ABSTRACT
The 1623 Shakespeare First Folio contains a eulogy on Shakespeare written by Ben Jonson. In it, Jonson speaks of the poet’s “well turned, and true filed lines” (line 68). Since that time, praise for Shakespeare’s language has not always been so fulsome. Admiration there has always been, but also much criticism. This chapter plots the afterlife of Shakespeare’s language: what people have said about it over time; and how Shakespeare language studies have developed, to the point that today there are very few Shakespearean linguistic stones which remain unturned. Those that do are the subject of a final section that looks to the future.
