Roberts and fawn brodie, joseph smiths, biographer noted the considerable similarities in the content of view of the hebrews and the book of mormon, which was published seven years after ethan smiths book. Hamlet book of mormon other similar phrases that undiscovered country from whose bourn no traveler returns. In this case, the book of mormon contradicts the kjv. Shakespeare was no plagiarist, but genius isnt born in a. The book of mormon mobi kindle edition by church of. In fact, much of the information included in the book of mormon was contrary to what was known in 1830 about the ancient old and new worlds. To stir you up by putting you in remembrance 2 peter 1. Feb 07, 2018 the authors are not suggesting that shakespeare plagiarized but rather that he read and was inspired by a manuscript titled a brief discourse of rebellion and rebels, written in the late. The first english translation of enoch came out in 1823.
In many other cases, joseph smith made minor word changes or additions. Did joseph smith write the book of mormon by getting ideas from contemporary sources. Is it true that the translation of the book of mormon by joseph smith is better. The spaldingrigdon theory of book of mormon authorship is the theory that the book of mormon was plagiarized in part from an unpublished manuscript written by solomon spalding. There are differing views on the origin of the book of mormon. Plagiarism software finds real author of shakespeares plays. Mormon challenges could the book of mormon story have come. Even though plagiarismdetecting software was used to make this discovery, mccarthy. The passages which suggest shakespeare are better explained by other ancient parallels. Spaldingrigdon theory of book of mormon authorship. Linn, and others, claim that he quotes words of shakespeare in a passage of the book of mormon which we know is credited to. It will be observed that the passage from the book of mormon follows job more closely than it does shakespeare both in thought and diction. Howe in his book mormonism unvailed introduced a theory that smith plagiarized from the manuscript for an unpublished novel by solomon spalding. Book of mormon plagiarism if ive said it once ive said it a thousand times.
It is claimed that joseph smith plagiarized shakespeare in order to write portions of the book of mormon. Early critics of the book of mormon accused joseph smith of plagiarizing shakespeares hamlet in 2 nephi 1. Mormon challenges could the book of mormon story have. Additionally, journal of discourses and and history of the mormon church contain official records and teachings of various mormon leaders and founders. Mayanmesoamerican 4 cultures do not have the same concept of a death as a silent grave in any writings so far discovered.
Plagiarism software unveils a new source for 11 of. Smith, robert f evaluating the sources of 2 nephi 1. Ssnot book of mormon suffers the same problem as hamlet. Journal of book of mormon studies byu scholarsarchive. Critics of the book of mormon have without reason asserted that this is plagiarism from shakespeare. Shakespeare was no plagiarist, but genius isnt born in a vacuum. Has anyone looked at possible plagiarism from the book of enoch in the book of mormon. It didnt take long for it to pick up repeated sequences of rarelyused at the time words from norths manuscript that matched those used in the same order by shakespeare, especially proportion, glass, feature. In addition to the old standards such as ethan smiths view of the hebrews, shakespeare, solomon spaldings writings, the sermons and essays of various preachers, and james adairs a history of the american indians, many more works. Sep 07, 2005 how the book of mormon was plagiarized for years i have marveled at the numerous anti mormon attempts to find plagiarism in the book of mormon. Besides the extensive list of parallels between the bible and the book of mormon, this book examines many other possible sources used to create the text, i. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement. But, instead of taking this as further evidence of shakespeares remarkable memory, in 2011 he published a book, north of shakespeare, which claimed that north was the true author of shakespeare.
Feb 09, 2018 but, instead of taking this as further evidence of shakespeares remarkable memory, in 2011 he published a book, north of shakespeare, which claimed that north was the true author of shakespeare. He swiped the best bits of antony and cleopatra notably the barge she sat in, like a burnished throneburned on the water direct from plutarch, and took 4,144 out of 6,033 lines in parts i, ii and. Plagiarism definition1 includes to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source. Shakespeare found in the book of mormon or was it something an. Ssnot was part of the book of mormon stolen from halmet. Joseph smiths plagiarism of the bible in the book of. Great and marvelous are thy works, o lord god almighty. Is the book of mormon too complex to have been written by joseph. However, there is no evidence that joseph had read priests book. Did joseph smith plagiarize from shakespeare when writing the. Cowderys stepmother and three of his sisters were members of ethan smiths congregation.
Although the mormon church denies it, the book of mormon actually was plagiarized from an unpublished novel, i. Much closer parallels than shakespeare are available in the bible as well as in ancient near eastern literature. In his book, mccarthy describes using wcopyfind, an opensource plagiarism program, to find common words and phrases in discourse and shakespeares plays. This awardwinning page is a workinprogress by jeff lindsay representing one of the most controversial discoveries ever about the origins of the book of mormon, the finding of overwhelming evidence for plagiarism from walt whitmans leaves of grass. Lehi lived in judea in the seventh and sixth century, b. From broad parallels to a few specific words or phrases, many dozens of books, articles, and sermons of others have been mined to explain the book of mormon as a fraudulent product rooted solely in. In the wake of recent scandals some distinctions are in order. I know the software exists and is used by high schools and universities to determine if a student is plagiarizing. Even so, there is so little of it that has parallels with the book of mormon that this. Early mormon apostle orson pratt made a statement concerning the book of mormon.
The book of mormon is actually a novel although the mormon church denies it, the book of mormon actually was plagiarized from an unpublished novel, i. If true, it is one of the most important messages ever sent from godif false, it is one of the most cunning, wicked, bold, deeplaid impositions ever palmed upon the world. Antimormon writers, however, feel that they have identified a quotation from his works. There are several theories as to the origin of the book of mormon. Journal of the book of mormon and other restoration. Even whitmans phrases full of sorrow and full of love in the second quotation above have been plagiarized in the book of mormon. The major discovery here was that joseph smith direct borrowed or plagiarized heavily from adam clarkes commentary in order to. Shakespeare himself was a formidable plagiarist in the broad sense in. Variations of this theory only include that the text is a divinely inspired narrative, regardless of. There is not the slightest ground for that assumption. Interestingly, oliver cowdery, scribe, and later witness of the book of mormon, lived in poultney for 22 years until 1825.
Smith journal of the book of mormon and other restoration scripture 222 20. Anti mormon writers, however, feel that they have identified a quotation from his works. Was joseph smiths vivid and highly imaginative mind as. If a proposed new book in the bible referenced the millennium falcon, everyone would agree its a bad forgery. The sumerian poem entitled descent of inanna is known from a set of clay tablets and fragments inscribed in the first half of the second millennium bc, though the actual. As far as your question goes, its probably the best secular way of describing joseph smiths. Plagiarism software pins down new source for shakespeares. This has been repeated by many others including john hyde, jr. Journal of the book of mormon and other restoration scripture 22, no. Shakespeare himself was a formidable plagiarist in the broad sense in which im using the word. Also examined is the solomon spalding theory, common phrases, chiasmus hebrew poetic form, influence of.
In a 1980 farms paper, shakespeare and the book of mormon, robert f. Possible sources of plagairism for joseph smith exploring. Scholars say the work is one of the most influential shakespearean source texts in any form. A recent attempt to revive the spaulding theory is the 45page work of vernal holley, book of mormon authorship.
In the book of mormon, a paraphrase from shakespeare is considered by many to be evidence of plagiarism. Surprisingly, one of the most common objections to the book of mormon is the claim that joseph smith plagiarized from shakespeare when writing translating 2 nephi 1. If joseph plagiarized ethans view of the hebrews he missed many opportunities to support the book of mormon with the information of his day. Being born and raised in an lds family in ogden, utah came with the understanding youd be learning all you could about joseph smith, mormonism. The only thing ibe found is a quote similar to what was said about judas in the new testament it would be better for that man if he had never been born but it is in the plural, like a similar. Shakespeare may have plagiarised longlost 1576 manuscript. The book of mormon mobi kindle edition by church of jesus. Shakespeare and the book of mormon byu scholarsarchive.
Being born and raised in an lds family in ogden, utah came with the understanding youd be learning all you could about joseph smith, mormonism, and your book of mormon. If true, it is one of the most important messages ever sent from godif false, it is one of the most cunning, wicked, bold, deeplaid impositions ever palmed. The claim that joseph smith didnt use shakespeare in creating the book of mormon may be dismissed but can the one about josiah priests work be set aside. Joseph smiths plagiarism of the bible in the book of mormon. Did joseph smith plagiarize from shakespeare when writing the book of mormon.
Being born and raised in an lds family in ogden, utah came with the understanding youd be learning all you could about joseph smith, mormonism, and your book of. Josephs plagiarism in book of mormon and other revelations. Mar 06, 2015 the book of mormon, on the other hand, uses the word priest 105 times and the word elder in an ecclesiastical sense only 9 times. As early as 1831, eber howe, in his antimormon book mormonism. Plagiarism, anachronisms, utter lack of historical evidence, errors in the king. Joseph smith has been charged by many of his critics as being an impostor and an ignoramus, but strange to say, some of them, such as alexander campbell, john hyde, m. Being grieved for the hardness of their hearts mark 3. Several commentators on mormon history and the book of mormon, including lds church general authority b. The book by josiah priest throws new light upon a controversy regarding a quotation from william shakespeare which is found in the book of mormon. It was published in 1562, and clearly inspired shakespeares more wellknown version.
Miraculous origins theories generally accept joseph smiths own account, that he translated an ancient record compiled and abridged by mormon, a precolumbian resident of the western hemisphere. It is formatted to display on all electronic devices including the kindle, smartphones and other mobile devices with a small display. Even so, there is so little of it that has parallels with the book of mormon that this would provide a forger with little help. One does not need to copy the entire play hamlet to plagiarize shakespeare. Mormon apologists will immediately nitpick at the slight problem of publication dates whitmans first edition of the. Foundation of the book of mormon series book of mormon plagiarism if ive said it once ive said it a thousand times. Plagiarism software finds real author of shakespeares. The theory is that a spalding manuscript was stolen by sidney rigdon, who used. In the book of mormon, elder and priest are separate offices with an elder superior to a priest.
Haley wilson lemmon sits down with us today to discuss the joseph smith translation of the bible haley worked with byu professor thomas a wayment in looking into what possible sources joseph smith used in his bible translation. Howe possessed the manuscript at the time of the book of mormon publication. Let us compare three verses from job in the old testament with lehi in. The authors are not suggesting that shakespeare plagiarized but rather that he read and was inspired by a manuscript titled a brief. Culture books news shakespeare may have plagiarised longlost 1576 manuscript, scholars find. The prophet lehi in the book of mormon told his sons to awake. Haley lemmon mormon discussions podcasts full lineup. How the book of mormon was plagiarized for years i have marveled at the numerous antimormon attempts to find plagiarism in the book of mormon. Since shakespeare was not born until 1564, we would not expect the book of mormon to quote from his words. The article, and the book, have many more examples of places where the words of shakespeare and north intersect. Brooke based his own version on a story written by matteo bandello.
If all writers are pickpockets, then shakespeare was an inveterate snapperup of unconsidered trifles, like autolycus in the winters tale. Arthur brooke wrote the tragical history of romeus and juliet, a narrative poem. Did joseph smith plagiarize from shakespeare when writing. Even shakespeares most famous tragic love story was lifted from another writer. In addition to the consecutive chapters of isaiah plagiarized in 2 nephi, 2 more isaiah chapters were plagiarized in 1 nephi, another 2 in 2 nephi separate from the earlier ones, 2 more in 3 nephi, and one in mosiah, reaching 20 total chapters from isaiah in the book of mormon. A readers guide, have attempted to move the discussion away from polemics to an appreciation for the books. I did read bh roberts book that you mention and i think roberts was posing the question hypothetically and then playing devils advocate answering it. Indeed, the constellation of ideas about death expressed in 2 nephi 1. The early and persistent claim that joseph smith quoted shakespeare in the book of mormon fails to take into account the broader context of sources.
The theory first appeared in print in the book mormonism unvailed, published in 1834 by e. It was first published in 1823 the book of mormon was published 6 years later in 1829. Smith noted even more ancient texts that use the same idea found in these scriptural passages. Let us compare three verses from job in the old testament with lehi in the book of mormon and with shakespeare. To compare the grave the hebrew sheol with a country from which a traveler could not return, was but natural to one who as lehi, had spent so. Digital book version available description besides the extensive list of parallels between the bible and the book of mormon, this book examines many other possible sources used to create the text, i. In a post i made several years ago about problems with the to be or not to be speech in hamlet also sharing the same problem in the book of mormon which cribs the line from whence no traveler returns in an attempt to sound bibley. The play hamlet has been popular ever since written by william shakespeare. Isaiah 2 1 the word that isaiah the son of amoz saw concerning judah and jerusalem. Linn, and others, claim that he quotes words of shakespeare in a passage of the book of mormon which we know is credited to father lehi. The book of mormon, on the other hand, uses the word priest 105 times and the word elder in an ecclesiastical sense only 9 times. In several cases, the plagiarism is proof that joseph smith was the author of the book of mormon, since the source of the copied text was not accessible to the alleged book of mormon authors.
Spaldingrigdon theory of book of mormon authorship wikipedia. Mar 16, 2011 did joseph smith write the book of mormon by getting ideas from contemporary sources. Alexander campbell referred to a quotation from shakespeare. Now consider other seemingly incriminating evidence that shakespeare plagiarized material for his works, including the following quotations. Story is to its narrative source in shakespeares romeo and juliet. Book of mormon plagiarism has the book of mormon ever been processed through a plagiarism checking software. In the book of mormon, death is referred to as a silent grave. The list of works that joseph smith allegedly plagiarized or drew upon to produce the book of mormon continues to grow. In hamlet we are met with the odd problem that hamlet talked to his father ghost and king specter earlier and so the line seems out of place. A closer look, zenos publications, ogden, utah, 1983. The book was designed for optimal navigation on the kindle, pda, smartphone, and other electronic readers. Some mormon scholars, like grant hardy, who wrote understanding the book of mormon.
221 962 573 1572 48 643 276 982 703 1083 1033 1437 1082 793 852 982 1160 758 1192 613 328 807 205 359 277 1301 826 620 1212 1232 671