Editing Measure for Measure (section)

==Source texts==
The play draws on two distinct sources. The original is "The Story of Epitia", from [[Giovanni Battista Giraldi|Cinthio's]] ''Gli Hecatommithi'', first published in 1565.<ref name="Bawcutt">N. W. Bawcutt (ed.), ''Measure for Measure'' (Oxford, 1991), p. 17</ref> Shakespeare was familiar with this book; it contains the original source for his ''[[Othello]]''. Cinthio also published the story with some small differences as a play, of which Shakespeare may have been aware. The original story is an unmitigated tragedy: Isabella's counterpart is forced to sleep with Angelo's counterpart, and her brother is killed.
[[File:Isabella appealing to Angelo (Hamilton, 1793).jpg|thumb|upright|A 1793 painting by [[William Hamilton (painter)|William Hamilton]] of Isabella appealing to Angelo]]
The play's other main source is [[George Whetstone]]'s 1578 two-part [[closet drama]] ''Promos and Cassandra'', itself sourced from Cinthio. Whetstone adapted Cinthio's story by adding the comic elements and the bed and head tricks.<ref name="Bawcutt"/>{{rp|20}}

The title of the play appears as a [[wikisource:Shakespeare - First Folio facsimile (1910)/Measure, for Measure/Act 5 Scene 1|line of dialogue]]:
{{poemquote|An ''Angelo'' for ''Claudio'', death for death: 
Haste still paies haste, and leasure, answers leasure;
Like doth quit like, and ''Measure'' still for ''Measure'':|author=William Shakespeare|title=''Measure for Measure''|source=act V, scene i}}
This is generally understood to be a reference to the [[Sermon on the Mount]] in [[Matthew 7]]:<ref>{{cite journal |title=Public Justice and Private Mercy in ''Measure for Measure'' |last=Magedanz |first=Stacy |journal= [[SEL: Studies in English Literature 1500–1900]] |issn=0039-3657 |eissn=1522-9270 |volume=44 |issue=2, Tudor and Stuart Drama |date=2004 |pages=317–332 |jstor=3844632}}
* For the biblical verse, refer {{bibleverse|Matthew|7:2}}</ref>
{{blockquote|For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.|Gospel of Matthew|Chapter 7, Verse 2}}
Peter Meilaender has argued that ''Measure for Measure'' is largely based on biblical references, focusing on the themes of sin, restraint, mercy, and rebirth.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Meilaender|first=Peter C.|date=2012|title=Marriage and the Law: Politics and Theology in ''Measure for Measure''|journal=Perspectives on Political Science|volume=41|issue=4|pages=195–200|doi=10.1080/10457097.2012.713263|s2cid=145256290}}
</ref> Amongst such Gospel comparisons,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Knight |first1=Wilson |title=The Wheel Of Fire |date=1949 |publisher=Methuen |location=London |pages=73–96 |orig-date=1930 |chapter=''Measure for Measure'' and the Gospels |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.5118/page/n93/mode/2up}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Raffield |first1=Paul |editor1=Chiara Battisti |editor2=Sidia Fiorato |title=Law and the humanities: Cultural perspectives |date=2019 |publisher=De Gruyter |location=Berlin; Boston |isbn=9783110670226 |pages=47–70 |chapter=Substitution, the Counterfeit Angel, and the Imprint of Law}}</ref> the Gospel of Matthew has been viewed as a source. 

A 2016 essay by the literary critic Giuseppe Leone analyses parallels between the episode of Claudio's supposed beheading and that of [[John the Baptist]], as narrated in [[Matthew 14|Matthew 14:1–12]]. Leone argues that in Shakespeare's treatment of the perpetrator's demand for Claudio's head there is an expression of Angelo's pleasure in his power to have his will enacted, and to reap satisfaction from that power through the tangible token: he orders the severed head be brought "for my better satisfaction". The demand for the Baptist's head from Herodias, through her daughter, fulfils a similar function. Herod Antipas' public oath of providing Herodias' daughter with whatever she demanded ensured the Baptist's execution, without necessitating the production of his remains. In Leone's view, his stepdaughter's demand, "Give me here John Baptist's head on a platter", serves the same purpose of allowing for self-satisfied gloating in power over others. Neither Cinthio's nor Whetstone's source text has anything similar. The executed victim in those works is ordered to be sent to the sister, without either of the perpetrators, Iuriste and Promos, showing any interest in obtaining or viewing the remains. Their satisfaction comes solely from their sister's mistreatment. For Leone, this divergence from ''Measure''{{'}}s literary precursors and concurrence with the Gospel text is a strong case for Matthew's Gospel as a source.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Leone |first1=Giuseppe |title='Let Me Have Claudio's Head' The Beheading of John the Baptist as a Remote Source in ''Measure for Measure'' |journal=Annali di Ca' Foscari. Serie Occidentale |date=September 2016 |volume=50 |pages=279–304 |doi=10.14277/2499-1562/AnnOc-50-16-15 |language=en |issn=2499-2232 |url=https://phaidra.cab.unipd.it/detail/o:432341 |access-date=8 July 2023 |archive-date=8 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230708110954/https://fc.cab.unipd.it/fedora/objects/o:432341/methods/bdef:Content/get |url-status=dead }}
* For the biblical verse, refer: {{bibleverse|Matthew|14:8}}</ref>