First Folio

First Folio. The First Folio is a collection of William Shakespeare's plays, published by William Jaggard and Edward Blount in London in 1623, seven years after Shakespeare's death. It includes 36 plays, such as Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, King Lear, and The Tempest, which are considered some of the greatest works of English literature by authors like John Milton, Alexander Pope, and Samuel Johnson. The First Folio is a significant publication in the history of English theatre, literary criticism, and book publishing, influencing writers like John Dryden, Henry Fielding, and Jane Austen.

Introduction

The First Folio was published by William Jaggard and Edward Blount, who were prominent London publishers, and Isaac Jaggard, William Jaggard's son, who was also a publisher and a Stationers' Company member, like Ben Jonson and John Donne. The publication of the First Folio was a major undertaking, involving the collaboration of several London printers, including William Jaggard's printing house, which had previously published works by Christopher Marlowe and Ben Jonson. The First Folio was dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton and William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke, who were both patrons of Shakespeare and the Lord Chamberlain's Men, a theatre company that later became known as the King's Men, with which Richard Burbage and Henry Condell were associated.

Publication History

The First Folio was published in 1623, during the reign of James I of England, who was a patron of the arts and a supporter of the theatre. The publication of the First Folio was a significant event in the history of English literature, as it helped to establish Shakespeare as a major playwright and poet, alongside other notable writers like John Webster, Thomas Middleton, and John Fletcher. The First Folio was printed in a large format, with a total of 907 pages, and included a portrait of Shakespeare engraved by Martin Droeshout, which was later used in other publications, such as the Second Folio and the Third Folio, published by Philip Chetwinde and Robert Allot. The First Folio was published in a limited edition, with only about 750 copies printed, making it a rare and valuable book, sought after by collectors like Thomas Bodley and Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer.

Content and Organization

The First Folio includes 36 plays by Shakespeare, which are organized into three categories: Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies. The plays are arranged in a specific order, with the Comedies first, followed by the Histories, and finally the Tragedies. The First Folio includes some of Shakespeare's most famous plays, such as A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Merchant of Venice, and Julius Caesar, as well as some of his lesser-known works, like The Two Noble Kinsmen and Pericles, Prince of Tyre, which were written in collaboration with John Fletcher and George Wilkins. The First Folio also includes a preface written by Ben Jonson, who was a friend and fellow playwright of Shakespeare, and a member of the Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers, like John Heminges and Henry Condell.

Significance and Impact

The First Folio is a significant publication in the history of English literature and theatre, as it helped to establish Shakespeare as a major playwright and poet, influencing writers like John Dryden, Alexander Pope, and Samuel Johnson. The First Folio has had a profound impact on the development of Western literature, with its influence visible in the works of authors like Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and Virginia Woolf. The First Folio has also been the subject of extensive scholarship and criticism, with many scholars and critics, such as William Hazlitt, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and A.C. Bradley, studying its language, structure, and historical context, and its relationship to other works, like The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer and The Faerie Queene by Edmund Spenser.

Preservation and Conservation

The First Folio is a rare and valuable book, with only about 230 copies surviving to the present day, many of which are housed in institutions like the British Library, the Bodleian Library, and the Folger Shakespeare Library, which was founded by Henry Clay Folger and Emily Jordan Folger. The preservation and conservation of the First Folio are important tasks, as the book is a significant cultural and historical artifact, with many copies being digitized and made available online, like the Google Books project, which includes works by William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and Ben Jonson. The First Folio has also been the subject of extensive restoration and conservation efforts, with many institutions and organizations, like the National Trust and the Heritage Lottery Fund, working to preserve the book for future generations, alongside other important works, like the Magna Carta and the Domesday Book.

Notable Copies and Sales

The First Folio has been the subject of several notable sales and auctions, with one copy selling for £5.2 million in 2006, a record price for a book at the time, surpassing the prices of other rare books, like the Gutenberg Bible and the Bay Psalm Book. The First Folio has also been owned by several notable collectors, including Thomas Bodley, Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer, and J.P. Morgan, who were all prominent book collectors and bibliophiles, like Richard Heber and Thomas Dibdin. The First Folio is considered one of the most valuable and sought-after books in the world, with many institutions and collectors, like the Huntington Library and the New York Public Library, seeking to acquire a copy, alongside other important works, like the Works of Aristotle and the Commentarii de Bello Gallico by Julius Caesar. Category:Books