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PrzemysławŁukasikandMaikArnold
knowninAmerica.Scenesfromhisplayswereonstageinalmostall
Americantheaterswhileversesofhispoemswerecitedinsaloonsaswell
asbytravellingactorswhosanghissongsandpoemsonthestreets.The
appreciationforhiminAmericaremindsusoftheculturaldependence
of4NewEngland’totheformermotherland–asmanyimmigrantsoften
suggested:4Americahasnoculture’atall–theywereboundtotheold
andcenturiesoldstereotypeofthe4barbarianland’(RubinandRubin
2004).Thedominantmodelofimmigrants’acculturationinAmerica
wasanAnglo-conformism(cf.i.e.,Kubiak1975).Immigrantsremained
mostlyaccustomedtowhiteAnglo-Saxon-Protestantcultureandiden-
tity.Shakespeare’sworksandtheKing-James-Biblehavebecomeboth
theusualandcommemorativetoolsofsuchacculturationinthe4New
World’.Itcannotbedeniedthatthisattitudehasaculturalbiasfrom
Westernculture.
Thirdly,Shakespearecanalsoberegardedasintermediatorand
interlocutorbetweenloveandhatethatisthemaincontentofhis
plays.ParticularlyoutstandingandwellknownishistragedyRomeo
andJulietthathewroteatanearlystageofhiscareer.Itisthestory
abouttwoyoung4star-cross’dlovers’fromtwowarringfamiliesin
Verona,onlythroughwhosedeathscouldtheyultimatelyunitethem-
selves.Inasense,thisdemonstratesalsoafightbetweenpeopleof
thesamekinship,bloodrelationship,andculture.Forus,Romeoand
JulietareSamandGermania,notinaliteracysense,butasarchetypes
(seeFigures2-3).ThelatteralsobelongtothesameWesterncultu-
ral4family’.Strugglesbetweenthemarecontinuouslyaccompanied
byloveorhateaswellasupsanddowns:UncleSamisanational
personificationoftheUnitedStatesofAmericaand,sometimesmore
specifically,oftheAmericangovernment,withthefirstusageofthe
termdatingbacktothebeginningofthe19thCentury.Heisdepicted
asasternelderlywhitemanwithsilver-grayhairandagoateebeard,
anddressedinclothingthatrecallsthedesignelementsoftheflag
oftheU.S.:atypicallytophatwithredandwhitestripesandwhite
starsonablueband,andredandwhitestripedtrousers.Incontrast,
GermaniaisthepersonificationoftheGermanNationortheGermans
asaculturenation,mostcommonlyassociatedwiththeRomantic
EraandtheRevolutionof1848,thoughthischaracterwaslateralso
