ABSTRACT
Shakespeare’s second narrative poem was printed not long after his first, in 1594, and like its predecessor it was dedicated to the Earl of Southampton.1 As has been often suggested, the dedication preced ing Lucrece seems to address Southampton more intimately than does that preceding Venus and Adonis.2 The initial words of the dedication certainly appear to indicate something more than a distant respect: ‘The love I dedicate to your Lordship is without end. . . .’ So too do these: ‘What I have done is yours, what I have to do is yours, being part in all I have devoted yours.’3 Such words have led some com mentators to a further suggestion, namely, that the apparently more intimate style of the later dedication implies Shakespeare’s pursuit of the Earl’s patronage to have been not without success.4 That may well be true; nonetheless, what Shakespeare gained from offering South ampton Lucrece remains as unclear as what he gained from offering him Venus and Adonis.
