City Research Online

Abstract

This paper presents and analyses a case study of the launch of the first Arden Shakespeare series in 1899 with particular reference to Bourdieu’s concept of consecration (1988, 1993, 2008). The analysis considers how the roles and collaboration of the Publisher, Algernon Methuen, and the first General Editor, Edward Dowden reflect the intellectual culture of that period, at the outset of what would become the academic field of English Literature. Drawing on primary and secondary sources including contemporary correspondence and archive material, the paper also considers the cultural and economic context of the Arden series’ launch; and illustrates how copyright was defined in the early history of this critical edition of Shakespeare, which continued to be published throughout the 20th century and is now nearing the completion of the third Arden Series as part of Bloomsbury Publishing and Drama Online. The paper concludes by assessing the potential analytical benefits to publishing research of Bourdieu’s concept of consecration, and by reviewing how the findings of this study might inform debates about the establishment of the field of academic publishing for the humanities.

Publication Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Published by Brill Academic Publishing 2016.
Publisher Keywords:	Academic publishing history, Bourdieu and consecration, Critical editions of Shakespeare, Arden Shakespeare
Subjects:	P Language and Literature > PR English literature Z Bibliography. Library Science. Information Resources
Departments:	School of Communication & Creativity > Journalism
SWORD Depositor:	Symplectic Administrator

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