P E T E R L A N G Shakespeare, the Orient, and the Critics ABDULLA AL-DABBAGH Previous criticism has not adequately discussed oriental aspects of the content of Shakespearean drama. In addition to his portrayal of oriental figures (such as Cleopatra, Othello, and Shylock)and his use of literary genres and motifsthat have roots in oriental tradition(such as that of the tragic romance in Romeo and Juliet), there are certain key elements in Shakespeare’s thought and outlook that can only be properly understood within the larger contribution of the oriental legacy. This legacy has clear relevance not only to the exemplary fate of the lovers in Romeo and Juliet, but also to the destinies of such major Shakespearean heroes as Hamlet and Lear. Shakespeare, the Orient, and the Criticsinvestigates the boundaries of oriental framework within works such as Hamlet, King Lear, andThe Tempest.Stylistically, at the heart of Shakespeare’s orientalism are two long-recognized features of his dra- matic art: his predilection for reversing stereotypes and his sympathy and identi- fication with the alien and the “other.” This can be most clearly seen in the love tragedies of OthelloandAnthony and Cleopatra as well as the romantic comedy of The Merchant of Venice.Ultimately, the philosophic underpinning of such works is a special expression of Renaissance humanism that transcends the boundaries of class, race,and culture. Abdulla Al-Dabbagh is Professor of English Literature at the United Arab Emirates University. He holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University, an M.Litt.from Cambridge University, and a Ph.D.from Essex University. He has taught English, American,and world literatures, literary criticism, compara- tive literature, and translation at universities in Iraq, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates. His current research interests include literary theory and world literature, in addition to English literature, par- ticularly the works of Shakespeare. www.peterlang.com Shakespeare, the Orient, and the Critics PETER LANG New York (cid:2) Washington, D.C./Baltimore (cid:2) Bern Frankfurt (cid:2) Berlin (cid:2) Brussels (cid:2) Vienna (cid:2) Oxford Abdulla Al-Dabbagh Shakespeare, the Orient, and the Critics PETER LANG New York (cid:2) Washington, D.C./Baltimore (cid:2) Bern Frankfurt (cid:2) Berlin (cid:2) Brussels (cid:2) Vienna (cid:2) Oxford Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Al-Dabbagh, Abdulla. Shakespeare, the Orient, and the critics / Abdulla Al-Dabbagh. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. 1. Shakespeare, William, 1564–1616—Criticism and interpretation. 2. Shakespeare, William, 1564–1616—Knowledge—Orient. 3. Orient—In literature. 4. Orientalism in literature. I. Title. PR3069.E37A6 822.3’3—dc22 2010013088 ISBN 978­1­4539­0014­7 Bibliographic information published by Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek. Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the “Deutsche Nationalbibliografie”; detailed bibliographic data is available on the Internet at http://dnb.d-nb.de/. The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council of Library Resources. © 2010 Peter Lang Publishing, Inc., New York 29 Broadway, 18th floor, New York, NY 10006 www.peterlang.com All rights reserved. Reprint or reproduction, even partially, in all forms such as microfilm, xerography, microfiche, microcard, and offset strictly prohibited. Printed in Germany Table of Contents Preface and Acknowledgements vii Introduction 1 Chapter One: Shakespeare’s Orientalism and the Reversal ofStereotypes 15 Chapter Two: The Oriental Framework ofRomeo and Juliet 49 Chapter Three: Shakespeare’s Humanism:Hamlet,King Lear,and Sufism 69 Chapter Four: Shakespeare and the Arabian Nights 91 Chapter Five: Shakespeare and Money 101 VI | CONTENTS Chapter Six: Shakespeare’s Roman World 115 Chapter Seven: Method in the Madness: Success and Failure ofEarly HamletCriticism 123 Afterword 137 Preface and Acknowledgements W ritten over a period of two decades, with the first paper, “Othello—A Reappraisal,” published in 1989 and the fourth, “Shakespeare and the Arabian Nights,”delivered at a conference in 2009,these essays share the common focus indi- cated in the title of the collection, which is Shakespeare’s complex and multi- dimensional relationship with the Orient. The first three essays,on Othello,Antony and Cleopatra,and The Merchant of Venice, collected in the first chapter, deal with a hitherto unexamined aspect of Shakespeare’s dramatic art that is central to the understanding of his reaction to the Orient and his dramatic representation of oriental characters,namely his tenden- cy to reverse stereotypes and subvert prejudiced views and attitudes. The second chapter,entitled “The Oriental Framework of Romeo and Juliet,” examines the tradition of the oriental genre of the tragic romance to which this play is perhaps the last and greatest inheritor,as well as elements such as imagery and poetic devices,and,more importantly,the dramatic treatment of the old philosoph- ic issue of fate and free will that closely parallel the Islamic Sufi perspective. Similarly, the third chapter attempts, through a close examination of Shakespeare’s two great tragedies, Hamlet and King Lear, to show how the Shakespearean humanism embodied in the fabric of these two works also echoes many of the motifs and approaches of Sufism. VIII | PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Finally,the fourth chapter,“Shakespeare and the Arabian Nights,”attempts to deal with Shakespeare’s orientalism through a comparison with that great work of Arab/Islamic civilization,focusing mainly on the comedies and romances. The last three chapters, although not directly about Shakespeare and the Orient, reinforce the discussion of the earlier chapters through dealing with the record of critical success (and failure) on key issues in Shakespeare’s works,includ- ing issues that are related,even if indirectly,to his orientalism and his humanism, such as Shakespeare and money (chapter five), and Shakespeare’s Roman world (chapter six),and earlyHamletcriticism (chapter seven). The first essay,in this collection,“Shakespeare’s Orientalism and the Reversal of Stereotypes,”is based on three earlier,shorter,articles:“Othello—A Re-appraisal,” published in Al-Mustansiriya University Literary Review, 17, 1989, 135–151, “Shakespeare and the Orient:A New Reading of Anthony and Cleopatra,”published in Dirasat:Academic Journal ofthe University ofJordan,22(A),2,1995,33–51,and “The Reversal of Stereotypes in Shakespeare’s The Merchant ofVenice,”published in Abhath Al-Yarmouk:Academic Journal of the University ofYarmouk, 15,1,1997, 59–72. The second essay, “The Oriental Framework of Romeo and Juliet,” was delivered,in a shorter version,at the Lancastrian Shakespeare Conference held at the University of Lancaster and Houghton Tower,UK,July 21–23,1999,and was published in The Comparatist, 24, 2000, 64–82, and reprinted in Shakespearean Criticism,65,2002,214–223.The third paper,“Shakespeare’s Humanism:Hamlet, King Lear,and Sufism,”was delivered,in shorter versions,at the “Between Empires: Orientalism Before 1600”conference held at Trinity College,Cambridge University, UK,12–15 July,2001,at the “Shakespeare in European Culture”conference held at the Department of English,University of Basel,Switzerland,14–18 November th 2001,and at the 17 Waterloo Conference on Elizabethan Theatre,held at the University of Waterloo,Ontario,Canada,June 16–18,2005.It is scheduled to come out in the “Shakespeare and Asia”volume of The Shakespeare Yearbook XVII (New York: Edwin Mellen Press, pp. 493–532) early in 2010. The fourth essay, “Shakespeare and the Arabian Nights,” was delivered in shorter versions at the English-Arabic comparative literature symposium held at Qatar and Georgetown universities, Doha, Qatar, 18–19 March, 2008, and at “The Arabian Nights: Encounters and Translations in Literature and the Arts” conference held at NYU/Abu Dhabi Institute,Abu Dhabi,United Arab Emirates,15–17 December, th 2009.The fifth essay,“Shakepeare and Money,”was delivered at the 19 Triennial Conference of the International Association of University Professors of English, held at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, 8–14 August, th 2004. The sixth essay, “Shakespeare’s Roman World,” was delivered at the 8 International European Shakespeare Research Association conference, held in Pisa,Italy,19 to 22 November,2009.The seventh and last essay,“Method in the