Thomas Kyd and William Shakespeare

While William Shakespeare is the most notable name for writers from Elizabethan England, he was by far not the only one. A great many dramatists came from this era, most of who were friends and conspirators with Shakespeare. The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare and Contemporary Dramatists strives to bring recognition to these names, as well as their relationship with Shakespeare. In this paper, a few of these fellow writers will be discussed, as well as their possible influence on Shakespeare and his success.

Thomas Kyd

Kyd was born in 1558, in London. While not much is known of his early life, it is known that he was educated at the Merchant Tailor’s school. He gained knowledge of French, Italian, Spanish, and Latin, and he used these skills working as a translator and pamphlet production. His most noted work is the play Spanish Tragedy (1589). This set the basis for revenge plays and was performed continuously throughout the Elizabethan period. Spanish Tragedy included ghosts, insanity, murder, and suicide – evidence that revealed its writer’s ‘rampant and lurid genius’. What’s the most interesting is the number of reprints Spanish Tragedy saw, even being updated by Ben Jonson in 1601 through a paid commission. This demonstrates popularity greater than any of Shakespeare’s works. Sadly, Kyd’s tragic writings made an appearance in real life. In 1593, he was arrested and tortured to turn evidence against his friend and roommate, Christopher Marlowe. After Marlowe was murdered, he was released; but never regained his notoriety, later dying in poverty in 1594.

Ben Jonson

Jonson was not as lucky in his upraising as those before him, beginning before his birth in 1572. His father, a Protestant clergyman, died a m...

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...hemes. It is easy to imagine these men sitting around in lounges or bars, papers and inkwells scattered on tables and chairs, laughing and exchanging plots and one-liners. The lines that divided classes disappeared, inviting all types to create on one level.

In Elizabethan England, the so-called ‘golden age of drama’, there was a large number of famous and popular dramatists – not just Shakespeare. It would appear that it is simply the waves of history that has dwindled the listings down to just a small few. While plays have come and gone, either hidden away forever by their writer or accidently used as kindling by a careless cook, it may simply be the fact that more of Shakespeare’s works have survived that has ensured his longevity. One can only hope that more is found, or, at the very least, current and future writer’s take note of all that have come before.