April, 1985, marks the anniversaries–dating back to the years 1564 and 1616–of the birth and death of William Shakespeare, the Western world’s most popular poet and playwright. What account’s for Shakespeare’s popularity? Why is Shakespeare a cultural reference point? Lynda Boose, Margreta de Grazia, and Maynard Mack address these questions.
At the time of this interview, Boose was visiting professor of English at the University of California, Los Angeles. De Grazia, a Fellow at the National Humanities Center (1982-83), was professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania. Mack, a Fellow at the Center (1984-85, 1986-87), was professor of English at Yale University.
This edition of Soundings was conducted by Wayne J. Pond.
