humanities.lit.authors.shakespeare

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news:6ea58df3-f426-4aa5-b4a4-a4956acf2202@m36g2000hse.googlegroups.com...

>> The monument says nothing about him
>> being literate. In any case, it was probably
>> put up for his father, John Shagsper.
>
> 1. The monument identifies the person it memorializes as "Shakspeare,"
> who died April 23, 1616.

Take a look at a good picture of the monument
(the image of the idiot pork-butcher with the
blank stare). The 'who died' bit is clearly an
addition to the main text -- probably made
decades later. It is written in tiny (and near
unreadable) print.

http://www.dkimages.com/discover/previews/770/893855.JPG

> 2. There is, of course, no evidence that indicates the monument was
> put up for John Shakespeare.

It was, of course, put up for the two
(a) the locals were meant to think it
was for the elder man, John;
(b) tourists were meant to think it was
for the Stratman-poet.

> 3. The monument refers to "all yt he hath writt." To have writt
> requires literacy, Paul.

Nope. The inscription continues:

ALL, Y HE HATH WRITT, LEAVES LIVING ART,
BUT PAGE, TO SERVE HIS WITT.

All that I have written in Mandarin (and in
Russian, Serbo-Croat and Hebrew) leaves
living art but page to serve my wit.


Paul.