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First Folio: To the Reader and the Engraving of Shakespeare

I noticed a few things about the To the Reader poem, the Engraving of Shakespeare that follows it, and the play The Tempest. First, here are the pages:




What I am about to discuss must have been noticed before, but the word T-W-O can be seen on the left side of the poem. The word "Figure" can also mean a number, so it could be referring to the number two. Here is the image:




Again, I am sure the next point has been noticed, but the word T-W-O can be found in the right-hand column of page 2 of The Tempest. Directly opposite, in the left-hand column, the word Bacon appears. I, and others, have interpreted this as a reference to Francis Bacon. Also, directly below the word T-W-O is the beginning of the St. Alban acrostic (not shown). (Francis Bacon was 1st Viscount St. Alban.)




Now, here is some potentially new stuff. I searched for some of the words from the To the Reader poem in The Tempest, and I came up with some interesting results. First, here is the word as it appears in the poem:




I looked up the word "Picture" in The Tempest using this site: http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/efts/OTA-SHK/restricted/search.form.html. The word "Picture only appears once in The Tempest. Here are the lines of the play where the word "picture" appears:

Ste. At thy request Monster, I will do reason,

Any reason: Come on Trinculo, let vs sing.

Sings.

Flout 'em, and cout 'em: and skowt 'em, and flout 'em,

Thought is free.

Cal. That's not the tune.

Ariell plaies the tune on a Tabor and Pipe.

Ste. What is this same?

Trin. This is the tune of our Catch, plaid by the pic-

ture of No-body.


The Tempest, Act 3, scene 2 (emphasis added).

Shakespeare Internet Editions (ISE).

http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/doc/Tmp_F1/scene/3.2/

Site is supported by University of Victoria, Friends of the ISE, SSHRC.

The next word I searched for was "Print." Here is the word as it appears in the poem:




The word "Picture only appears once in The Tempest. Here are the lines of the play where the word "print" appears:


Mira. Abhorred Slaue,

Which any print of goodnesse wilt not take,

Being capable of all ill: I pittied thee,

Took pains to make thee speak, taught thee each houre

One thing or other: when thou didst not (Sauage)

Know thine owne meaning; but wouldst gabble, like

A thing most brutish, I endow'd thy purposes

With words that made them knowne: But thy vild race

(Tho thou didst learn) had that in't, which good natures

Could not ab ide to be with; therefore wast thou

Deseruedly confin'd into this Rocke, who hadst

Deseru'd more then a prison.

Cal. You taught me Language, and my profit on't

Is, I know how to curse: the red-plague rid you

For learning me your language.

The Tempest, Act 1, scene 2 (emphasis added).

Shakespeare Internet Editions (ISE).

http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/doc/Tmp_F1/scene/1.2/

Site is supported by University of Victoria, Friends of the ISE, SSHRC.

In conclusion, all this might mean that Francis Bacon and Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford were behind Shakespeare and the man Shakespeare (or Shaksper) the Actor was a front-man.


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