Studia Filologiczne UJK

Summary

Ben Jonson (1573‒1637), in his eulogy published with the First Folio in 1623 and entitled ‘To the memory of my beloved, The AUTHOR Master William Shakespeare’, created a prophetic image of Shakespeare as an omnipresent influence ‘To whom all scenes of Europe homage owe.’ In the seventeenth century, thanks to the entrepreneurship of English Comedians, the word of the Bard penetrated Northern and Eastern Europe. However, it was the eighteenth century, with its heated debate over the ‘merits’ and ‘faults’ of Shakespearean works going on both sides of the English Channel, which generated massive interested in the Elizabethan playwright. This, in turn, paved the way for the first translations of Shakespeare into French, German, Polish or Russian that allowed the Bard to ‘speak’ other languages and for good anchored his works in the rich cultures of Continental Europe. Shakespeare found his translators among French enlightened elite, German romantics, Polish aristocracy or Russian royalty. The aim of this article is to highlight crucial contribution of women into Shakespeare criticism and translation of his works. It shows pivotal role that Shakespeare Ladies Club played in propagating the Bard’s repertoire in London theatres, analyses critical essays written by the renowned members of the Bluestocking society and presents women of Continental Europe who either encouraged translation of Shakespeare or made their own attempts at it.