Francis Beaumont
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| :''[[Hermaphroditus and Salmacis]]'' | :''[[Hermaphroditus and Salmacis]]'' | ||
| - | In [[Greek mythology]], '''Hermaphroditus''' or '''Hermaphroditos''' was the child of [[Aphrodite]] and [[Hermes]]. Born a remarkably handsome boy, he was transformed into an [[androgynous]] being by union with the [[nymph]] [[Salmacis]]. (The seer [[Tiresias]] had experienced life as a man and as a woman, but not the two at the same time: Hermaphroditus is unique in Greek myth.) His name is the basis for the word [[hermaphrodite]]. | ||
| - | ==Mythology== | + | '''Francis Beaumont''' (1584 – March 6 1616) was a dramatist in the [[English Renaissance theatre]], most famous for his collaborations with [[John Fletcher (playwright)|John Fletcher]]. |
| - | Hermaphroditus's name is derived from those of his parents Hermes and Aphrodite. (All three of these gods figure largely among erotic and fertility figures, and all possess distinctly sexual overtones. Sometimes, Hermaphroditus is referred to as Aphroditus. The [[phallic]] god [[Priapus]] was the son of Hermes in some accounts, and the youthful god of desire [[Eros (mythology)|Eros]] of Hermes and Aphrodite.) He was raised by nymphs on [[Mount Ida]], a sacred mountain in [[Phrygia]] (present day [[Turkey]]). At the age of fifteen, he grew bored with his surroundings and traveled to the cities of [[Lycia]] and [[Caria]]. It was in the woods of Caria, near [[Halicarnassus]] (modern [[Bodrum]], [[Turkey]]) that he encountered [[Salmacis]] the [[Naiads|Naiad]] in her pool. She was overcome by lust for the boy, and tried to seduce him, but was rejected. When he thought her to be gone, Hermaphroditus undressed and entered the waters of the empty pool. Salmacis sprang out from behind a tree and jumped into the pool. She wrapped herself around the boy, forcibly kissing him and touching his breast. While he struggled, she called out to the gods that they should never part. Her wish was granted, and their bodies blended into one [[intersex]] form. Hermaphroditus, in his shame and grief, made his own vow, cursing the pool so that anyone else who bathed in it would be transformed as well. "In this form the story was certainly not ancient," [[Karl Kerenyi]] noted. He compared the myth of the beautiful ''[[ephebos|ephebe]]'' with [[Narcissus (mythology)|Narcissus]] and [[Hyacinth (mythology)|Hyacinthus]], who had an archaic hero-cult, and [[Hymenaios]]. | + | |
| - | ==Literature== | + | Beaumont was the son of Sir Francis Beaumont of [[Grace-Dieu|Grace Dieu]], near [[Thringstone]] in [[Leicestershire]], a justice of the [[Court of Common Pleas (England)|common pleas]]. He was born at the family seat and was educated at Broadgates Hall (now [[Pembroke College, Oxford]]) at age thirteen. Following the death of his father in 1598, he left university without a degree and followed in his father's footsteps by entering the [[Inner Temple]] in London in 1600. |
| - | His only literary attestation in classical literature is in [[Ovid]]'s ''[[Metamorphoses (poem)|Metamorphoses]]'', IV.274-388. Based on Ovid's telling, [[Francis Beaumont]] wrote an ''[[epyllion]]'' in [[heroic couplet]]s of the story, ''Salmacis and Hermaphroditus'' (London 1602). | + | |
| - | [[Algernon Swinburne]]'s poem "Hermaphroditus" is subscribed ''Au Musée du Louvre, Mars 1863'', leaving no doubt that it was the [[Borghese Hermaphroditus]] that had inspired his ode, a poem to which Victorian reviewers took offence: | + | Accounts suggest that Beaumont did not work long as a lawyer. He became a student of poet and playwright [[Ben Jonson]]; he was also acquainted with [[Michael Drayton]] and other poets and dramatists, and decided that was where his passion lay. His first work, ''Salmacis and Hermaphroditus'', appeared in 1602. The 1911 edition of the ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'' describes the work as "not on the whole discreditable to a lad of eighteen, fresh from the popular love-poems of [[Marlowe]] and [[Shakespeare]], which it naturally exceeds in long-winded and fantastic diffusion of episodes and conceits." In 1605, Beaumont wrote commendatory verses to Jonson's ''[[Volpone]]''. |
| - | :To what strange end hath some strange god made fair | + | Beaumont's collaboration with Fletcher may have begun as early as 1605. They had both hit an obstacle early in their dramatic careers with notable failures; Beaumont's ''[[The Knight of the Burning Pestle]]'', first performed by the [[Children of the Chapel|Children of the Blackfriars]] in [[1607 in literature|1607]], was rejected by an audience who, the publisher's epistle to the [[1613 in literature|1613]] [[quarto]] claims, failed to note "the privie mark of irony about it;" that is, they took Beaumont's [[satire]] of old-fashioned drama as an old-fashioned drama. The play received a lukewarm reception. The following year, Fletcher's ''Faithful Shepherdess'' failed on the same stage. In [[1609 in literature|1609]], however, the two collaborated on ''Philaster'', which was performed by the [[King's Men]] at the [[Globe Theatre]] and at [[Blackfriars Theatre|Blackfriars]]. The play was a popular success, not only launching the careers of the two playwrights but also sparking a new taste for [[tragicomedy]]. According to a mid-century anecdote related by John Aubrey, they lived in the same house on the [[Bankside]] in [[Southwark]], "sharing everything in the closest intimacy." After Beaumont's marriage in 1613 to Ursula, daughter and co-heiress of Henry Isley of Sundridge in Kent (by whom he had two daughters) he seems to have retired from playwriting. Beaumont died in 1616 and is buried in [[Westminster Abbey]]. Although today Beaumont is remembered as a dramatist, during his lifetime he was also celebrated as a poet. |
| - | :The double blossom of two fruitless flowers? | + | |
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| - | ==Art== | + | |
| - | *The most famous sculpture of this figure is the ''[[Borghese Hermaphroditus]]''. | + | |
| - | *A statue by [[John Henry Foley]] was shown at the 1851 [[Great Exhibition]] and later donated to the Bancroft Gardens, [[Stratford-upon-Avon]] where it now stands. | + | |
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| - | ==Film== | + | |
| - | A persona named 'Hermaphroditus' appears in the film ''[[Fellini Satyricon]]'' as a childlike, | + | |
| - | physically weak god who is able to heal human supplicants afflicted by various ailments but apparently unable to heal him/herself. No connection is made with the character's sexuality. | + | |
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| - | Hermaphroditus is not mentioned in the original [[Petronius]] novel ''[[Satyricon]]'', on which Fellini's film is loosely based. According to one source, the film episode "may be based on a Pseudo-Petronian poem sometimes printed along with the ''Satyricon''". | + | |
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Francis Beaumont (1584 – March 6 1616) was a dramatist in the English Renaissance theatre, most famous for his collaborations with John Fletcher.
Beaumont was the son of Sir Francis Beaumont of Grace Dieu, near Thringstone in Leicestershire, a justice of the common pleas. He was born at the family seat and was educated at Broadgates Hall (now Pembroke College, Oxford) at age thirteen. Following the death of his father in 1598, he left university without a degree and followed in his father's footsteps by entering the Inner Temple in London in 1600.
Accounts suggest that Beaumont did not work long as a lawyer. He became a student of poet and playwright Ben Jonson; he was also acquainted with Michael Drayton and other poets and dramatists, and decided that was where his passion lay. His first work, Salmacis and Hermaphroditus, appeared in 1602. The 1911 edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica describes the work as "not on the whole discreditable to a lad of eighteen, fresh from the popular love-poems of Marlowe and Shakespeare, which it naturally exceeds in long-winded and fantastic diffusion of episodes and conceits." In 1605, Beaumont wrote commendatory verses to Jonson's Volpone.
Beaumont's collaboration with Fletcher may have begun as early as 1605. They had both hit an obstacle early in their dramatic careers with notable failures; Beaumont's The Knight of the Burning Pestle, first performed by the Children of the Blackfriars in 1607, was rejected by an audience who, the publisher's epistle to the 1613 quarto claims, failed to note "the privie mark of irony about it;" that is, they took Beaumont's satire of old-fashioned drama as an old-fashioned drama. The play received a lukewarm reception. The following year, Fletcher's Faithful Shepherdess failed on the same stage. In 1609, however, the two collaborated on Philaster, which was performed by the King's Men at the Globe Theatre and at Blackfriars. The play was a popular success, not only launching the careers of the two playwrights but also sparking a new taste for tragicomedy. According to a mid-century anecdote related by John Aubrey, they lived in the same house on the Bankside in Southwark, "sharing everything in the closest intimacy." After Beaumont's marriage in 1613 to Ursula, daughter and co-heiress of Henry Isley of Sundridge in Kent (by whom he had two daughters) he seems to have retired from playwriting. Beaumont died in 1616 and is buried in Westminster Abbey. Although today Beaumont is remembered as a dramatist, during his lifetime he was also celebrated as a poet.
