English Renaissance 1485-1660

Overview

• Middle Ages: focus on religion and after life

• Renaissance: focus on human life on earth

• Increased interest in art, literature, nature, and human impulses

• Emphasis on the individual and the development of human potential

Tudor Monarchy

• 1485-Henry VII takes throne

• 1509-Henry VIII takes throne– Renaissance Prince– Originally stayed loyal to Rome, but eventually

began the Protestant Reformation in England because he wanted a divorce from Catherine of Aragon

– 1534-declared himself Head of the Church of England, an Anglican church

Tudor Monarchy

• Henry VIII continued• Popular support for this religious move

• Those who did not support often paid with their lives

• Henry VIII had SIX WIVES!• Catherine of Aragon-1509 to 1533-divorced-one

daughter, Mary

• Anne Boleyn-1533 to 1536-executed for adultery, incest, and plotting to kill the king-daughter, Elizabeth

• Jane Seymour-1536 to 1537-died, only wife to be buried with the king-son, Edward VI

Tudor Monarchy

• Henry VIII wives continued

•Anne of Cleves-January 1540 to July 1540-divorced

•Kathryn Howard-1540 to 1542-executed, promiscuity and adultery

•Katherine Parr-1543-1547-widowed

Tudor Monarchy

• 1547-Edward VI– Nine years old when he took the throne– England becomes more truly Protestant– Publication of the Book of Common Prayer

• 1553-Mary I– Reintroduces Catholicism– Marries cousin Philip II of Spain– Persecution of Protestants; “Bloody Mary”

Tudor Monarchy

• 1558-Elizabeth I– Daughter of henry and Anne– Considered one of the best monarchs in English

history– Pomp and ceremony– Frugal– Middle of the road religiously– “Virgin Queen”…???– Dies in 1603-end of Tudor reign

Stuart Monarchy

• 1603-James VI of Scotland, James I of England– King James Bible

• 1625-Charles I– Divine rights of kings– Dismissed parliament– 1649-beheaded

Stuart Monarchy

• Civil War-Puritans/Royalists

• 1649-Oliver Cromwell head of Commonwealth

• Later “Lord Protector for Life”

• 1658-Cromwell dies, son inherits title

• 1660-Charles II returns from exile to restore monarchy

What does all this mean for literature?• Genres: lyric sonnet, poetic drama, masque

• Lyric sonnet: Specialized poems (14 lines) adhering to strict rhyme schemes and syllable rules. Very structured.

• Poetic drama: combination of play and poetry in which the character in the plays speak mostly in metrically structured verse

• Masque: fantastic court dramas with supernatural characters and outlandish costumes

English Renaissance Authors

• First in history to support themselves as writers

• Paid through three institutions: acting companies, universities, and the King’s/Queen’s court

Elizabethan Beliefs• Life in Elizabethan

England could be cruel and hard. The poor often went hungry, disease was widespread, medical remedies often felt more like tortures, and many women died in childbirth. But through their beliefs, people found ways of making sense of their existence.

Elizabethan Beliefs-Religion• People were, in general, much more

religious than people today.• Almost everyone believed in God and

expected to go to heaven or hell after death.

At this time, England was a Protestant country – it had broken away from the Catholic Church of Rome. This was part of the European movement called the Reformation, which began with attacks on corruption in the Catholic Church.

Elizabethan Beliefs• Chain of Being, cont.

Accepting one’s place in the chain was a duty that would be rewarded by God in heaven.

Disrupting the chain was thought to lead to chaos, but of course many people still did challenge their position in society.

Elizabethan Beliefs• The Chain of Being

A concept inherited from the Middle AgesAn attempt to give order, or “degree”, to the

vastness of creation.God created everything in a strict hierarchy, or

chain, that stretched from God himself down to the lowest things in existence.

Humans occupied a place in the chain below the angels but above animals, plants and stones. Some humans were higher in the chain than others.

Elizabethan Beliefs

• The Chain of Being, cont.The monarch was the highestNobles and churchmen belowGentlemenCommonersAll women were considered to be inferior

to men, with the obvious exception of Elizabeth I.

Elizabethan BeliefsElizabethan Beliefs• Myths and Magic

Fairies, magic, witches, spells and prophecies all formed part of their view of life.

Folklore and superstition were often as important to people as the official religious beliefs taught by the Church.

Elizabethan Beliefs

• Little and LargeThe human body was thought to be

a miniature representation of the universe as a whole – a microcosm.• Various parts of the body were linked to the planets and signs of the zodiac

Elizabethan Beliefs• Little and Large, cont.

The body was thought to contain four “humours” or fluids – black bile, phlegm, blood and choler.

• A person’s temperament depended on the way the humours were mixed.

• Most people were thought to have one humour that was more dominant than the others.

• Illnesses and mental disorders were blamed on an imbalance of the humours.

William Shakespeare• Birth celebrated as April 23, 1564

• Died April 23, 1616

• Married Anne Hathaway in 1582

– She was 8 years Bill’s senior

• Lapse from 1585-1592

Shakespeare’s Career• By 1592- actor and playwright

• 1594- charter member of Lord Chamberlain's Men

• 1603- Changed to King’s Men

• Retired in 1612

• Wrote 37 plays

• 154 Sonnets

Why is his work so popular?

• Shakespeare wrote about human nature and how people behave.

• Although his words can be hard to understand, his ideas are as relevant now as they were four centuries ago.

Shakespeare’s WorksShakespeare’s Works• No one knows exactly when each of his

works was written; there are approximate dates.

• Some experts have even said that “Shakespeare’s” plays are really the work of other writers.This may be because some people cannot

believe that Shakespeare, who came from an ordinary background, could have written such great works of literature.

Elizabethan Stage• The Globe (“Wooden O”)- Jan. 20,

1599• Caesar -Probably the first play to be

performed at The Globe• Sets would primarily be imagined by

the audience (heaven, stage, hell)• All actors male• 1613- Henry VIII, light fuse to

cannon, theatre burned down

Shakespeare’s Use of Language

• Meter: rhythm of speech organized into patterns called feet

• Blank Verse: unrhymed iambic pentameter

• Heroic Couplet: 2 lines of iambic pentameter that rhyme

Iambic Pentameter

• Consists of iambs (hence, the iambic part)– Iamb=a set of 2 syllables (a foot), the first being

unstressed (u) and the second being stressed (/)-opposite is trochaic

• Five iambs per line (the pentameter part)

• Therefore, there are 10 syllables in each line

• Usually, the more important words or parts of words are stressed

Tragedies

Imitation of a serious action which provokes pity and fear in the reader/viewer (catharsis=purge of emotions)

• Shakespeare’s most famous and popular playsRomeo and Juliet; Macbeth; Hamlet;

Othello; King Lear; Julius Caesar

Tragic Hero• Character usually of high birth who is

not totally good or totally bad. His downfall is brought about by harmatia (a character flaw) or error in judgment, causing the character to become more self aware or learn a lesson.

• Hubris-common character flaw of excessive pride

Doom and Destiny• Many people believed in fate, or destiny, and

in the power of the stars to foretell the future.

• Shakespeare uses the idea of fate or destiny to add excitement and anticipation to the tragediesUses a prophecy as a way of holding the

audience’s interest, because everyone wants to see if it will be fulfilled.

• 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

• King Duncan of Scotland– Murdered by cousin Macbeth

– Honest and good

• Malcolm & Donalbain– Sons of the King

– Malcolm is the eldest son

• Macbeth– Duncan’s most courageous general

– Ambition to become king corrupts him causing him to murder Duncan

• Banquo– General and Macbeth’s best friend– Suspects Macbeth in Duncan’s murder – An actual ancestor of King James I

• Lady Macbeth– As ambitious as her husband– A dark force behind his evil deeds

• Macduff– Scottish general, suspects Macbeth of

murdering the king– Macbeth has his family murdered– Swears vengeance

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

• MORE ON THAT LATER...

So what really happens?

• Good guy goes bad

• Guy wants power

• Married to a pushy control freak

• She wants power

• Kills people- LOTS of people

• Gets power

• Gets paranoid (a.k.a. goes crazy)

• Ticks off a lot of people

• Want more power! Kill! Kill!

• Gets what’s coming to him in the end

“Life’s but a walking shadow; a poor player, That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And is heard of no more: it is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.”

- Act V; s.5

Unlocking Themes in MacbethUnlocking Themes in Macbeth• Ambition can subvert

reason.

• When supernatural powers represent evil, they should be ignored.

• The natural order is disrupted by any upset in the proper order of human society.

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Unlocking Themes in MacbethUnlocking Themes in Macbeth• Appearances do not

always reflect reality.

• Despite prophecies of the future, people are responsible for their own actions.

• Attempts to control the future by overturning the natural order of society are futile.