8-4FirstFolio

 Shakespeare’s First Folio // Answer prepared by Caitlin Z. // Shakespeare, like many great artists and writers, was not fully appreciated when he was alive. As stated on The British Library’s website, on the page entitled “Shakespeare’s First Folio,” Shakespeare’s friends from the theater business, John Heminge and Henry Condell, published 36 of his plays to make a folio seven years after his death. Shakespeare’s Globe website, the section called “Shakespeare's Globe and British Library Publish Facsimiles of the Plays,” states that the hand-made folio paper was usually reserved for printing of bibles, so it would have been a great honor for Shakespeare to see his works preserved so well. The website also states that half of the plays had not previously been in print, showing that the men unwittingly saved 18 wonderful plays from disappearing without ever being exposed to the public. According to the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust website, on the page entitled “What is the Difference between a Quarto and a Folio?” less than 20 years after the folio was published the theaters in London were closed due to the puritanical bans of the Protectorate. During that time period many of the original scripts of the plays were misplaced; the few that survived the move have gone missing over the next three hundred years. Though the two men were just trying to keep the memory of their late friend alive, they ended up saving some of the world’s greatest literature from being forever forgotten.

As Shakespeare’s reputation grew over the years, the demand for the folios changed dramatically. The folios that once sold at 1 pound each, now sell for up to 6 million dollars, as stated on the Shakespeare’s Globe website in the section “Shakespeare's Globe and British Library Publish Facsimiles of the Plays.” The book __The Shakespeare First Folio, its Bibliographical and Textual History,__ by Walter Wilson Greg, declares that copies have recently been sold at auction for the purpose of being put on display in museums (76). According to the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust website, on the page entitled “How Many Copies of the First Folio Still Exist?” less than 300 of the original 1,000 folio copies remain. The lack of supply contributes directly to the rising prices for the collection. The Folger Shakespeare Library website, on the page called “Missing First Folio of Shakespeare’s Work Recovered,” reported that a copy of the folio that went missing from the Durham University Library returned 10 years later. Incidents of that sort are a threat to the books, which need to be preserved to keep the magic of the original Shakespearean language alive. These books, though expensive, are history in the flesh and deserve to be well preserved and observed.

Over the years, literary historians have been very interested in the First Folio. __Shakespeare's First Folio: A Study__, by Raymond Crompton Rhodes, tells how the categories were originally separated: comedies, histories, and tragedies (33). The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust website, on the page entitled “What is the Difference between a Quarto and a Folio?” tells how the plays in the folio were further divided into romances and problem plays by historians in the last 100 years. The Folger Shakespeare Library website, on the page called “Missing First Folio of Shakespeare’s Work Recovered,” claims to have 79 copies of the folio, all of which are studied by English students who want to further interpret Shakespeare’s work. The preservation of the folios is essential to the conservation of the Shakespearean language. Works Cited Greg, Walter Wilson. //The Shakespeare First Folio: Its Bibliographical and Textual History//. Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press, 1955. Print. "How Many Copies of the First Folio Still Exist?." //Shakespeare Birthplace Trust//. 15 Apr 2009 . "Missing First Folio of Shakespeare’s Work Recovered." //Folger Shakespeare Library//. 12 Apr 2009 . Rhodes, Raymond Crompton. //Shakespeare's First Folio: A Study//. Oxford, UK: B. Blackwell, 1923. Print. "Shakespeare's First Folio." //British Library//. 12 Apr 2009 . "Shakespeare's Globe and British Library Publish Facsimiles of the Plays." //Shakespeare's Globe//. 15 Apr 2009 . "What is the Difference between a Quarto and a Folio?." //Shakespeare Birthplace Trust//.17 Apr 2009 .