The Shakespeare Tercentenary and the First World War

A talk by Professor Gordon McMullan
Friday 12 February 2016
Council Room, Strand Campus, King's College London
Part of 'What you Will: King's Shakespeare Festival'

Review by Cara Rodrigues, MSc Neuroscience; Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience

Remembering and Forgetting in 1916: The Shakespeare Tercentenary and the First World War, a lecture given by Professor McMullan was a delightfully insightful evening offering a detailed and riveting account of the impact of Shakespeare’s legacy on cultural events in time. From the impact of the playwright’s masterpieces on the First World War to the politics in South Africa, Professor McMullan demonstrated his ability to speak about a potentially sensitive subject of cultural politics with not just humour, but the air of a man who knew the history like the back of his hand.

Confidently offering up intellectual quips on the sarcasm of Douglas Hyde’s contribution to ‘A Book of Homage to Shakespeare’, edited by Israel Gollancz in 1916, and the lavish parties that accompanied the 1910 -1912 fundraising events for the Shakespeare memorial National Theatre Ball at the Royal Albert Hall. Professor McMullan talked about the significance of the contribution of the author of A South African’s Homage to Shakespeare, where the author’s perception on his own culture was the main point of reference. Touching also upon the interesting fact that the Globe Theatre was in fact a memorial to the famous poet in place of a statue and drawing on the potentially scandalous construction of such on the holy days of Easter during a time of conflict, tension and change really demonstrated how Shakespeare’s work had such a profound influence on society.

Indeed, it was fascinating to hear of such cultural impacts as usually when one thinks of William Shakespeare, it is with the images of romanticism, not with thoughts of the complications of real-world politics or that his works would have reached so far as other countries in conflict, changing attitudes and allowing those there to express themselves differently. Professor McMullan taught us that Shakespeare wasn’t just an English poet, his works and visions reached far and wide and still affect our thinking and perceptions today.