elizabethan shakes-rj2

-Elizabethan Era--Shakespeare-

-Romeo and Juliet-

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Elizabethan England

• Known as the English Renaissance (rebirth)• England was ruled by Queen Elizabeth I, daughter of King Henry VIII, from 1533-1603.

• The Queen had a love for theater and the arts, so during this period, the arts (poetry, plays, painting, etc.) flourished.

Life in the Elizabethan Era

Clothing/Fashion• Certain fabrics, textures, and colors of clothing indicated which social class a person was a part of.

• If a person dressed out of his/her social class, they would be punished because it was against the law.


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Marriages• A woman didn’t choose husband.

• Marriages were usually arranged by the families of the bride and the groom in order for both sides to benefit from one another.

• Once married, women had practically no rights; they could not work outside the home.


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Health• Many members of a family, often 4-8 people, would live in the same room.

• There was no sanitation, no indoor plumbing, no concept of germs or sterilization.

• The streets were filled with waste, both human and animal.

• There were two outbreaks of the Bubonic Plague


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Other interesting facts:• Only boys were allowed to attend formal education

• Going to the dentist was deadly• Punishment for crimes was VERY harsh

– Robbers would have limbs cut off by a saw, have fingers torn off, eyes dug out with hot pinchers, or death sentence

– Women gossips had sharp device put in mouth and, with any movement, the tongue would be cut or damaged

– For adultery, one would be attached to stool and continuously dunked under water until death


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• The lower class would bathe a couple times A YEAR, and the upper class bathed once every couple of weeks.

• Instead of toilet paper, clumps of grass or hay was used.

• Pale skin was considered beautiful, so they avoided the sun.

• A high forehead was a sign of intelligence, so many women would shave a portion on top of their head.


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William Shakespeare

• The most famous playwright of all time

• Born: 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon; Died: 1616

• At 18, he married 26 year-old Anne Hathaway

• Had 3 children, one of which died at 11


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William Shakespeare• 1585 – 1592 were considered his lost years. No one knew of his whereabouts.

• By 1592, he had become well known in London theatrical circles.

• In his lifetime Shakespeare wrote 37 plays


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William Shakespeare

Types of Plays• 1. comedy – usually ends with weddings.

• 2. history – a retelling of the history of England

• 3. tragedy – ends with deatha. a hero has a high positionb. hero falls (causes his own fall)


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The Globe Theatre• Famous theatre of the time

• Plays were held at 2:00 pm because there was no lighting in the theaters. And in good weather because it had no roof

• Few props were used; language focused on imagery


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The Globe Theatre

• Both poor and rich people alike attended plays in Shakespeare’s time.

• It had several levels of seating– Lowest level, or pit, was the cheapest; the “groundlings” stood here


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The Globe Theatre

• During this time, women were NOT allowed to be actors

• ALL roles were played by men/boys

• The character of Juliet would have been played by a boy


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The Globe Theatre

• In the 1590s, the theaters had to close a few times due to outbreaks of the Plague

• Germs were EASILY spread at the theaters


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Romeo and JulietWilliam Shakespeare


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“Star-crossed lovers”

http://www.fandango.com/romeoandjuliet1968movietrailer/104425

Romeo and Juliet


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•The play is set in Verona, Italy

Juliet’s Balcony• Although Juliet is a

fictional character, this actual building in Verona (built around the 13th century) is said to have been the home to a prominent family in Italy back then. The Capuleti was a family that actually existed, and some believe that Shakespeare based his fictional family, the Capulets, on them.

• Pictured here is Juliet’s balcony. Some couples even get married there today.


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Basics of Romeo and Juliet

• Written around 1595

• Involves two major families who hate each other

• Entire play takes place over 5 days

• Fate of Romeo and Juliet is given at the beginning of play


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Romeo and Juliet - Characters

The Montagues• Romeo - first loves

Rosaline; sees Juliet and forgets Rosaline.

• Lord Montague - Romeo’s father

• Lady Montague - Romeo’s mother

• Benvolio - nephew of Montague and friend of Romeo

• Balthasar - servant of Romeo

• Abram - servant of Montague; enjoys fighting with Capulets

The Capulets• Juliet – daughter of

Capulet; happy, innocent girl who loves Romeo

• Lord and Lady Capulet - Juliet’s parents

• Tybalt - Juliet’s cousin; likes to fight

• Nurse - Juliet’s nanny and friend

• Peter - servant to the Nurse

• Sampson and Gregory – servants


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Romeo and Juliet - Characters


The Others•Prince Escalus - ruler of Verona; tired of the fighting in the city and threatens anyone who disturbs the peace with death•Mercutio - relative of the prince and friend of Romeo (sides with Montague); serves as comic relief •Friar Laurence - a Franciscan priest; helps Romeo and Juliet; good man•Friar John - another Franciscan priest•Count Paris - a young nobleman and relative of the prince (sides with Capulet); Juliet’s parents arrange for her to marry him

Other Romeo and Juliet Stories?

http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/independent/twilight/trailer_md.html

http://www.traileraddict.com/trailer/titanic/trailer

http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/newline/the_notebook/large.html

Literary Terms

• Pun – a joke based on the use of a word or words that has multiple meanings.

Mercutio: Nay, gentle Romeo, we must have you dance.

Romeo: Not I, believe me. You have dancing shoes with nimble soles; I have a soul of lead.

• Oxymoron– a figure of speech that combines two contradicting terms

Juliet: Beautiful tyrant! Fiend angelical!

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Literary Terms

• Foil – a character who contrasts and balances another character in the story.– Benvolio is a peacemaker, while Tybalt is

confrontational.

• Catharsis – the point where a character accepts his/her fate.

• Dramatic Irony – the audience knows something that the character on stage is not aware of.

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Literary Terms

• Allusion – an indirect reference by casually mentioning something that is generally familiar like mythology, the Bible, history, etc.

Romeo: … She’ll not be hit

With Cupid’s arrow; she hath Dian’s wit.

• Tragic Flaw – a character’s trait that leads to his/her downfall or destruction.

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Literary Terms -- Speeches

• Soliloquy –long speech given by a character directly to the audience; reveals private, inner thoughts about the character.

• Monologue – long speech given by one character to other characters.

• Aside – a “mini soliloquy;” lines whispered to the audience or one other character (not meant to be heard by everyone on stage.

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Poetry Terms

• Meter – rhythmic structure of poetic lines.

• Couplet – a pair of rhyming lines with usually the same meter.

• Blank verse – unrhymed verse.

• Iambic pentameter – a line over verse with ten syllables that is accented on every second beat.

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elizabethan shakes-rj2

Education

all2 rights

italy c

somanywomenwouldshaveaportio

elizabethan england

basics of romeo

globe theatre duringthistime

globe theatre bothpoor

globe theatre inthe1590s