Elizabethan Orientalism

The present study attempts to locate and analyse the Oriental element in the plays of Marlowe, Shakespeare and Ben Jonson. The Oriental material had considerable influence on English literature, in general, and on Elizabethan drama, in particular. The Oriental element is noteworthy in such Elizabethan plays as and The Courageous Amurath I (1632), Greene s Alphonsus (1596), Daborne s A Christian Turn d Turk (1612), Mason s The Turk (1610) Goffe s The Raging Turk (1631), and Fulke Greville s Mustapha (1606). I have selected Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593), William Shakespeare (1564-1616) and Ben Jonson (1572-1637) because they are outstanding figures in English literature. Marlowe s Tamburlaine The Great (1587) stands out in English literature as a distinctly Oriental play. Marlowe, Shakespeare and Jonson display a keen interest in Oriental material, as is evident from their plays. Shakespeare speaks admirably of the Orient in Antony and Cleopatra, The Merchant of Venice, Titus Andronicus and Othello, etc. Jonson s The Alchemist has valuable Oriental material, displaying familiarity with the Oriental costume, science and culture. Jonson makes use of many Arabic scientific terms.