'Names as Metaphors in Shakespeare's Comedies' presents a comprehensive
study of names in Shakespeare's comedies. Although names are used in
daily speech as simple designators, often with minimal regard for
semantic or phonological suggestiveness, their coinage is always based
on analogy. They are words (i.e., signs) borrowed from previous
referents and contexts, and applied to new referents. Thus, in the
literary use of language, names are figurative inventions and have
measurable thematic significance: they evoke an association of
attributes between two or more referents, contextualize each work of
literature within its time, and reflect the artistic development of the
writer.
In the introduction, Smith describes the literary use of names as
creative choices that show the indebtedness of authors to previous
literature, as well as their imaginative descriptions (etymologically
and phonologically) of memorable character types, and their references
to cultural phenomena that make their names meaningful to their
contemporary readers and audience. This book presents fourteen essays
demonstrating the analytical models explained in the introduction. These
essays focus on Shakespeare's comedies as presented in the First Folio.
They do not follow the chronological order of their composition;
instead, the individual essays give special attention to differences
between the plays that suggest Shakespeare's artistic development,
including the varied sources of his borrowings, the differences between
his etymological and phonological coinages, the frequency and types of
his topical references, and his use of epithets and generics.
This book will appeal to Shakespeare students and scholars at all
levels, particularly those who are keen on studying his comedies. This
study will also be relevant for researchers and graduate students
interested in onomastics.
He can be reached at gsmith@ewu.edu.
