LECTURE NOTES XI

RENAISSANCE LITERATURE IN ENGLAND [3]

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE [2]
Sources:
Primary Sources:
Shakespeare,W. Plays [individual] in The Arden Shakespeare Third Serie, gen. Eds .R.Proudfoot
and A.Thompson (ondon! Routledge, "#$%&
Shakespeare, W., Plays [individual] in the World's (lassi)s series, gen.ed.S.Wells (*+ford!
*,P&
Secondary Sources:
-augh, A., ed., A Literary History of England (ondon! Routledge, .egan Paul, "#/$&, pp. 0"#1
0%#2 03310/4
5ai)hes, 5., A Critical History of English Literature, vol.% (ondon! Se)ker and War6urg, "#7#&,
%/7134$
5a8, 9.S., 5a8, 9.S., A History of English Literature to Sixteen Sixty (5ou6leda8, "#73&, pp.
%::13%0
;let)her, R.<., A History of English Literature (-oston! -adger, %44: ["#"#]&, pp. "771":/
9ood8, W.=., ovett, R. 9., History of English Literature (>e? @ork! S)ri6ner, "#"$&, pp. "%/1
"/%
(ii) The Main Pei!" (#$%&'#(##)
(a) The great tragedies
Julius Caesar
Sour)es! >orthAs translation of Plutar)hAs The Lives of the Nole !recians and "omans
Themes!
1 tragi)al relation 6et?een personal moralit8 and politi)al effi)ien)8
1 sho?s Bho? a man )an 6e destro8ed 68 his o?n virtueB
1 ?ell arti)ulated pla8, in fluid 6lank verse
Hamlet
Sour)es! Sa+o Crammati)us, History of the #anes and ;. -elleforest, Histories tragi$ues%
the original <amlet [&r'<amlet] [,r! Cerman prefi+ for old, original& 1 lost pla8
Themes!
1 an old1fashioned revenge pla8 treated in a heroi) tradition
1 revenge is not going to restore either the lost ?orld or 6ring 6a)k health to a tainted so)iet8
1 it sho?s ho? moral sensitivit8 )an respond to a ?i)ked ?orld
ho? an idealist man )an fa)e realit8
ho? po?erful imagination ma8 6e
(thello
Sour)es! Dtalian novella <e)atommithi, ("070& 68 C. (inthio.
Themes!
1 it is less a stud8 in Eealous8 6ut a des)ription of the anguish that a 6eautiful and inno)ent 6eing
)an 6e guilt8 and de)eitful
1 the parado+ of evil ?hi)h is 6red out [ma8 originate in] of inno)en)e
)ing Lear
Sour)es! (elti) m8tholog8 and folk tradition
Themes!
1 most elemental and primeval of ShakespeareAs pla8s
1 sho?s ho? the road to true humilit8 passes through 6itter insight
1 it makes use of ar)het8pal images to produ)e a )osmi) vie? of individual traged8 and destin8
1 a )om6ination of ps8)hologi)al and s8m6oli) des)riptions
1 e+isten)e as determined 68 the )onfusion 6et?een
true and false visions
self1kno?ledge and self16lindness
1 the Fuestion of ?hat is natural and unnatural
1 the ;ool a)Fuires a different, tragi) ke8
1 ;oll8 is assimilated to revealing the truth and )ontri6utes to the tragi) dimension
1 sho?s a )on)ern for impersonal Eusti)e ! B>one does offend none2 all are guilt8 and in need not
of Eusti)e 6ut forgivenessB
*aceth
Sour)es! R. <olinshed! Chronicles of England and Scotland
Themes!
1 the destru)tion 6rought a6out 68 the appetite for po?er
1 a m8stiFue of the )ro?n, ?hi)h represents the a)hievement of the ultimate earthl8 am6ition the
false heroism that originates in the la)k of faith
1 the degree to ?hi)h po?er )an )orrupt and 6reed immoralit8
1 the main )hara)ters are not so mu)h damned as the8 are redu)ed to moral nothingness
1 9a)6eth! initiall8 a heroi) figure lo8al and 6rave 1 6e)omes an o6sessed nihilist
1 ad8 9a)6eth! a devoted ?ife 1 is driven 68 po?er to self1destru)tion, to the ina6ilit8 to )ontrol
her 6od8 and spirit
Antony and Cleo+atra
(also listed as a Roman pla8&
Sour)e! >orthAs Plutar)h! The Lives of nole !recians and "omans
Themes!
1 )ontrast 6et?een t?o ?orlds,
the Roman ?orld, marked 68 order, stru)ture, lo8alt8, reason
the Eastern magi) of Eg8pt, )hara)teriGed 68 disorder, 6etra8al, passion
)onfli)t 6et?een pu6li) dut8 and private passion
1 (leopatra! one of S.As most )omple+ female )hara)ters! Fueenl8, 6eautiful, skilful,
no6le, generous, 6ut also domineering, h8steri)al, Eealous, )o?ard,
1 Anton8! heroi), generous, no6le, lo8al to his friends, 6ut selfish and immature
(b) The problem plays
1 are neither )omedies nor tragedies
1 have no )heerfulness 6ut sho? human 6ehaviour as gross and despi)a6le
Timon of Athens
Themes!
1 human ingratitude and h8po)ris8
1 man living in a ?orld of 6easts
Troilus and Cressida
Themes!
1 a dou6le perspe)tive! the )onte+t of the moment and the larger )onte+t of past and future
1 the English (Renaissan)e& vision of the Tro8 tradition
1 the Creek represent the realisti), uns)rupulous modern man (,l8sses&
1 the TroEans represent the old1fashioned, traditional ?orld (<e)tor&
1 the degradation of )hivalr8 and the muddled notions of honour
1 sho?s ho? ideal passion is mi+ed ?ith )asual faithlessness
All,s -ell That Ends -ell
Theme!
1 a me)hani)al handling of folk theme ?hi)h )om6ines t?o topi)s! the healing of a king and
the ?ife ?ho ?ins 6a)k her hus6and 68 an astute tri)k
*easure for *easure
Theme!
1 the older ruler ?ho offers to save a girlAs relative (6rother, father, hus6and& on )ondition she
8ields to him and after?ards 6reaks his promise
1 the re)urrent idea that all are guilt8 and that mer)8 not Eusti)e is reFuired
Coriolanus
(6elongs to the Roman pla8s&
Themes!
1 tragi) impli)ation of private virtue
1 the effe)ts of la)k of self1kno?ledge, arrogan)e, la)k of imagination, and the ina6ilit8 to handle
people
(iii) The La)e Pei!" (#$%%'#(#3)
1 The "omance +lays .tragicomedies/
()alled Hroman)esI 68 the poet S.T.(oleridge ["$
th
1"#
th
)], ?ho )laimed the8 possessed a
romanti) element& !
Pericles
Cymeline
The -inter,s Tale
The Tem+est
Sour)es! m8tholog8, folklore, and magi)
Themes!
1 ne? faith in the essential goodness of man
1 remoteness of setting 1 a s8m6oli) ?orld ?here inno)en)e )an triumph and the past )an 6e
undone through mira)ulous redemption
1 the re)over8 of a lost )hild
1 the signifi)an)e of inno)en)e and virginit8
1 the importan)e of moral patterns
1 masFues J allegori)al performan)es meant to underline )ertain moral dimensions
Shakespeare's ?ork!
5ue to the po?er ?ith ?hi)h it e+presses its epo)h and to the ?a8 it Fuestions essential aspe)ts of
human 6eing, S's ?ork has made a maEor )ontri6ution to the literature of all ages.
C*TEXTS
W.Shakespeare, <amlet [D,ii]
* that this too too solid flesh ?ould melt,
Tha? and resolve itself into a de?, "34
*r that the Everlasting had not fi+ed
<is )anon Against self1slaughter. * Cod, Cod,
<o? ?ear8, stale, flat and unprofita6le
Seem to me all the uses of this ?orld K
;ie onAt, ah fie, Atis an un?eeded garden "30
That gro?s to seed, things rank and gross in nature
Possess it merel8. That it should )ome to thisK
-ut t?o months dead 1 na8 not so mu)h, not t?o 1
So e+)ellent a king, that ?as to this
<8perion to a sat8r, so loving to m8 mother "/4
That he might not 6eteem the ?inds of heaven
=isit her fa)e too roughl8 1 heaven and earth,
9ust D remem6erL ?h8, she ?ould hang on him
As if in)rease of appetite had gro?n
-8 ?hat it fed on, and 8et ?ithin a month J "/0
et me not think onAt2 frailt8, th8 name is ?oman 1
A little month, or ere those shoes ?ere old
With ?hi)h she follo?ed m8 poor fatherAs 6od8
ike >io6e, all tears, ?h8 she, even she 1
* Cod, a 6east that ?ants dis)ourse of reason "04
Would have mourned longer 1 married ?ith m8 un)le,
98 fatherAs 6rother, 6ut no more like m8 father
Than D to <er)ules 1 ?ithin a month,
Ere 8et the salt of most unrighteous tears
<ad left the flushing in her galled e8es, "00
She married. *h most ?i)ked speed, to post
With su)h de+terit8 to in)estuous sheets.
Dt is not, nor it )annot )ome to good.
-ut 6reak, m8 heart, for D must hold m8 tongue.
Sour)e!
W.Shakespeare, Hamlet, ed. Ph.Ed?ards ((am6ridge! (,P, %443&