Shakespeare References in Murder For Profit

William Bolitho makes a few references to Shakespeare and his works in Murder For Profit, a book about the crimes of serial killers who murdered for money. In the chapter about G.J. Smith, Bolitho writes, “To love oneself like a Troppmann or Smith is a lifelong paroxysm in which the adoration of Saint John of the Cross, the jealousy of Othello, the steadfastness of a Dante is imitated” (p. 108). The second reference is to Shakespeare’s poem Venus And Adonis, and more precisely is a reference to the poem’s dedication. Interestingly, it is one of the murderers who actually quotes the lines. Bolitho writes, “Pleased with this effort and still full of zeal, Smith went on to write another to the brother, which begins with the peerless lines: Dear Sir – I know not how I shall offend in dedicating my unpolished lines to you nor how you will censure me for using so strong a prop for supporting so grave a burden” (pages 132-133). Shakespeare’s dedication to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton, reads, in part, “I know not how I shall offend in dedicating my unpolished lines to your lordship, nor how the world will censure me for choosing so strong a prop to support so weak a burden.” The book also contains a reference to Much Ado About Nothing, and specifically to one of its characters, with Bolitho writing, “yet the very act of giving a powerful commercial organization a direct interest that the victim should not die wakens an enemy whose determination and acumen is more dangerous to the assassin than all the Dogberrys of all the local inquest courts” (p. 142). The book’s final reference is to Shakespeare himself. Bolitho writes, “In his intercourse they felt the divine glows of idealized emotion, which only Shakespeare and Beethoven can give to the sophisticated” (p. 195).

Murder For Profit was published in 1926. The edition I read was published in 1964.

Shakespeare References in The Plague

This seemed like a good time to revisit The Plague by Albert Camus, a book I hadn’t read since my late teens. And I suppose it should have come as no surprise to me to find a couple of Shakespeare references in it. The first is a reference to Macbeth. Camus writes, “The reason was this: when the most pessimistic had fixed it at, say, six months; when they had drunk in advance the dregs of bitterness of those six black months, and painfully screwed up their courage to the sticking-place, straining all their remaining energy to endure valiantly the long ordeal of all those weeks and days – when they had done this, some friend they met, an article in a newspaper, a vague suspicion, or a flash of foresight would suggest that, after all, there was no reason why the epidemic shouldn’t last more than six months; why not a year, or even more?” (p. 68). Part of that sentence refers to Lady Macbeth’s line “But screw your courage to the sticking-place/And we’ll not fail.” The other reference is to Hamlet. Camus writes, “So does every ill that flesh is heir to,” reminding us of Hamlet’s line “The heartache and the thousand natural shocks/That flesh is heir to.”

The Plague was published in 1947. The Vintage Books edition was published in 1972. It was translated from the French by Stuart Gilbert.

Shakespeare References in Death In Paradise

Kate Flora’s mystery novel Death In Paradise contains several Shakespeare references. The first is a reference to The Tempest. Flora writes: “Maybe none of us would get any answers. Maybe Billy had vanished into thin air” (p. 181). She then continues: “That’s something I’ve always wondered about – expressions like that. Why thin air? When I’m running on too little sleep and too much tension, my mind tends to wander to questions like this” (p. 181). The reference is to Prospero’s speech from Act IV, where he says, “These our actors,/As I foretold you, were all spirits and/Are melted into air, into thin air.” What is interesting here is that our narrator, Thea Kozak, does not mention Shakespeare. At this point, I would guess that the character is not familiar with Shakespeare, not knowing where that expression originated. But then there are several more references that show she is clearly fairly well-versed in Shakespeare’s work.

The next reference comes not too long after that first, and is to Hamlet. Flora writes: “They didn’t need to hear this, and I risked my protests having the opposite effect – the ‘methinks she doth protest too much’ problem” (p. 193). That is a reference to the Queen’s line during the play within the play sequence, “The lady protests too much, methinks.” Yet here the narrator doesn’t get the line quoted precisely, so I’m still not convinced she has extensive knowledge of the plays. However, the next reference is to Richard The Third, and she quotes a longer passage: “Lord, Lord! methought, what pain it was to drown:/What dreadful noise of waters in my ears!/What sights of ugly death within my eyes!/Methoughts I saw a thousand fearful wracks;/A thousand men that fishes gnawed upon’” (p. 224). Just before Thea quotes those lines, Flora writes: “Long-forgotten words came tumbling out. College Shakespeare. The most exciting teacher I’d ever had. Obviously, I’d carried the fear of drowning with me then, as well” (p. 224). And following the quoted passage, she writes: “That stopped her. ‘What on earth is that?’ she asked, turning to stare at me” (p. 224). Thea responds, “‘Richard III, I think.” The other character asks: “Shakespeare? At a time like this?” Then Flora writes: “‘Seemed to fit at the moment.’ I didn’t bother to tell her that it was always time for Shakespeare. Shakespeare and the Bible” (p. 224). Soon after that, there is another reference to The Tempest: “Without opening my eyes, I said, ‘Full fathom five thy father lies; Of his bones are coral made: Those are pearls that were his eyes: Nothing of him that doth fade, But doth suffer a sea-change into something rich and strange’” (p. 225). This time the other person recognizes the lines: “‘The Tempest,’ she said. ‘Have you gone mad?’” (p. 225). The lines are sung by Ariel in Act I. Anyway, Thea responds, “Suffered a sea-change.”

The next reference is to The Winter’s Tale. Flora writes: “Through some strange correspondence in my brain, the thought called forth another bit of Shakespeare. ‘Thou mettest with things dying, I with things newborn.’ A Winter’s Tale. Yet both were met in me” (p. 258). The Shepherd speaks that line in Act III. There is then another reference to Hamlet: “The infuriatingly helpless feeling of being poked and prodded and questioned when I was too weak to answer. Hamlet had it right with those musings about the problems with sleep and the fear of dreams” (p. 270). The book’s final Shakespeare reference is to The First Part Of King Henry The Fourth. Flora writes, “Still, as they say, discretion is the better part of valor” (p. 289). The “they” in this instance is Falstaff, and Falstaff says “The better part of valor is discretion, in the which better part I have saved my life.”

Death In Paradise was published in 1998. The copy I read was a First Edition from October 1998.

Shakespeare References in The Dead Zone

Stephen King’s The Dead Zone contains a few Shakespeare references, most of them related to Macbeth. The first is actually a reference to a Ray Bradbury book, itself a reference to Macbeth. King writes, “After the carousel came the mirror maze, a very good mirror maze as a matter of fact, it made her think of the one in Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes, where the little-old-lady schoolteacher almost got lost forever” (p. 27). The title for Bradbury’s novel comes from the lines “By the pricking of my thumbs/Something wicked this way comes.” The next reference comes soon after that, when Johnny has called a taxi. It is that cab ride that really sets things in motion. King writes: “‘The deed’s done,’ he said, hanging up. ‘They’ll have a guy over in five minutes’” (p. 41). That is a reference to the line “I have done the deed,” spoken by Macbeth after the murder of Duncan. We then return to the witches for the next Macbeth reference: “The hurly burly’s done, the election’s lost and won” (p. 304). The lines from Macbeth read: “When the hurly-burly’s done/When the battle’s lost and won.” There soon follows another mention of the Ray Bradbury novel, this time coming within a letter that Chuck has written to Johnny: “P.S.: The foxy chick’s name is Stephanie Wyman, and I have already turned her on to Something Wicked This Way Comes” (p. 324). That is the book’s final reference to Macbeth. Interesting that its first and last Macbeth reference is to Something Wicked This Way Comes. But there is one more Shakespeare reference in The Dead Zone. Johnny has known for some time that he must kill a character named Greg Stillson, but he has understandably held off carrying out the deed. In a letter mailed to his father on the day he plans on finally killing the man, Johnny says: “It’s wrong, but it may turn out right. I don’t know. But I won’t play Hamlet any longer. I know how dangerous Stillson is” (p. 368).

The Dead Zone was published in 1979. The copy I read is a hardcover Book Club Edition.

Shakespeare Reference in Murder Movie

Jill McGown’s mystery novel Murder Movie contains a Shakespeare reference. Two police officers are discussing the case, which involves the cast and crew of a movie that is being shot. Patterson, the higher-ranking police officer, is speaking about Barbara Slaney, one of the actors. McGown writes: “‘She gets involved in some sleazy club act, and drifts into acting.’ He smiled. ‘I expect if you can make the punters think you’re enjoying it, you can play Lady Macbeth any day’” (p. 160).

Murder Movie was published in 1990. The first U.S. Edition was published in January 1991.