William Shakespeare — A Life
History, Biography, Memoirs and Memory
As it is the object of a general to win battles so it is the life-work of the artist to show himself to us, and the completeness with which he reveals his own individuality is perhaps the best measure of his genius…
The above is part of Frank Harris’s intro to his biography of William Shakespeare, Shakespeare and His Tragic Life Story, first published in 1909. The book is something of a passionate love letter to William, albeit not without criticism.
Harris was an extraordinary man. Born in Ireland, educated briefly in an English public school, before emigrating to America where he studied law. He became a journalist and editor, and a friend and supporter of writers, not least George Bernard Shaw and Oscar Wilde. He edited the Saturday Review, and created a horse racing daily. He travelled widely in America, where he rode cattle to the railheads, and helped build Brooklyn Bridge. He also witnessed Chicago burn to the ground in the 1870s.
He campaigned against the despicable conditions in US prisons, and his outrageous autobiography, My Life and Loves, is a literary masterpiece.
