William Shakespeare's World

1. William Shakespeare's World To be, or not to be, that is the question... This above all, to thine own self be true...

2. Queen Elizabeth I – ( 1558-1603 ) • Ruled England for 45 years. • Nicknamed “the Virgin Queen” and produced no heir to the throne • Restored Protestantism and formalized the Church of England • During her reign, the economy was weakened by inflation, food shortages, and high rent. • Outbreak of the black plague, food riots, Catholic conspiracies, threats of invasion, etc. • During the Elizabethan Period, hundreds of people were convicted as witches and executed

3. King James I– ( 1603-1628 ) • Renamed Shakespeare’’s acting troupe “The King’s Men” • Believed in the supernatural and interested in witchcraft • Religious and believed in the existence of supernatural evil • Commissioned a translation of the bible from Latin to English • Published a book about witchcraft called “Demonologie“ in 1597

4. View of Witchcraft • Witches and witchcraft were a morbid fascination • Between 1560-1603, hundreds of people (nearly all women) were convicted as witches and executed • Witches could predict the future, bring on daytime and nighttime, cause fogs and storms, and change into animals • If convicted, people would be subjected to torture and death by hanging or burning at the stake • King James I was fascinated by witchcraft • Signs of possession were: trance, change of appearance, inability to pray, visions, disturbed behavior, lack of fear, indifference to life, and invitations to evil spirits to possess one’s body. • Shakespeare’s audience were religious Christians who believed in heaven and hell

5. The Plays • Early plays, 1590’s, were mainly comedy • Comedy (and this could be extended to most of Shakespeare's history plays as well)  is social--leading to a happy resolution (usually a marriage or marriages) and social unification.  • Shakespeare began to focus on tragedy/dramatic themes in the early 1600’s • Tragedy is individual, concentrating on the suffering of a single, remarkable hero--leading to individual torment, waste and death • 1608 marks a change in tone from tragedy to romance, light, magic, and reconciliation

6. Comedies Comedy of Errors 1592The Taming of the Shrew 1592-94Love's Labor's Lost 1594-95Two Gentlemen of Verona 1594-95A Midsummer Night's Dream 1595-96The Merchant of Venice 1596-97Much Ado About Nothing 1598-99As You Like It 1599-1600Twelfth Night 1599-1600Merry Wives of Windsor 1601-02Troilus and Cressida 1601-02All's Well That Ends Well 1602-03Measure for Measure 1604-05

7. Tragedies & Tragicomedies Titus Andronicus 1593-94Romeo and Juliet 1594-95Hamlet 1600-01Othello 1604-05The Tragedy of King Lear 1605-06Macbeth 1605-06 Timon of Athens 1607-(?)Cymbeline 1609-10The Winter's Tale 1610-11Tempest 1611-12

8. Henry VI parts I, II, III 1590-92Richard III 1590-92King John 1594-96Richard II 1597-(?)King Henry IV part I, part II 1597-98Henry V (1599) 1598-99Julius Caesar 1599-1600Henry VIII 1613-(?)Antony and Cleopatra 1606-07Coriolanus 1607-08 Historical

9. When in a play... • Only men were permitted to perform • Boys or effeminate men were used to play the women • Costumes were often the company’s most valuable asset • Costumes were made by the company, bought in London, or donated by courtiers

10. Staging Areas • Stage -- platform that extended into the pit • Dressing & storage rooms in galleries behind & above stage • Second-level gallery & upper stage -- famous balcony scene in R & J • Trap door -ghosts • “Heavens”- angelic beings

11. English Theater • Plays were most often performed in outdoor theaters • Performances took place during the day so that the stage would be illuminated by natural light

12. The Globe Theater

13. THE GLOBE THEATER • Built in 1599 • The most magnificent theater in London • Shakespeare was 1/5 owner • He earned 10% of the total profit, approximately £200-250 a year • The Bard retired to Stratford and lived on the profits he earned from the Globe • June 19, 1613 the Globe burned to the ground during a performance of Henry VIII

14. The Globe Theater – • Many of Shakespeare’s plays were performed here • The stage was a large, rectangle that jutted out into the yard • Held 2,000-3,000 people tightly packed • An open playhouse with a wooden structure three stories high • It was shaped like a 16 sided polygon • General admission = 1 Penny entitled a spectator to be a “groundling”-someone who could stand in the yard. • More expensive seats were in the roofed galleries and most expensive seats were chairs set right on the stage along its two sides • Rebuilt in 1900’s

15. Aristocrats • The Queen/King • The Groundlings!

16. Actors • Only men and boys allowed onstage • Young boys whose voices had not changed play women’s roles • It would have been considered indecent for a woman to appear on stage

17. Differences • No scenery • Settings > references in dialogue • Elaborate costumes • Plenty of props • Fast-paced, colorful>2 hours!

18. Spectators • Wealthy got benches • “Groundlings”>poorer people stood and watched from the courtyard (“pit”) • All but wealthy were uneducated/illiterate • Much more interaction than today

19. The Cost of a Show • 1 shilling to stand • 2 shillings to sit in the balcony • 1 shilling was 10% of their weekly income • Broadway Today: • $85 Orchestra • $60 Balcony • 10% of a teacher’s weekly salary

20. William The Man That Would Be Shakespeare • 1564-1616 • Stratford-on-Avon, England • He wrote 37 plays & 154 sonnets • He started out as an actor

21. Background of the Bard • Born April, 1564 in Stratford on Avon • Parents John & Mary Shakespeare • Educated at Stratford Grammar School • Learned business as an apprentice for his father • Married Anne Hathaway November 28, 1582 • She was 8 years his senior and 3 months pregnant when they married

22. The Tragic Hero

23. Aristotle’s Definition of Tragedy • A man of high standard who falls from that high because of a tragic flaw that has affected many” ***Macbeth is one of the most famous examples of the tragic hero.

24. Prose • Ordinary writing that is not poetry, drama, or song • Only characters in the lower social classes speak this way in Shakespeare’s plays • Why do you suppose that is?

25. WHAT DID HE JUST SAY? Did people really talk this way? Prose- language without metrical structure Verse- poetic language and style Blank Verse:  unrhymed iambic pentameter. Iambic Pentameter:  five beats of alternating unstressed and stressed syllables; ten syllables per line. 'So fair / and foul / a day / I have / not seen'

26. What just happened? Shakespeare will be some of the most difficult reading you will ever attempt. BE PATIENT! Middle English vs. Modern English Reading Tips • Read the Introduction • Read everything twice • First time- try reading without looking at footnotes, mark any interesting or difficult items 4. Try reading aloud 5. Look up words you don’t know 6. Keep a list of characters

27. The tragedy of Macbeth • Set in Scotland • Written for King James I (formerly of Scotland, now England) • Queen of Denmark (James’s sister) was visiting • Shakespeare researched The Chronicles – Banquo is an ancestor of King James I

28. The Curse!

29. “The Scottish Play” • It is believed to be bad luck to even squeak the word ‘Macbeth’ in a theatre • Legend has it you will lose all your friends involved in the production—horribly. • Since 1606, hundreds of actors, stage crew, etc. have been hurt or have died during the production of this play. • It is believed that Shakespeare included black magic spells in the incantations of the weird sisters. • People refer to this play as “the Scottish Play” • The only remedy to get rid of this curse is that the offender must step outside, turn around three times, spit, and whisper a foul word, and wait for permission to re-enter the theater.