WINTERS TALE

Pastoral
Tradtion
William Shakespeare
‘PASTORAL’-
"Pastoral" (Latin for "shepherd") refers to a literary work

dealing with shepherds and rustic life.It presents an

idealized rather than realistic view of rustic life.

Shakespeare’s
intentions
DRAWING A CONTRAST BETWEEN THE

INNOCENCE AND SERENITY OF A SIMPLE LIFE

AND THE MISERY AND CORRUPTION OF CITY

AND ESPECIALLY COURT LIFE.NATURALNESS

AND INNOCENCE IN CONTRAST TO THE

CORRUPTION AND ARTIFICIALITY OF CITY AND

COURT.THE CHARACTERS IN PASTORAL POETRY

ARE OFTEN USED AS VEHICLES FOR THE

EXPRESSION OF THE AUTHOR’S MORAL, SOCIAL,

OR LITERARY VIEWS.
WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF PASTORAL
POETRY
Renaissance poets expanded the pastoral mode to include the romance

and drama.

Pastoral dramas first appeared in the 15th and 16th centuries and pastoral

romance novels during the 16th and 17th centuries.The pastoral drama or

poem or romance depicted life far from the city in a countryside that was

both idyllic and ideal. The shepherds and shepherdesses in a pastoral

poem lived an almost perfect existence

In pastoral narratives, city dwellers retreat to the countryside, which turns

into a "fantasy paradise" where shepherds spend their time composing

poems to their sweethearts.

PURPOSE OF PASTORAL
POETRY

love and seduction

the value of poetry

death and mourning;the corruption of the city or

court vs. the "purity" of idealized country

life;politics (generally treated satirically: the

"shepherds" critique society or easily identifiable

political figures).
IN THE WINTER'S TALE SHAKESPEARE SHOWS US BOTH

THE REALISTIC AND THE IDEALISTIC:

Florizel, a prince, dresses up as a shepherd, and is ‘obscur'd / With a

swain's wearing', taking the name Doricles – the sort of name given to

shepherds in pastoral poetry

But he moves amongst real shepherds who are celebrating getting

the money for the wool of their flocks.

COUNTRYSIDE AS A PLACE OF ESCAPE

From a biblical perspective of the countryside being sustaining and

associated with innocence, whilst urban life was sophisticated and full of

temptation, arose the literary tradition of the pastoral.

In the love poetry of Song of Songs, the countryside is a beautiful, fruitful

place for the couple to be together Song of Songs 7:11-12. Psalm 23,

attributed to David (himself a shepherd in his youth), evokes a pastoral

scene as a place of rest, refreshment and encounter with God Psalms

23:1-3. In the New Testament Jesus likewise sought out solitary places to

pray and be alone with God Luke 5:16.

 Links

SHORT ESSAY
INTERPRETATION
https://iamthewalrus2017.wordpress.com/2019
https://works.swarthmore.edu/cgi/viewconten
/02/04/court-and-pastoral-in-the-winters-
t.cgi?article=1041&context=fac-english-lit
tale/

READING
https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10
STUDY GUIDE
.1086/694438 http://shakespearestudyguide.com/WinterTale

.html

https://www.jstor.org/stable/2868172