William Cecil: Top Among 12 Polonius Satire Inspiration Candidates
My blog entry two weeks ago
(November 24) dealt with Polonius, Jephthah, William Cecil, the Elizabethan Bond of
Association, and the theme of bad vows in the Biblical Jephthah tale.
Last week (December 1), my post dealt with Polonius and The Golden Ass by Apuleius, and Shakespearean clown Will Kempe playing both Corambis (pre-Polonius character name) and Falstaff (a character in The Merry Wives of Widsor that echoes Golden Ass tales).
This week I continue exploring the character of Polonius - and various candidates for influences or historical figures Shakespeare
may have satirized, or which may have in part been inspiration for the character of Polonius - including the connection between the older name for the character of Polonius - which appears in the First Quarto as "Corambis" - and cabbage.
In his long essay on the shift from the key counselor’s name from "Corambis" to "Polonius" in Shakespeare’s Hamlet,” Abraham Samuel Shiff includes an appendix that surveys literature relating to speculation about the meanings of the name, and about reasons for the change from the first quarto (Corambis) to later editions (Polonius, in Q2, F1, and later editions).*
In Shiff’s survey, scholarly speculation about possible influences or objects of satire include the following:
1. William Cecil (who seems to be the most popular candidate for satire in Corambis/Polonius);
2. Corambis (as from Latin, “twice-cooked cabbage”);
3. Polish Ambassador Paulus Dzialinski (involved in a diplomatic incident with Elizabeth in 1597);
4. Henry Carey, Lord Hunsdon (patron of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men);
5. Poland (joined with Lithuania in Shakespeare's day - an expanding and officially Catholic country after the Union of Brest in 1595-1596).
6. Sir Henry Sydney;
7. The Earl of Northumberland;
8. Laurentis Grimaldus Goslicius (Polish statesman and author);
9. Ambassador Henrik Ramel;
10. Poland as “ the patch of ground where Copernicus is buried” (and the play as representing an opposition between a Copernican heliocentrism at odds with an Aristotelian-geocentric view of the cosmos);
11. John Lyly (English playwright and Shakespeare contemporary).
Neither Shiff nor Kliman mention Jephthah or the Bond of Association (in part the focus of my November 24 post), topics which other Shakespeare scholars sometimes discuss in association with Polonius. Nor do they mention Apuleius, author of The Golden Ass (in part the focus of my December 1 post).
NOTICING BIASES
One may also notice that, among those who discuss issues related to Polonius and William Cecil, some are Oxfordians (who believe the plays bearing the name of William Shakespeare were written by the Earl of Oxford, son-in-law to William Cecil, husband to Anne Cecil), and some are Stratfordians (who believe that the plays were written by William Shakespeare of Stratford-Upon-Avon).
Among those who deny the possibility that Polonius is a satire of William Cecil, one may also get the impression that they seek to protect Shakespeare and his reputation from the idea that the playwright may have been subtly critical of the monarchy while also enjoying the benefits of counting the throne among his patrons.
Those who embrace the idea of Polonius as satire of Cecil are open to the possibility that the play is somewhat political for Shakespeare's time: Just as Hamlet is a "prophetic soul," critical of the corruptions of the Danish throne, and just as he puts on the play, “The Mousetrap” (in 3.2) to catch the conscience of the king, Shakespeare himself may have been critical of those in power, or at least of certain things in English Tudor history. (I agree with this position.)
Are some scholars less inclined to consider Polonius as a satire of Cecil because of a general preference for viewing his plays as dealing mostly in “universal truths” and not blemished by “topical” (read: political) concerns? Perhaps. Some say as much.
But others admit that Polonius may be satire of William Cecil, yet still believe this does not detract from what they believe are the play's "universal" concerns. Many contemporary critics reject the idea of universal truths or themes, but might still recognize in Polonius/Corambis a possible satire of William Cecil.
POLONIUS: SATIRIZING A SINGLE HISTORICAL FIGURE? OR A COMPOSITE?
Also, one notes that many scholars in Shiff’s list (at least in Shiff’s summaries of their positions) seem to prefer the idea that the character of Polonius was based on a single historical figure, rather than possibly being a composite based on characteristics of multiple historical figures. (Perhaps this oversimplifies the creative process, a tendency perhaps of scholars who are not themselves dramatists or novelists?)
A number in Shiff’s list, however, do consider that William Cecil may have been the main object of satire in Polonius, or at least misconstrued as such, and that the name change, or other possible allusions in the name of Polonius may have been used as cover, to divide and divert attention from Cecil as a more obvious object of satire.
It is also possible that Shakespeare was trying to satirize more than one person, such as Cecil, and also Shakespeare's acting company’s patron, Lord Hunsdon, for example.
MY OWN BIASES
I do think Polonius was probably, for the most part, a satire of William Cecil, but perhaps of others as well. But for purposes of this blog, I am more interested in how Shakespeare appropriated the Biblical Jephthah tale in the play, why he might have done this, and what it might mean for the play and its possible satires. Too much older, character-based criticism is reductionist, treating the play as if it might be merely commentary on court gossip, rather than recognizing the play as an artistic construct that becomes much more than merely about figures at court.
The Jephthah approach can focus more on the elements of the Biblical story and how Shakespeare may have been holding the tale up as a mirror, not only to Polonius and his society's memory of William Cecil and his legacy, but also more generally to his society and to other aspects of the play.
Prince Hamlet’s vow to the ghost that he will avenge the father's death may itself be a Jephthah-like vow, apparently in conflict with his earlier, assumed baptismal vows; these would have been reaffirmed in the Christian anointing at confirmation, the earlier Christian vows conflicting with later vows of vengeance. (But added to that, as a citizen of Denmark and perhaps as the crown prince and rightful heir, perhaps Hamlet has other obligations besides personal revenge that may later require him to kill Claudius - a larger topic than can be adequately addressed in this blog post.)
THE CASE FOR WILLIAM CECIL, LORD BURGHLEY
From a variety of sources that are available via web search, one finds the argument that Polonius is a satire of William Cecil supported by a list of arguments, many of them convincing. People without doctorates in Shakespeare or Early Modern studies have also weighed in on the subject, including my next source, Mark Alexander, from whom I take the following list of five arguments, from his essay, “Polonius as Lord Burghley”:
1. Polonius’s role as head counselor stands in the same relation to the monarch as does Burghley’s role.
2. Polonius presents precepts to his son in a manner similar to Burghley’s presenting precepts to his son.
3. Polonius’s son Laertes’s character and travel to Paris are strikingly similar to Burghley’s son Thomas’s character and travel to Paris.
4. Polonius’s daughter Ophelia and her circumstances with Hamlet are strongly similar to Burghley’s daughter Anne Cecil and her circumstances with Oxford.
5. Polonius’s tedious verbosity is nearly identical with Burghley’s in tone and manner.
Mark Alexander doesn't have an advanced degree in Shakespeare or Early Modern studies, yet he has assembled an accessible essay at the link above, which some of my readers may find helpful.
OTHER CANDIDATES
Other historical and literary figures may have influenced Shakespeare’s naming of the Danish counselor as Corambis/Polonius. Here are a few:
Corambis as twice-cooked cabbage:
[Image: Cabbage Soup. Public domain via publicdomainpictures.net.]
The counselor is verbose and recycles cliched
sayings, like cabbage twice-cooked. See Shiff, page 51, item 32, Doris
V. Falk (1967):
“Whether the name [Corambis] was original with
Shakespeare or was taken over from some early source, it seems to have
been a pun with a proverbial Derivation [...]. The Elizabethan version
of the proverb was "Crambe bis posita [or cocta] mors est." Cabbage
twice served (or cooked) is death. The Latin "crambe repitita" was an
ancient commonplace; Juvenal uses it in the "Satire on Scholarship and
Writers (VII, 154) "Occidit miseros crambe repitita magistros; i.e. The
student slays his poor teachers with the recooked - said over again,
regurgitated - cabbage. The Elizabethans referred to crambe as
"twicesod" or "twice-boiled" as well as twice served up. To them the
meaning of crambe as "cabbage" was unimportant since they used the word
itself without translating….”
Polish Ambassador Paulus
Dzialinski was involved in a diplomatic incident with Elizabeth in 1597.
This is the main focus of Shiff’s essay: First, the Corambis-wordplay on
“crambe repitita,” and when that wordplay was expected and old hat, a
shift to “Polonius” after the 1597 incident became more widely known.
Henry Carey, Lord Hunsdon, patron of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men.
[Portrait of Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon (1526-1596). Steven van Herwijck, circa 1561-63 - Weiss Gallery 25th Anniversary e-catalogue, p. 86. Cropped. Public Domain.]
See Shiff, page 50, item 29: Josephine Waters Bennett, 1953, argues that Hunsdon
and Cecil being satirized in Polonius is “improbable,” but I beg to differ).
- I would
observe: In the remarks by Polonius on the first player's speech soon after the players' arrival, it's possible that the advice of
Polonius may have been based at least in part on the meddling remarks of a patron such as
Lord Hunsdon, or perhaps someone else at court when Shakespeare’s
company gave command performances for the throne.
Sir Henry Sidney...
[Sir Henry Sidney. Painting by Arnold Bronckorst, 1573. Public domain.]
or the Earl of Northumberland:
Proposed by Joseph Hunter, 1845: “Lord Burghley [William Cecil], Sir Henry Sydney, and the Earl of Northumberland.” See Shiff, page 46, item 6).
NOTE: It seems to me that Sydney and Northumberland are not convincing candidates.
- Thomas Percy, 7th Earl of Northumberland, was involved in the Rising of the Northern Earls, and was executed.
- Henry Percy, 8th Earl of Northumberland, opposed his older brother in that uprising, but later conspired to help Mary, Queen of Scots.
- Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland, was a son of Henry VIII born out of wedlock and suspected of involvement in the Gunpowder plot (Polonius loved spying, but never conspires against Claudius).
- Henry Sidney served both Mary I and Elizabeth I (many might say quite loyally, and in that sense may resemble Polonius), and in the minds of scholars who embrace this theory, his son the poet and sometimes hot-tempered courtier Phillip Sidney might resemble Laertes. But Henry Sidney was never a chief counselor to the throne like Polonius (or William Cecil).
Poland (in light blue on map below)
[Poland-Lithuanian in 1600 (light blue). Image cropped, via Res Publica.]
Shiff has one source that claim Polonian (a Roman) was founder of Poland, but other sources dispute this. Wikipedia observes, " The Lechitic Western Polans, a tribe whose name means "people living in open fields", dominated the region, and gave Poland - which lies in the North-Central European Plain - its name."
See Shiff page 52, item 36: This is proposed by various, including Joan Hutton
Landis, 1984, who also notes Poland as the object of the dead King Hamlet’s
military efforts, and Polonius as victim of stabbing by the prince, repeating a pattern).
Connections with Poland are argued against by Sir Israel Gollancz in
1904. See Shiff, pages 48-49, item 20: Gollancz argues against
connections both with Cecil and with Poland: “...not a stage caricature
of the great English statesman, so he called the character by the new
name. It was contrary to historical data that the Counsellor of the King
of Denmark should bear a name which could only mean the Polonian or the
Pole….”
NOTE: This seems to assume that Shakespeare was striving
for historical accuracy, which was often not the case, especially with most of the names in the entire play. The playwright may be suggesting in the name that Polonius, originally perhaps from Poland, may have deserted and perhaps even betrayed his
native country - which had been an enemy to the dead King Hamlet -
and that this desertion may have been motivated by his ambition for advancement at court.
This theme would be consistent with the play in which an ambitious
Claudius betrays his brother, the king, and also with the themes of the Jephthah story. If Polonius had a similar
history of betrayal and ambition, it makes sense that Claudius might
find him useful.
See also Shiff, page 54, item 42: “1999. Victoria
N. Alexander finds nothing Polish in the name Polonius, and no
connection to Poland.”
ALSO NOTE that Shiff focuses on various diplomatic incidents between Poland and England, but for some reason, he totally neglects the idea that Poland was a large and increasingly Roman Catholic country, and for that reason, would have been at odds with Protestant England.
A Polish diplomat
Proposed by C. Elliot Browne, 1876; see Shiff, pages 47-48, item 14.
I have cited C. Elliot Browne before as having noticed that the names of
Francisco and Bernardo are also the names of the Pazzi Conspiracy
assassins.
- According to Shiff, Browne in 1876 writes that
“Polonius is probably the typical Pole diplomatist and counselor. The
inhabitants of Poland at that time were known in England as Polonians,
and the elective kingdom, with its elaborate system of assemblies and
diets, was pre-eminently the land of policy and intrigue.”
Also see
Shiff, page 49, item 25: Shiff notes that in 1924, Francis Griffin
Stokes mentions “a Polish ambassador visited Elizabeth's Court in 1597.”
Stokes does not go into detail, but as previously mentioned, an incident involving this Polish
ambassador, Paulus
Dzialinski, is the main focus of Shiff’s larger essay to which this
appendix is attached.
Laurentis Grimaldus Goslicius, Polish statesman and author
Proposed by W. W. Gregg, 1955. Shiff notes that the stateman's book named The Counsellor "appeared in an English
translation the year of Burghley's death.” See Shiff, page 51, item 31:
“…Polonius was probably so named in memory of the great Polish statesman
and writer Laurentis Grimaldus Goslicius, whose book....”
See also Shiff, page 52, item 34: Geoffrey Bullough (1973).
Ambassador Henrik Ramel.
See Shiff, page 52, item 35: proposed by Keith Brown (1974).
Poland as “ the patch of ground where Copernicus is buried.”
Proposed by Peter D. Usher (1999). See Shiff, page 54, item 43: “Peter D. Usher, an astronomer, perceives Hamlet to be an allegory for the new Copernican heliocentric model in conflict with the existing order of Aristotelean geocentricism. The name Claudius represents Claudius Ptolemy, the astronomer of the geocentric model. The Polish connection is the patch of ground where Copernicus is buried and that Fortinbras seeks to capture.”
NOTE: This sort of theory tends to feel too clever and reductionist: While it's true that there are some interesting possible references to astronomy, such as the star in 1.1 that may be a reference to what came to be known as Tycho's Supernova in the constellation of Cassiopeia (and to Danish astronomer and nobleman Tycho Brahe who observed and was inspired by it), the significance of Poland as an enemy of the dead king and as a large Catholic country seems more important than Poland and Polonius representing an opposition of they type Usher finds; it seems forced and not reflected in the characters.
John Lyly, English playwright and Shakespeare contemporary. Lyly was author of Euphues which some scholars may associate with the advice of Polonius to Laertes; but I tend to think he's an unlikely candidate, in part because I'd like to think some of Lyly's writing was tongue-in-cheek or satire, while Polonius seems to take his advice to his son very seriously.
Proposed by Elizabeth Oakes, 1999. See Shiff, page 54, item 41.
BOTH/AND, NOT EITHER/OR?
There are many possibilities, but William Cecil is arguably still the strongest contender. Yet as Shakespeare was a master of double/triple/-entendre, we might agree with those who think Polonius is a composite character, or that references are mixed to obscure the more obvious reference to William Cecil.
Cecil is more helpful as a reference when it comes to the Jephthah allusion, something I'll continue to explore next week.
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* Shiff’s essay can be found here at HamletWorks.org under Texts -> Criticism -> "TRANSITION FROM CORAMBIS TO POLONIUS . . .” (PDF download). Shiff’s essay is a version of his master’s thesis and is 79 pages, downloadable for free; 44 pages, plus 11 pages of literature survey, plus notes and sources. Also see Bernice W. Kliman’s essay, “Three Notes on Polonius: Position, Residence and Name,” reprinted here at HamletWorks.org.
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Hamlet quotes: All quotes from Hamlet are taken from the Modern (spelling), Editor's Version at InternetShakespeare via the University of Victoria in Canada. They are often first identified by way of the advanced search feature at OpenSourceShakespeare.org.
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RECENT BLOG POSTS ABOUT POLONIUS & JEPHTHAH:
October 6, 2020: Power-Broker Polonius, Ungenerous Jephthah
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2020/10/powerbroker-polonius-ungenerous-jephthah.html
November 24, 2020: Is Hamlet's Jephthah remark in part about Cecil & the Bond of Association?
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2020/11/hamlet-jephthah-cecil-bond-assn.html
December 1, 2020: Polonius, Apuleius, Golden Ass, Arras, & Hidden Lovers
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2020/12/polonius-apuleius-golden-ass-arras.html
December 8, 2020: William Cecil: Top Among 12 Polonius Satire/inspiration Candidates
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2020/12/william-cecil-top-among-12-polonius.html
December 15, 2020: Jephthah-Figures in Hamlet: Ambitious, Desperate, Traumatized Outsiders?
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2020/12/jephthah-polonius-cecil-ambitious.html
December 22, 2020: Jephthah, Cecil, & Three Instruments in Hamlet
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2020/12/jephthah-cecil-three-instruments-in.html
December 29, 2020: J.G. McManaway: Ophelia & Jephtha's Daughter
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2020/12/jg-mcmanaway-ophelia-jephthas-daughter.html
January 5, 2021: What Art Might Remind Us About Jephthah, Polonius, & Ophelia
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2021/01/what-art-might-remind-us-about-jephthah.html
January 12, 2021: Jephthah & Polonius: What’s prostitution got to do with it?
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2021/01/jephthah-polonius-whats-prostitution.html
January 19, 2021: What's Jephthah to Hecuba, or She to Him?
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2021/01/whats-jephthah-to-hecuba-or-she-to-him.html
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Disclaimer: If and when I quote or paraphrase bible passages in many of my blog posts, I do not intend to promote any religion over any other, nor am I attempting to promote religious belief in general; only to point out how the Bible may have influenced Shakespeare, his plays, and his age.
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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
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