Background for William Shakespeare and Julius Caesar

Transcription

1 Background for William Shakespeare and Julius Caesar

2 The works of William Shakespeare are among the greatest achievements of the Renaissance. Developments in science and exploration during the Renaissance upset the religious and political order of the day.

3 Renaissance. Astronomers such as Copernicus and Galileo questioned long- held believers to prove that the world was round, and that it circled the sun. Columbus and Magellan braved the seas to explore new lands and seek new trade routes. Martin Luther and John Calvin challenged the authority of the Roman Catholic Church and spurred the Protestant Reformation

4 Renaissance Writers. Such as Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare wrote insightfully about complex human personalities in fiction and drama

5 The Renaissance in England Was slow coming because of a civil war between two great families or houses, claiming the English throne: the House of York and the House of Lancaster The conflict ended in 1485 when Henry Tudor of the House of Lancaster took the throne as King Henry VII. He was succeeded by Henry the VIII, whose reign was filled with turmoil.

6 Henry the VIII (8 th ) Sought a divorce from the Spanish Princess, Catherine of Aragon, so that he could remarry and have a son. He was convinced only a male was strong enough to hold the throne. The Pope refused to grant the divorce. Henry renounced the Roman Catholic Church and made England a Protestant nation.

7 Henry s second marriage To a woman named Anne Boleyn, produced a daughter, not a son, named Elizabeth. When Elizabeth took the throne, she proved to be one of the strongest monarchs that England has ever known.

8 The reign of Elizabeth I Is often seen as the golden age in English History. Elizabeth brought political and economic stability to the county, thus allowing commerce and culture to thrive. Literature thrived, peaking with the plays of William Shakespeare.

9 THEATRE in Elizabethan England Elizabethan audiences included all levels of society, from the groundlings who paid a penny entrance fee, to the nobility. During the Middle Ages, simple religious plays were performed at Inns. In early Elizabethan times, acting companies still traveled the countryside to perform their plays.

10 Theatre continued The best theatre companies acquired noble patrons, or sponsors, who then invited the troupes to perform in their homes At the same time, Elizabethan dramatists began to use the tragedies and comedies of ancient Greece and Rome as models for their plays. By the end of the 1th century, many talented playwrights had emerged, included of course, William Shakespeare.

11 England s first theatre The first public theatre opened in 1576 Known as The Theatre Built by an actor named James Burbage Built outside London city walls in an area called Shoreditch Some of Shakespeare s earliest plays were first performed here, including The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet

12 When the lease expired Richard Burbage (son of James Burbage) moved the company to Southwark, just across the River Thames. Burbage built a bigger and better theatre It opened in 1599 and was called the Globe. Under that name, it would become the most famous theater in the history of the English stage, for many of Shakespeare s plays were first performed there.

13 About the theater Was either round or octagonal, with a central stage open to the sky The stage opened to a pit, where theater goes called groundlings would pay just a penny to stand and watch the play There were galleries, where those who paid more could watch the play under shelter from the weather

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19 Staging the play Actors entered and left the stage from doors at stage level The stage also had a trap door through which mysterious characters, such as ghosts or witches, could disappear suddenly. No artificial light was used, so plays were held in the afternoon. No scenery, instead the setting was communicated through dialogue Special effects were simple, and scene changes were rapid Productions lasted about 2 hours Women were not allowed to act, so younger men or boys often played the female roles (women were allowed beginning in 1660) Few scene changes but elaborate costumes

20 The Blackfriars In 1609, Shakespeare s acting company began staging plays in the Blackfriars Theater as well the Globe. Located in London Indoor space with no open area Relied entirely on wealthier people One of England s first theaters to use artificial lighting, which allowed for nighttime performances.

21 The life of... William Shakespeare

22 Shakespeare s plays and poetry are regarded as some of the finest works ever written in English 4 centuries after his death, his plays are still read and performed every single day

23 Stratford-upon-Avon Born to Mary Arden and John on April 23, 1564 and died on April 23, 1616 Don t know actual birthday, we just assume. Baptized April 26 at Holy Trinity Church in Stratford. He grew up in Stratford- upon- Avon, about 100 miles northwest of London He was one of 8 children In 1582, he married Anne Hathway (he was 18, she was 26) and with her had 3 children, including a set of twins 1583 Susanna 1585 Judith(girl) and Hamnet (boy)

24 The Man His history goes blank from 1585 to 1592 By 1592 had moved to London and started off as an actor Robert Greene note pg 763 in lit book By 1594 was the principal playwright of the Lord Chamberlain s Men, the Burbages acting company. King James took over patronage of the company and called it The King s Men

25 His early works include: The Taming of the Shrew (romantic comedy) and Romeo and Juliet (romantic tragedy) He wrote sonnets, narrative poems, songs, and plays He wrote 37 plays and 154 sonnets Also wrote parts of another play, so # of plays is sometimes listed as 38

26 Plays were not routinely published after productions as they generally are now Plays became the property of the theatre performing them, and theatres were not eager to have rival companies perform them

27 His plays He wrote four kinds of plays: Tragedies Histories Romances Comedies

28 7 characteristics of a tragedy It is serious, but uplifting The reader can feel the tension Evil is center stage and seems to win The main character cannot tell the difference between reality and illusion That failure to see clearly is a death matter Tension between people causes death It attempts to explain love and what it feels like to be human

29 Ways to better understand Shakespeare Try to imagine the scene on stage Keep track of the characters by referring to the character list Pay attention to the words at the bottom of the page called annotations Read it out loud Don t try to understand every word

30 Julius Caesar The Play: The results of violence

31 Assassination The murder of a public figure is an act that can take place in a split second yet change the course of history What are some political assassinations that you know of? JC is a play about the assassination of a Roman general and dictator Dictator = tyrant, but the word originally referred to any leader who was given supreme authority by the Roman Senate on a temporary basis in times of emergency

32 Shakespeare drew his material from The Parallel Lives, written by Plutarch Greek and Roman history and culture had a great appeal from the English of the Elizabethan Age. They tended to see their own age mirrored in those great ancient civilizations

33 Rome in Caesar s Day The Roman world in Caesar s time was continually at war In the U.S. today, who are the generals of the military ultimately responsible to? 2,000 years ago in Rome, generals had enormous individual power (They basically did whatever they wanted) Sometimes these generals turned on one another because they were battling for.

34 POWER!!! A battle for power is what happened when the generals Caesar and Pompey clashed in the civil war that began in 49 B.C. The two generals (along with Crassus) brought order to a weakened gov t by forming the First Triumvirate (a 3 man gov t) Caesar was eager for even more POWER and he realized he could only gain more power through conquests and money

35 Caesar and Power For 8 years he roamed Europe, subjugating France, Belgium, and parts of Holland, Germany, and Switzerland He amasses huge sums of money which he sent back to Rome to gain favor with the people While Caesar considered himself a defender of the people, he really only gained support and power through bribes and handouts

36 Meanwhile, Pompey (jealous of Caesar) threw his weight behind the Senate, which was wary of Caesar and his actions Caesar refused the Senate s order to give up his command and become a private citizen Modern day senate vs leader? Instead, Caesar marched his army on Rome, and chased Pompey all the way to Egypt where he was murdered before Caesar could capture him

37 Caesar fell in love with Cleopatra and established her on the throne of Egypt under his protection When he returned to Rome, he was named dictator for 10 years He saw that his supporters became senators His desire for power became obsessive He had a bust made of himself Was named dictator for life

38 No love for Caesar??? While the common people loved Caesar, a number of Roman citizens found his AMBITION deplorable The Romans had done away with kings and had set up a republican gov t they did not like the idea of another king As his arrogance and drive for power became unbearable to certain senators, they made plans to assassinate him on March 15, 44 B.C.

39 Shakespeare s play opens a month before the murder.