"English dramatic literature is, of course, dominated by Shakespeare; and it is almost inevitable that an English reader should measure the value of other poetic drama by the standards which Shakespeare has already implanted in his mind"
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Shakespeare isn’t just a writer in Strachey’s sentence; he’s an operating system. The slyness is in “of course” and “almost inevitable,” phrases that sound neutral while quietly diagnosing a national habit of mind: English readers don’t merely admire Shakespeare, they outsource judgment to him. Strachey is less interested in praise than in the cultural monopoly that praise creates. When a single artist becomes the yardstick, every rival is forced into a losing game of comparison, measured not on their own terms but on how closely they approximate the canonical sensation Shakespeare has “implanted.”
That verb matters. “Implanted” makes taste feel like something done to you, not chosen by you. The subtext is a critique of inheritance masquerading as discernment: what looks like refined literary evaluation is often rote conditioning, a curriculum and class tradition repeating itself until it resembles instinct. Strachey, writing from the early 20th-century critic’s vantage point (and as part of the Bloomsbury-adjacent project of puncturing Victorian reverence), is wary of the way prestige ossifies into a default setting. The canon, in his framing, is not only a list but a mental filter.
The line also signals a methodological warning. If we approach “other poetic drama” expecting Shakespearean density, character psychology, and verbal music, we’ll misread difference as failure. Strachey’s intent is to loosen the grip of the standard, not dethrone Shakespeare, but to make room for evaluation that doesn’t treat England’s greatest playwright as the only legitimate accent.
That verb matters. “Implanted” makes taste feel like something done to you, not chosen by you. The subtext is a critique of inheritance masquerading as discernment: what looks like refined literary evaluation is often rote conditioning, a curriculum and class tradition repeating itself until it resembles instinct. Strachey, writing from the early 20th-century critic’s vantage point (and as part of the Bloomsbury-adjacent project of puncturing Victorian reverence), is wary of the way prestige ossifies into a default setting. The canon, in his framing, is not only a list but a mental filter.
The line also signals a methodological warning. If we approach “other poetic drama” expecting Shakespearean density, character psychology, and verbal music, we’ll misread difference as failure. Strachey’s intent is to loosen the grip of the standard, not dethrone Shakespeare, but to make room for evaluation that doesn’t treat England’s greatest playwright as the only legitimate accent.
Quote Details
| Topic | Writing |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
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