A Road Scholar Program by Laura Mueller

In this illustrated presentation, art historian Laura Mueller will explore plant and garden imagery in the works of William Shakespeare. She will discuss plants with which Shakespeare was familiar, as well as paintings of gardens in Shakespeare’s time and place and in the times and places in which selected scenes from his plays are set.

Shakespeare’s love of plant legend and lore and his interest in natural settings speak to his origins and place him within a particular historical context. Flower gardens were a relatively new development in Tudor England, but the legends attached to specific plants were very old. Folkloric beliefs about specific plants add another level of meaning to some of Shakespeare’s lines.

But changes in society at the time of Shakespeare affected what was being grown in the gardens, just as the need for privacy, secrecy, and entertainment at Elizabeth’s court affected the design of the gardens.

This event is Free and Open to the public. For more information, please contact Cindy Kline at klinec@indianprairielibrary.org.

NOTE: Organizations that wish to host this presentation will need to provide a digital projector and a screen.