Transcript William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare
Timeline
• 1564: Born in Stratford-upon-Avon
• Learned Latin and studied Greek and Roman Classical
literature as a child.
– His plays were highly influenced by these texts.
• 1590s: Began acting professionally and writing plays in
London.
• 1599: The Globe Theatre was constructed, in which
many of Shakespeare’s plays were performed.
• 1599: Julius Caesar was performed as the first play to
be produced in the Globe Theatre.
• 1616: Died in Stratford-upon-Avon.
Tragedy
• “Tragedy is, then, an enactment of a deed that
is important and complete, and of a certain
magnitude, by means of language enriched
with ornaments, each used separately in the
different parts of the play: it is enacted, not
merely recited, and through pity and fear it
effects relief (catharsis) to such and similar
emotions.” Aristotle, Poetics, VI 1449b 2-3
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enactment
deed that is important
complete
of a certain magnitude
language enriched with ornaments
recited
through pity and fear it effects relief
(catharsis) to such and similar emotions
Elements of a Tragedy
• Five acts
• Three unities:
– action: a play should have one main action that it follows, with
no or few subplots.
– place: the action in a play should take place in only one setting.
– time: the action in a play should take place over no more than
24 hours.
• Main characters of noble rank
• Several of the main characters along with the tragic hero
die by the end, and order is finally restored.
• No scenes of horror onstage
Tragic hero
• The protagonist of a tragedy.
• The audience feels pity or sympathy towards him.
• Shows hubris—pride or arrogance, the
presumption that one’s mind alone can
distinguish good and evil.
• Has a tragic flaw—error in judgment.
• Experiences a reversal of fortune.
• Experiences a recognition of the error.
Examples
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Oedipus in Sophocles' Oedipus the King (429 BC).
Brutus in William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar (1599).
Hamlet in Shakespeare's Hamlet (1601).
Lear in Shakespeare's King Lear (c. 1603-1606).
Macbeth in Shakespeare's Macbeth (c. 1603-1607).
Othello in Shakespeare's Othello (1604).
Batman/Bruce Wayne from the DC Universe (1939).
Spider-Man/Peter Parker from the Marvel Universe (1962).
Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader in George Lucas' Star Wars (1977-2005).
William Wallace in Mel Gibson's Braveheart (1995).
Walt Kowalski in Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino (2008).
Harvey Dent in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight (2008).
Maximus in Ridley Scott's Gladiator (2000 film)
Important questions to consider
• What makes a good leader?
• Who is the tragic hero of the play, Julius
Caesar or Brutus?
– “This play is distinctive because it has no villains”
(Wills 118).
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A laughing stock (The Merry Wives of
Windsor)
A sorry sight (Macbeth)
As dead as a doornail (Henry VI)
Eaten out of house and home (Henry
V, Part 2)
Fair play (The Tempest)
I will wear my heart upon my sleeve
(Othello)
In a pickle (The Tempest)
In stitches (Twelfth Night)
In the twinkling of an eye (The
Merchant Of Venice)
Mum's the word (Henry VI, Part 2)
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Neither here nor there (Othello)
Send him packing (Henry IV)
Set your teeth on edge (Henry IV)
There's method in my madness
(Hamlet)
Too much of a good thing (As You Like
It)
Vanish into thin air (Othello
A dish fit for the gods (Julius Caesar)
It was Greek to me (Julius Caesar)
Itching palm (Julius Caesar)
Lean and hungry look (Julius Caesar)
Lie low (Much Ado about Nothing)
Live long day (Julius Caesar)
Shakespeare’s Language
• Iamb: an unstressed syllable followed by a
stressed syllable.
– I do not like green eggs and ham.
I do not like them, Sam-I-am.
I do not like them in a box.
I do not like them with a fox.
I will not eat them here or there.
I will not eat them anywhere.
• Iambic pentameter: a line of verse with five
“feet”: five pairs of unstressed and stressed
syllables in a row.
• Blank verse: lines of iambic pentameter that
do not rhyme
– He was my friend, faithful and just to me.
But Brutus says he was ambitious,
And Brutus is an honourable man.
• Antiquated word forms
– When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept.
• Reversed word order
– I thrice presented him a kingly crown,
Which he did thrice refuse. Was this ambition?
• Figurative language
– I could be well moved if I were as you.
If I could pray to move, prayers would move me.
But I am constant as the Northern Star,
Of whose true fixed and resting quality
There is no fellow in the firmament.
The skies are painted with unnumbered sparks;
They are all fire, and every one doth shine;
But there’s but one in all doth hold his place.
Acts I-II
• Iambic pentameter: a line of verse with five “feet”: five
pairs of unstressed and stressed syllables in a row.
• Soliloquy: a long speech by a character alone onstage
who reveals his thoughts and emotions to the
audience. (Act 2 Scene 1 Lines 10-36, Brutus)
• Aside: dialogue intended for the audience or specific
characters that is not heard by the other characters
onstage.
• Verbal irony: what is said is the opposite of what is
meant. (Act I Scene 2 Line 128, Cassius)
Act III
• Dramatic irony: The audience's or reader's
knowledge of events or individuals surpasses
that of the characters. (Act 3 Scene 1 p. 37,
Julius Caesar)
• Monologue: a speech by one character given
to other characters and/or the audience (Act 3
Scene 2 p. 46-51 Mark Antony)
Acts IV-V
• Internal conflict (self vs. self): a struggle
within a character between two opposing
thoughts or possible courses of action
• External conflict: a struggle between a
character and an outside force
– Between characters (self vs. others)
– Between groups (self vs. society)
– Between a character and nature or the
supernatural (self vs. nature)
• Tragedy: Tragedy arouses fear and pity in the audience
and also may convey a sense of the nobility of the
human spirit, even in the midst of suffering.
• Tragic hero: The tragic hero is involved in a struggle
that ends in disaster. This tragic hero is always a
person of high rank who inevitably comes to ruin.
• Tragic flaw: an error in judgment made by the tragic
hero that ultimately leads to his downfall
• Character foil: a character who contrasts with the hero
in order to highlight qualities of the hero