Shakespeare, England, Europe and Eurocentrism

Abstract

This chapter seeks to define Shakespeare in 'European' terms. First, he is presented as an English and a British author, as perceived within the culture of his native island environment. Shakespeare is also brought into focus as a bilateral and a multilateral author, emphatically between the various nations that make up Europe. At the same time, Shakespeare is outlined as a writer who also tends to provide a joint, transnational frame of culture within such a European context. Finally, Shakespeare has been and is perceived as 'European' for his merits and demerits by non-European outsiders. This perspective from the outside brings into play issues involving the potential Eurocentrism of the man, his work, and the Shakespeare industry at large.