas Kyd’s play, The Spanish Tragedy—the best-known English revenge tragedy before Hamlet—contained allusions to the Pazzi conspiracy. If Kyd’s play did so, it’s easier to think that Hamlet contained them as well.
But the sentinels in Hamlet are not assassins. And there are correspondences between stories of Francis of Assisi and Bernard of Clairvaux, and Hamlet - so the Pazzi allusion probably wasn’t the only thing on WS's mind.
Q: But why might scholars have neglected the possibility that these names are allusions to the saints?
A: England after the reformation, and Protestants after Luther in general, rejected the Catholic cult of the saints - and may have avoided painful memories of lost monasteries and their saints. Just as some people in the US try to downplay the history of slavery there, nations that commit crimes and atrocities often downplay past crimes. This was easier in England, where it was argued (often correctly) that Rome was the oppressor, so closing monasteries and confiscating church land was merely a victory against an oppressor.
Q: Would allusions to these saints prove that Shakespeare was Catholic?
A: Nope. It takes a lot more than that. And the meanings of the play are more important than guessing Shakespeare's religious commitments.
Brief summary of Pazzi conspiracy:
https://www.britannica.com/event/Pazzi-conspiracy
Longer Wikipedia article on Pazzi conspiracy:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pazzi_conspiracy
Besides C. Elliot Browne observing what he thinks is the immediate allusion in these names to the Pazzi Conspiracy,
and Frank Ardolino's good observations about similar allusions in "The Spanish Tragedy,"
consider also the statement later in the play by Laertes, when asked by Claudius how far he would go to avenge his father's death,
and Laertes says, "To cut his throat i' the church."
That's how far he'd go, and it certainly sounds like another possible Pazzi allusion.
Finally, consider that the Pazzi Conspiracy was still as well-known in Europe of Shakespeare's time as the assassination of Abraham Lincoln is still well-known in our own time.
—The Pazzi Conspiracy took place about 125 years before Hamlet was published.
—The Lincoln assassination took place 164 years ago as of this writing.
—To people living through the English Reformation, the Pazzi Conspiracy represented the corruption of the Roman Catholic Church.
—To people living through continued racial tensions (Ferguson, Missouri riots) and protests (Black Lives Matter, professional athletes taking a knee during the national anthem), the assassination of Lincoln represents the resistance of the Southern Confederacy to the freeing of slaves and, later, residual resistance to civil rights movements.
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* See Hamlet: Edited by Horace Howard Furness, Volume 4, page 241, via Google Books, and also at archive.org (both, free).
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On Francis and the Sultan of Egypt, see The Saint and the Sultan by Paul Moses (2009).]
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INDEX OF POSTS on Francisco & Bernardo:
PAZZI CONSPIRACY - possible allusion noted by C. Elliot Browne in 1876 in the names of Francisco & Bernardo
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/05/c-elliot-browne-wrote-in-1876-that.html
1 May, 2017
SCOURGE AND MINISTER: BERNARD AND FRANCIS https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2018/03/scourge-minister-bernard-francis.html
- March 26, 2018
MIGHT ART LOST IN DISSOLVED MONASTERIES HAVE HELPED CONNECT HAMLET'S FRANCISCO & BERNARDO TO THE SAINTS?
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/04/might-lost-art-in-dissolved-monasteries.html
- April 03, 2017
FATHER ISSUES FOR HAMLET & FRANCISCO
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/01/shakespeares-hamlet-has-father-issues.html
- April 10, 2017
TOP SIX REASONS Shakespeare probably named sentinel Francisco after Francis of Assisi
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/04/top-six-reasons-shakespeare-probably.html
- April 17, 2017
Four Approaches to Francisco & Bernardo in Hamlet
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/04/four-approaches-to-names-of-sentinels.html
- April 24, 2017
MELANCHOLY: LOST DELIGHT IN HAMLET & FRANCIS OF ASSISI
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/07/melancholy-lost-delight-hamlet-francis.html
- July 17, 2017
How Geographical Memory May Have Encouraged the Naming of Two Characters in Hamlet
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/07/how-geographical-memory-may-have.html
- July 24, 2017
SHAKESPEARE'S HAMLET FINDS A FATHER IN PROVIDENCE (not RI)
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/11/shakespeares-hamlet-finds-father-in.html
- November 20, 2017
WHAT DO FRANCISCO & BERNARDO HAVE TO DO WITH SHAKESPEARE & THE BIBLE?
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/12/what-do-francisco-bernardo-have-to-do.html
- December 03, 2017
BERNARDO TALES: LAERTES & HAMLET RECONCILE, as do BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX & PETER ABELARD
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/12/bernardo-abelard-hamlet-laertes-reconcile.html
- December 04, 2017
CORRUPTED REFORMERS: WHY SOMEONE NAMED AFTER BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX MIGHT BE FIRST TO SPEAK IN SHAKESPEARE’S HAMLET
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/01/corrupted-reformers-why-someone-named.html
- January 01, 2018
SCOURGE AND MINISTER: BERNARD AND FRANCIS
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2018/03/scourge-minister-bernard-francis.html
- March 26, 2018
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Disclaimer: If and when I quote or paraphrase bible passages or mention religion in many of my blog posts, I do not intend to promote any religion over another, nor am I attempting to promote religious belief in general; only to explore how the Bible and religion influenced Shakespeare, his plays, and his age.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thanks for reading!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My current project is a book tentatively titled Hamlet’s Bible, about biblical allusions and plot echoes in Hamlet.
Below is a link to a list of some of my top posts (“greatest hits”), including a description of my book project (last item on the list):
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/12/top-20-hamlet-bible-posts.html
I post every week, so please visit as often as you like and consider subscribing.
To find the subscribe button, go to the home page: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/
see the = drop-down menu with three lines in the upper left.
From there you can subscribe to posts and comments by filling out the contact form.
In a 1995 book, Frank Ardolino shows that Thomas Kyd’s play, The Spanish Tragedy—the best-known English revenge tragedy before Hamlet—contained allusions to the Pazzi conspiracy. If Kyd’s play did so, it’s easier to think that Hamlet contained them as well.
But the sentinels in Hamlet are not assassins. And there are correspondences between stories of Francis of Assisi and Bernard of Clairvaux, and Hamlet - so the Pazzi allusion probably wasn’t the only thing on WS's mind.
Q: But why might scholars have neglected the possibility that these names are allusions to the saints?
A: England after the reformation, and Protestants after Luther in general, rejected the Catholic cult of the saints - and may have avoided painful memories of lost monasteries and their saints. Just as some people in the US try to downplay the history of slavery there, nations that commit crimes and atrocities often downplay past crimes. This was easier in England, where it was argued (often correctly) that Rome was the oppressor, so closing monasteries and confiscating church land was merely a victory against an oppressor.
Q: Would allusions to these saints prove that Shakespeare was Catholic?
A: Nope. It takes a lot more than that. And the meanings of the play are more important than guessing Shakespeare's religious commitments.
Brief summary of Pazzi conspiracy:
https://www.britannica.com/event/Pazzi-conspiracy
Longer Wikipedia article on Pazzi conspiracy:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pazzi_conspiracy
Besides C. Elliot Browne observing what he thinks is the immediate allusion in these names to the Pazzi Conspiracy,
and Frank Ardolino's good observations about similar allusions in "The Spanish Tragedy,"
consider also the statement later in the play by Laertes, when asked by Claudius how far he would go to avenge his father's death,
and Laertes says, "To cut his throat i' the church."
That's how far he'd go, and it certainly sounds like another possible Pazzi allusion.
Finally, consider that the Pazzi Conspiracy was still as well-known in Europe of Shakespeare's time as the assassination of Abraham Lincoln is still well-known in our own time.
—The Pazzi Conspiracy took place about 125 years before Hamlet was published.
—The Lincoln assassination took place 164 years ago as of this writing.
—To people living through the English Reformation, the Pazzi Conspiracy represented the corruption of the Roman Catholic Church.
—To people living through continued racial tensions (Ferguson, Missouri riots) and protests (Black Lives Matter, professional athletes taking a knee during the national anthem), the assassination of Lincoln represents the resistance of the Southern Confederacy to the freeing of slaves and, later, residual resistance to civil rights movements.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
* See Hamlet: Edited by Horace Howard Furness, Volume 4, page 241, via Google Books, and also at archive.org (both, free).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On Francis and the Sultan of Egypt, see The Saint and the Sultan by Paul Moses (2009).]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
INDEX OF POSTS on Francisco & Bernardo:
PAZZI CONSPIRACY - possible allusion noted by C. Elliot Browne in 1876 in the names of Francisco & Bernardo
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/05/c-elliot-browne-wrote-in-1876-that.html
1 May, 2017
SCOURGE AND MINISTER: BERNARD AND FRANCIS https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2018/03/scourge-minister-bernard-francis.html
- March 26, 2018
MIGHT ART LOST IN DISSOLVED MONASTERIES HAVE HELPED CONNECT HAMLET'S FRANCISCO & BERNARDO TO THE SAINTS?
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/04/might-lost-art-in-dissolved-monasteries.html
- April 03, 2017
FATHER ISSUES FOR HAMLET & FRANCISCO
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/01/shakespeares-hamlet-has-father-issues.html
- April 10, 2017
TOP SIX REASONS Shakespeare probably named sentinel Francisco after Francis of Assisi
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/04/top-six-reasons-shakespeare-probably.html
- April 17, 2017
Four Approaches to Francisco & Bernardo in Hamlet
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/04/four-approaches-to-names-of-sentinels.html
- April 24, 2017
MELANCHOLY: LOST DELIGHT IN HAMLET & FRANCIS OF ASSISI
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/07/melancholy-lost-delight-hamlet-francis.html
- July 17, 2017
How Geographical Memory May Have Encouraged the Naming of Two Characters in Hamlet
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/07/how-geographical-memory-may-have.html
- July 24, 2017
SHAKESPEARE'S HAMLET FINDS A FATHER IN PROVIDENCE (not RI)
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/11/shakespeares-hamlet-finds-father-in.html
- November 20, 2017
WHAT DO FRANCISCO & BERNARDO HAVE TO DO WITH SHAKESPEARE & THE BIBLE?
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/12/what-do-francisco-bernardo-have-to-do.html
- December 03, 2017
BERNARDO TALES: LAERTES & HAMLET RECONCILE, as do BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX & PETER ABELARD
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/12/bernardo-abelard-hamlet-laertes-reconcile.html
- December 04, 2017
CORRUPTED REFORMERS: WHY SOMEONE NAMED AFTER BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX MIGHT BE FIRST TO SPEAK IN SHAKESPEARE’S HAMLET
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/01/corrupted-reformers-why-someone-named.html
- January 01, 2018
SCOURGE AND MINISTER: BERNARD AND FRANCIS
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2018/03/scourge-minister-bernard-francis.html
- March 26, 2018
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Disclaimer: If and when I quote or paraphrase bible passages or mention religion in many of my blog posts, I do not intend to promote any religion over another, nor am I attempting to promote religious belief in general; only to explore how the Bible and religion influenced Shakespeare, his plays, and his age.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thanks for reading!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My current project is a book tentatively titled Hamlet’s Bible, about biblical allusions and plot echoes in Hamlet.
Below is a link to a list of some of my top posts (“greatest hits”), including a description of my book project (last item on the list):
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/12/top-20-hamlet-bible-posts.html
I post every week, so please visit as often as you like and consider subscribing.
To find the subscribe button, go to the home page: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/
see the = drop-down menu with three lines in the upper left.
From there you can subscribe to posts and comments by filling out the contact form.
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