The Names of the Actors. Eontes, King of Sicillia. LE Mamillus, yong Prince of Sicillia. 1. Names of the Actors.] STEEVENS: In the novel of Dorastus and Fawnia the King of Sicilia, whom Shakespeare names [This list Steevens gave first in the Variorum of 1778. By a clerical error Leontes and Polixenes have exchanged names, as a cursory glance at the Novel will show. And yet this error stands uncorrected in all the succeeding Variorums, including even that of 1821, and in comments on this play even down to 1884.-ED.] HALES (Essays, etc. 106): In his nomenclature, Shakespeare is never merely servile in following his originals; but exercises a remarkable independence, sometimes simply adopting, sometimes slightly varying, sometimes wholly rejecting, the names he found in them. It is difficult to imagine that this conduct was merely arbitrary and careless. Euphony must of course have had its influence; often there must have occurred other considerations of no trifling interest, if only we could discover and understand them. A singular instance of a complete re-christening is to be found in The Winter's Tale. To those Greek names [there adopted] may be added Antigonus, Cleomenes, Archidamus, Dion, Autolycus, and Dorcas. All these names, except perhaps Dorcas and Leontes, are found in Plutarch's Lives. 8. Hermione] COLLIER (ed. i, Introd. 427): It may be noticed that, just anterior Perdita, Daughter to Leontes and Hermione. Emilia, a Lady. Polixenes, King of Bohemia. Florizell, Prince of Bohemia. Old Shepheard, reputed Father of Perdita. Autolicus, a Rogue. II. a Lady.] A Lady attending on Hermione. Rowe. ΙΟ 15 16. Autolicus] Autolycus Var. '78 et seq. 13. Florizell] Florizel F2F. to the time of our poet, the name he assigns to the Queen of Leontes had been employed as that of a male character: in The rare Triumphs of Love and Fortune, acted at court in 1581-2, and printed in 1589, Hermione is the lover of the heroine. RUSKIN (Munera Pulveris, 127): Shakespeare's names are curiously—often barbarously-much by Providence, but assuredly not without Shakespeare's cunning purpose-mixed out of the various traditions he confusedly adopted, and languages which he imperfectly knew. . . . Hermione (Epua) 'pillar-like' (ñ eldoç èxe xpvons 'Aopodíτns). C. Elliot BrownE (Athenæum, 29 July, 1876): Hermione, no doubt, was named after the daughter of Menelaus, who was carried off by Orestes, but the name was not uncommon in contemporary literature. 12, 13, 17. Bohemia] For a discussion on 'the desert of Bohemia,' see III, iii, 5. -HANMER changes Bohemia' to Bithynia throughout. 13. Florizell] WALKER (Crit. ii, 33): Doricles, the assumed name of Florizel, occurs in Æn. v, 620,- Fit Beroe, Tmarii conjux longæva Dorycli.'-C. ELLLIOT BROWNE (Athenæum, 29 July, 1876): As in As You Like It, there are traces of the Charlemagne romances, so I think in The Winter's Tale there are evidences of Shakespeare's familiarity with those of Amadis. Florizel, as Don Florisel, is the hero of the ninth book of the 'Amadis' series, believed to have been written by Don Feliciano de Silva, and originally published at Burgos in 1535. In the romance, Florisel, in the guise of a shepherd, woos a princess, who is disguised as a shepherdess, and it was therefore an appropriate name for the hero of The Winter's Tale. The history of Don Florisel became one of the most popular romances of the cycle, and was speedily translated into French and Italian. . . . No English version of it is known, but it is possible there may be an abstract of his adventures in The Treasurie of Amadis of Fraunce, London, 1567, of which only one copy is believed to exist, and that in private hands. It is by no means improbable, however, that Shakespeare knew the story in the French version of Charles Colet, Champenois, 1564, a dainty little volume, with charming little wood-cuts of pastoral scenes, one of which represents the Prince piping to his sheep, with Perdita (Sylvia) sitting by him and busily plying her distaff. There is no mention of Don Florisel in Greene's book, but he has taken the name of one of his characters (Garinter) from it. 16. Autolicus] When this character enters on the scene in the Fourth Act, and says that he received his name because he was born under Mercury, the god of thieves, THEOBALD remarks that the allusion is unquestionably to Ovid, Metam. xi, 312:— |