The month long lecture series that coincided with Van Wylen’s hosting of the Manifold Greatness exhibit ended on March 29 when Dr. John Cox of the English department presented a lecture entitled “Manifold Greatness: Shakespeare and the Bible.” In this lecture, Cox talked about the various ways the Bible appears in Shakespeare’s writing. Shakespeare cites the Bible in every one of his plays for a total of 1200 separate Biblical references throughout his works. His characters also often demonstrate theological depth, which Cox argued reflects Shakespeare’s understanding of the Bible. Though Shakespeare would have had limited familiarity with the King James Bible, the English versions of the Bible he would have known influenced translators of the King James Bible. This explains why some of Shakespeare’s phrases sound similar to phrases found in the King James Bible.
Today is the last day to see the Manifold Greatness exhibit while it is at Hope. The exhibit is available for viewing during normal library hours, which are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
— Bethany Stripp, Library Student Blogger
Sorry I have missed such a valuable lecture. The correlation between the Bible and its place in Shakespeare works are a subject of great interest to me.