Samuel Coster
Encyclopedia
Samuel Coster was a Dutch playwright.

Coster was the fifth child of Adriaen Lennaertz, sexton
Sexton (office)
A sexton is a church, congregation or synagogue officer charged with the maintenance of its buildings and/or the surrounding graveyard. In smaller places of worship, this office is often combined with that of verger...

 and carpenter, and Aeltgen Jansd. By around 1605, he was a member of the Amsterdam rederijkerskamer
Chamber of rhetoric
Chambers of rhetoric were dramatic societies in the Low Countries. Their members are called Rederijkers , from the french word 'rhétoricien', and during the 15th and 16th centuries were mainly interested in dramas and lyrics...

 "De Eglantier". Presumably he was helped into the society by rich friends, but then got himself to Leiden University
Leiden University
Leiden University , located in the city of Leiden, is the oldest university in the Netherlands. The university was founded in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, leader of the Dutch Revolt in the Eighty Years' War. The royal Dutch House of Orange-Nassau and Leiden University still have a close...

 in 1607. He began as a student of the humanities, but he graduated in 1610 as a doctor in medicine. He was appointed a physician at the Hospital on his return to Amsterdam.

Coster for 10 years played a leading role in the literary life of Amsterdam, making his name in the theatre. "Teeuwis de boer" (Teeuwis the farmer), a comedy in all probability already written during his years in Leiden, was in 1612 put on by "De Eglantier". Inspired by the national anthem, Coster laid out in it comical motives and characters: a voluptuous man married with an old woman, a farmer opposite a city-dweller, a bragging Westfaals talking with a bald nobleman, and a sly and knowing French lawyer. In 1613 the "Spel van Tiisken vander Schilden" (Play of Tiisken vander Schilden) appeared, at first anonymous but later attributed to Coster on the basis of stylistic resemblance with other works of his.

The first 'classical' tragedy in Dutch has been written also by Coster: "Ithys", probably put on by "Eglantier" in 1615. Although largely in the pastoral
Pastoral
The adjective pastoral refers to the lifestyle of pastoralists, such as shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasturage. It also refers to a genre in literature, art or music that depicts such shepherd life in an...

 style, it is an extremely bloody drama, take from one of the cruellest episodes in Ovid
Ovid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...

's Metamorphoses: the story of Tereus
Tereus
In Greek mythology, Tereus was a Thracian king, the son of Ares and husband of Procne. Procne and Tereus had a son, Itys.Tereus desired his wife's sister, Philomela. He forced himself upon her, then cut her tongue out and held her captive so she could never tell anyone. He told his wife that her...

 and Procne
Procne
Procne may refer to:*In Greek mythology, Procne was sister to Philomela, as well as the wife of Tereus, and mother of Itys.*194 Prokne, an asteroid...

.

Around 1615, the "De Eglantier" began to break up, with pressures from old versus new, Dutch versus foreign, self-praise versus critical talent. Hooft
Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft
Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft - Knight in the Order of Saint Michael - was a Dutch historian, poet and playwright from the period known as the Dutch Golden Age.-Life:...

's attempts to reconstruct it came to nothing. The final break came in 1617, when a small group of talented members led by Coster, Hooft and Bredero split off to found the 'Duytsche Academy'. The intention was to practice not only poetry and theatre, but also to organize scientific research lectures in Dutch, unlike the universities of Leiden, Franeker
University of Franeker
The University of Franeker was a university in Franeker, Friesland, presently part of the Netherlands. It was the second oldest university of the Netherlands, founded shortly after Leiden University....

, Harderwijk
University of Harderwijk
The University of Harderwijk , also named the Guelders Academy , was located in the town of Harderwijk, in the Republic of the United Provinces...

 and Groningen
University of Groningen
The University of Groningen , located in the city of Groningen, was founded in 1614. It is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands as well as one of its largest. Since its inception more than 100,000 students have graduated...

, which gave their classes at that time in Latin.

In November 1617, a new classical drama of Coster was performed: "Iphigenia". The drama was a disguised criticism of the current religious disputes and fanatical drive of the Calvanistic preachers, making these preachers protest to the mayor of Amsterdam and getting him to declare (wrongly) that the Academie was anticlerical. Successful productions of plays like Bredero's "Spaanschen Brabander" and Hooft's "Warenar veranderden" could do nothing to change this.

The death of Bredero in August 1618, combined with tragic political events that very same month and the execution of Oldenbarnevelt
Oldenbarnevelt
* Johan van Oldenbarnevelt* Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, a ship* Reinier van Oldenbarnevelt...

 in May 1619, limited the Academy's chances.

Due to his medical work, that took up much of his time, Coster published little in later years, besides revising and reprinting his earlier works. He remained friendly with the aforenamed Amsterdam literary circles, and so the Academy's objectives were finally realised in 1632 and 1637, with the foundation of the Athenaeum Illustre and the new Theater - not founded by Coster himself, but by a younger generation realizing his aims.

Works

  • Boere-klucht van Teeuwis de Boer, en men Juffer van Grevelinckhuysen (1612, 1e druk 1627)
  • Ithys (1615)
  • Spel van de rijckeman (1615)
  • Warenar (1617, samen met P.C. Hooft)
  • Iphigenia (1617)
  • Isabella (tekst tot vers 362 van Hooft) (1619)
  • Polyxena (1619)
  • Duytsche Academi (1619), gelegenheidsspel
  • Ghezelschap der Goden vergaaert op de ghewenste bruyloft van Apollo (1618)
  • Nederduytsche Academijs Niemant ghenoemt, niemant gheblameert (1620)

Further reading

  • R.A. Kollewijn (ed.), S. C's werken (1883)
  • N.C.H. Wijngaards (ed.), Boere-klucht van Teeuwis de boer (1967)
  • G. van Eemeren (ed.), Polyxena (1980)
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