The Pre-Raphaelites and Their Love of Literature
The Pre-Raphaelites approached literature much as they approached nature: not as something to be copied, but as something to be explored, interpreted, and reimagined. Their fascination with literary subjects developed within a Victorian culture that placed enormous value on reading. Rising literacy rates, mass publishing, and increasingly affordable books ensured that literature occupied a central place in everyday life. Reading was associated with self-improvement and intellectual refinement, making literary subjects particularly attractive to artists seeking themes of emotional and moral significance.
The Brotherhood drew inspiration from a wide range of writers, including Shakespeare, John Keats, Alfred Lord Tennyson and Coventry Patmore. These sources provided compelling narratives whilst allowing artists to engage with questions of love, morality, faith, and human experience.
Victorian audiences were equally immersed in this literary culture. Paintings circulated alongside books, magazines and illustrated editions, creating a close relationship between word and image. Artists could therefore depict a single literary moment, trusting viewers to recognise the wider story behind it.
Why Shakespeare Resonated with the Pre-Raphaelites
Although Shakespeare was only one of many literary influences on the movement, he occupied a unique position within Victorian culture. Widely regarded as England's greatest writer, his works were familiar to audiences through education, theatre, and publishing, giving them a cultural authority few writers could match.
For the Pre-Raphaelites, Shakespeare offered more than recognisable stories. His plays explored the complexities of human experience through emotionally rich characters, providing artists with subjects that were both familiar and compelling.
His appeal also lay in the richness of his language. Whilst Shakespeare rarely prescribed precise visual details, his plays are filled with imagery drawn from the natural world. Flowers, landscapes, and the changing seasons often reflect the emotions of his characters, creating a relationship between nature and feeling that resonated strongly with Pre-Raphaelite ideals.
Bringing Shakespeare's Worlds to Canvas
The Pre-Raphaelites approached Shakespeare not as illustrators but as interpreters. Rather than recreating theatrical performances, they used painting to explore atmosphere, symbolism, and psychology. Millais' Ferdinand Lured by Ariel (1849–50), inspired by The Tempest, demonstrates this approach. Rather than emphasising action, Millais creates a sense of enchantment and uncertainty, combining close observation of nature with the imaginative possibilities of Shakespeare's magical world.
This marked a departure from earlier Shakespearean painting, which often favoured dramatic action, heroic gesture, and theatrical spectacle. The Pre-Raphaelites instead used Shakespeare as a framework through which observation, imagination, and emotional interpretation could coexist, an approach that would find its fullest expression in their depictions of Shakespeare's heroines.
