The Language of Shakespeare

1. The Language of Shakespeare

2. Romeo and Juliet is a Tragedy… • A tragedy presents a sad tale of the fall of a noble character or characters. • In this play, there are two characters who suffer a downfall. • In most tragedies, the downfall of the central character is brought about by a personal failing called a tragic flaw.

3. Definitions • Tragedy:a drama that tells the story of the fall of a person of high status. Tragedy tends to be serious. It celebrates the courage and dignity of a tragic hero in the face of inevitable doom. Sometimes that doom is made inevitable by a tragic flaw in the hero. In the 20th century, writers have extended the definition of tragedy to cover works that deal with the fall of any sympathetic character, despite his or her status. • Tragic Flaw:a personal weakness that brings about the fall of a character in a tragedy. • Both Romeo and Juliet suffer from the flaw of impulsiveness.

4. Sonnet • A sonnet is a 14 line poem that follows one of a number of different rhyme schemes. • The Shakespearean sonnet is divided into 4 parts: • 3 quatrains • 1 final couplet • Quatrain: a stanza containing four lines. • Couplet: a pair of rhyming lines that expresses a complete thought. • Meter for this sonnet form is usually iambic pentameter, which consists of five metrical feet with each foot having an unstressed, stressed pattern.

5. Iambic Pentameter • The most common meter in English verse. • Meter- basic rhythmic structure. • Feet- the smallest repeating metrical units • Feet make up the meter • We have penta/meter, so we have 5 feet. • Iamb- a foot of two syllables, unstressed followed by stressed • Iambic is a disyllable (2-syllable) • We have 5 feet, with 2 syllables per feet, so 10 syllables total in a line of Iambic Pentameter • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p226OX39OLs • Blank Verse: Unrhymed but otherwise regular verse, usually in iambic pentameter.