standing godfather "Shakespeare, standing godfather to one of [Ben] Jonson’s children, and faced with the necessity of thinking of an appropriate christening gift, comes out of 'a deep study' inspired."
1. what is a "standing godfather" and how does it differ from just "a godfather"?
2. what does "comes out of 'a deep study' inspired" mean?
"'I’ll e’en give him a dozen good latten spoons,' he tells Ben, “and thou shalt translate them.' For modern readers this feeble jest requires a gloss: latten was a brass or brass-like alloy." |