fear no more... Shakespeare

1. Shakespearean Songs

2. Tell me where is fancy bred, it was a lover and his lass, Fear no more the heat o’ the sun. • Shakespearean Songs. Music and song were important aspects of life during the English Renaissance. Serenades, street songs. Pastoral invitations, nonsense songs, ballads-all were popular at every level of English society. Shakespeare included 124 songs in his plays. The songs serve specific purposes in the plays in which they appear, they were not added merely to capitalize on the appeal of music. Although Shakespeare's songs were sung on stage as part of the productions, none of the original printed versions of the plays includes the music, as a consequence, much of the original music has been lost. Nevertheless. the lyrics can be enjoyed as poems without music. They can also be appreciated outside the context of the plays. William Shakespeare. unparalleled playwrightand poet, was also one of England's great songwriters.

3. Tell me where is fancybred Tell me where is fancy bred, Or in the heart or in the head? How begot, how nourishèd? Reply, reply. It is engender’d in the eyes, With gazing fed; fancy dies and fancy dies, and fancy dies In the cradle where it lies. Let us all ring fancy’s knell; I’ll begin it, –ding, dong, bell. Ding, dong, bell

4. Questions • To what sortof music can you imagine thiswordssung? Explain • What two posible sourcesoffancy are mentioned at the beginningof the song? • Where does the replyto the twoquestions place the originoffancy? Interpreting….

5. It was a lover and his lass

6. Do you agreewith the poet’sattitudetowardspringtime? Whyorwhy not? • To what do lovers compare life? • ´why do you thinkspringtime is called ´the onlyprettyringtime’? • What does the songadviseaboutlove? • What modernlovesong do you think comes closesttohaving the samemessage as ‘it was a lover and his las?

7. Fear no more the heat o’ the sun

8. Questions • Do you thinkthissong is effectivelyconsoling? Whyorwhy not? • What are fiveaspectsoflifethat the deceased no longer has toworryabout? • In the laststanza, what do the threeconcernsmentioned have in common? • Judgingby what the deceasedneed no longerfear, what kindoflife do you thinkshehad? • Ifthissongwereto be sungtoday, where would you be mostlikelytohear it?