The Christian-Platonic philosophy of love expounded by such thinkers as Pythagoras, Plato, and Plotinus is proven to be a permeating philosophy in Shakespearean plays and sonnets in this critical examination. The commentaries of scholar-priest Marsilio Ficino and other key Renaissance writings are linked to specific speeches or sonnets penned by Shakespeare. Christian-Platonic philosophy is presented as the force that allowed Shakespeare to write about such universal themes as the harmony and disharmony between nations and princes and the interior conflicts of the mind and soul. Classical references and images identify the true Promethean fire: romantic attraction.
Author description
Jill Line first became interested in the subject on reading books of John Vyvyan and Dame Frances Yates on Renaissance philosophy. She later discovered The Letters of Marsilio Ficino (published by Shepheard-Walwyn). She spent a year at the Shakespeare Institute in Stratford studying the Elizabethan masques and was invited to lecture at the Temenos Academy and at the Prince of Wales Shakespeare Summer School for Teachers. Mark Rylance, Director of the Globe Theatre, commissioned her to write four booklets explaining the Christian-Platonic background for a season of the Roman plays.
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