William Shakespeare Widely regarded as the greatest writer in English Literature
• 1563-1616 • Stratford-on-Avon, England • wrote 37 plays • about 154 sonnets • started out as an actor
Shakespeare
Stage Celebrity • Actor for Lord Chamberlain’s Men (London theater co.) • Also > principal playwright for them • 1599> Lord Ch. Co. built Globe Theater where most of Sh. Play’s were performed
• Comedies • Histories • Tragedies Shakespeare wrote:
• Written about 1595 • Considered a tragedy • West Side Story (Movie) based on R&J
Romeo and Juliet
• Plays produced for the general public • Roofless>open air • No artificial lighting • Courtyard surrounded by 3 levels of galleries
The Theater
The Globe Theatre
• Wealthy got benches • “Groundlings”>poorer people stood and watched from the courtyard (“pit”) • All but wealthy were uneducated/illiterate • Much more interaction than today
Spectators
The Spectators
• 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
Staging Areas
• No scenery • Settings > references in dialogue • Elaborate costumes • Plenty of props • Fast-paced, colorful>2 hours!
Differences
• Only men and boys • Young boys whose voices had not changed play women’s roles • Would have been considered indecent for a woman to appear on stage
Actors
• An, and: • Anon: • Aye: • But: • E’en: • E’er:
If Soon Yes Except for Even Ever
Elizabethan (QE1) Words
• Haply: • Happy: • Hence: • Hie: • Marry:
Perhaps Fortunate Away, from her Hurry Indeed
QE1 Words (contin.)
• Whence: • Wilt: • Withal to: Would:
Where Will, will you In addition Wish
QE1 Words (contin.)
• Much of R & J is written in it: • unrhymed verse • iambic (unstressed, stressed) • pentameter( 5 “feet” to a line) • ends up to be 10 syllable lines
Blank Verse
• 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?
Prose
•The sequence of events in a literary work Plot
• The plot usually begins with this: • introduces>>>> • setting • characters • basic situation
Exposition
• Often called the“initial incident” • the first bit of action that occurs which begins the plot • Romeo and Juliet“lock eyes” at the party
Inciting Moment
• The struggle that develops • man vs. man • man vs. himself • man vs. society • man vs. nature
Conflict
• The point where the protagonist’s situation will either get better or worse • protagonist>good guy • antagonist>bad guy
Crisis
• The turning point of the story > everything begins to unravel from here • Thus begins the falling action
Climax
•The end of the central conflict Resolution
• The final explanation or outcome of the plot • If this is included in literature, it will occur after the resolution.
Denouement
• Drama where the central character/s suffer disaster/great misfortune • In many tragedies, downfall results from>
• Fate • Character flaw/Fatal flaw • Combination of the two
Tragedy (Shakespearean)
•Central idea or >> •Insight about life which explain the downfall
Theme
• Comparison of unlike things > • Paris standing over the “lifeless body” of Juliet, “Sweet flower, with flowers thy bridal bed I strew…” • “Thou detestable maw…”Gorged with the dearest morsel of the earth…” Romeo
Metaphorical Language
• A character whose purpose is to show off another character • Benvolio for Tybalt • look for others in R & J
Dramatic Foil
• Characters who have many personality traits, like real people.
Round characters
• One-dimensional, embodying only a single trait • Shakespeare often uses them to provide comic relief even in a tragedy
Flat Characters
• Characters within a story who remain the same. They do not change. They do not change their minds, opinions or character.
Static Characters
• Characters that change somehow during the course of the plot. They generally change for the better.
Dynamic Character
• One person speaking on stage > may be other character on stage too • ex > the Prince of Verona commanding the Capulets and Montagues to cease feuding
Monologue
• Long speech expressing the thoughts of a character alone on stage. In R & J, Romeo gives a soliloquy after the servant has fled and Paris has died.
Soliloquy
• Words spoken, usually in an undertone not intended to be heard by all characters
Aside
• Shakespeare loved to use them!!! • Humorous use of a word with two meanings > sometimes missed by the reader because of Elizabethan language and sexual innuendo
Pun
• Words that tell the reader who is being addressed: • “A right fair mark, fair coz, is soonest hit.” • “Ah, my mistresses, which of you all/ Will now deny to dance?”
Direct Address
• A contradiction between what a character thinks and what the reader/audience knows to be true
Dramatic Irony
•Words used to suggest the opposite of what is meant
Verbal Irony
• An event occurs that directly contradicts the expectations of the characters, the reader, or the audience
Situational Irony
• Use of comedy within literature that is NOT comedy to provide “relief” from seriousness or sadness. • In R & J, look for moments of comic relief that help “relieve” the tragedy of the situation
Comic Relief