2012-3-22 1
Chapter V
The English Renaissance
(1550-1642)
2012-3-22 2 1564-1616
Sh
ake
spe
are
’s L
ife
莎
士
比
亚
生
平
Sh
ake
spe
are
’s
Wr
itin
g C
are
er
莎
士
比
亚
写
作
生
涯
的
四
个
阶
段
Birthplace
出生地 The Royal Theatre 皇 家 剧 院
2012-3-22 3
The birthplace of Shakespeare at Stratford
2012-3-22 4
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
2012-3-22 5
1,Historical background
? The Elizabeth Age (1558-1603),England enjoyed
peaceful development under the rule of Queen
Elizabeth I,who maintained a balance of between the
Protestants and the Catholics,
? In 1588,English navy defeated the Spanish Armada,
which accelerated the awakening English people’s
national consciousness;
2012-3-22 6
? The enclosure movement,Many peasants were
forced to leave the land and settled down in towns,
The two opposite classes came into being,the
capitalist and the laboring class,
? Reformation,It was a return to pure Christianity--
cleansing the church of all the corruption,English
Reformation was triggered by Henry VIII’s
divorce and remarrying,
2012-3-22 7
2,Renaissance and Humanism,
? (1) Renaissance,a French word,meaning
“rebirth”,The art and science of ancient Greece
and Rome were being rediscovered after long
years of neglect,
? (2) English Renaissance had two impulses—
humanist reverence for the classics and English
pride and sense of national identity,
? (3) Humanism emphasized the dignity and
potential of the individual and the worth of life in
this world,
2012-3-22 8
3,The flourishing of drama,
? The reason for the flourishing of drama;
? The structure of the Elizabethan theatre;
?,The University Wits”,Robert Greene;
Thomas Kyd; Christopher Marlowe,They
were the predecessors to Shakespeare,
? Christopher Marlowe,The Tragic History
of Doctor Faustus
2012-3-22 9
4,William Shakespeare (1564-1616),
? Life,
? 1564,Born in Stratford-on-Avon,
? Ca,1588-1592,in London as actor and
playwright;
? Ca,1592-98,devotes himself mainly to chronicle
histories and comedies;
? Ca,1601-1609,period of the greatest tragedies
and romantic comedies
? Ca,1610,retires to Stratford;
? 1616,died,
2012-3-22 10
4.1 Shakespeare’s Sonnets,
– Sonnet,A fixed form of lyric poetry that
consist of fourteen lines,usually written in
iambic pentameter,There are two basic types
of sonnets,the Italian and the English Sonnet,
?
2012-3-22 11
? Shakespeare’s sonnets,Shakespeare wrote
154 sonnets,The first group was addressed
to a Mr,W,H,The second group was
addressed to a Dark Lady,
? Shakespeare’s sequence suggests a story,
Certain motifs are evident,
?
2012-3-22 12
?,Sonnet 18”,the immortality of Art;
?,Sonnet 29”,eulogy of friendship;
?,Sonnet 66”,criticizing social injustice,
2012-3-22 13
Shakespeare wrote 37 plays in all,His writing career
can be roughly divided into four stages,
? 1,1592-1594,a period of experimentation,
(The Comedy of Errors,The Taming of the Shrew)
? 2,1595-1600,period of rapid growth and development
(Middle Summer Night’s Dream,Romeo and Juliet,As
You Like It )
? 3,1601-1608,period of gloom and depression,(Hamlet,
King Lear,Othello,Macbeth)
? 4,1608-1612,restored serenity,a period of calm (The
Winter’s Tale,The Tempest )
4.2 Shakespeare’s Plays,
2012-3-22 14
4.2.1 Hamlet
? (1) Hamlet,It supports a massive variety of
interpretations and understandings; It reflects the nature of
humanity in the universe; the play is about the relationship
in human life between thought and action,
? (2) Hamlet’s "tragic flaw”,the imbalance between his
active and passive natures; the moral question of suicide in
a malevolent universe; the question of Hamlet's sanity
? (3),To be or not to be” soliloquy,It's human nature to
feel cowardly and ineffective when you're unable (or too
smart) to take decisive (or rash) action,
2012-3-22 15
4.2.2 Romeo and Juliet,
? Shakespeare’s earliest success in tragedy;
? Setting,Verona,a city in Italy;
? Two families in feud,Montague,Capulet
? Main characters,Romeo,Juliet,Friar Laurence
? Romeo sees Juliet at the Capulet’s ball,falls in
love with her and stands beneath her balcony,
? Despite the family feud,a pair of innocent lovers
express their love for each other,
? Butterfly Lovers is often considered as A Chinese
Version of Romeo and Juliet, Make a
comparative study of the two,
Chapter V
The English Renaissance
(1550-1642)
2012-3-22 2 1564-1616
Sh
ake
spe
are
’s L
ife
莎
士
比
亚
生
平
Sh
ake
spe
are
’s
Wr
itin
g C
are
er
莎
士
比
亚
写
作
生
涯
的
四
个
阶
段
Birthplace
出生地 The Royal Theatre 皇 家 剧 院
2012-3-22 3
The birthplace of Shakespeare at Stratford
2012-3-22 4
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
2012-3-22 5
1,Historical background
? The Elizabeth Age (1558-1603),England enjoyed
peaceful development under the rule of Queen
Elizabeth I,who maintained a balance of between the
Protestants and the Catholics,
? In 1588,English navy defeated the Spanish Armada,
which accelerated the awakening English people’s
national consciousness;
2012-3-22 6
? The enclosure movement,Many peasants were
forced to leave the land and settled down in towns,
The two opposite classes came into being,the
capitalist and the laboring class,
? Reformation,It was a return to pure Christianity--
cleansing the church of all the corruption,English
Reformation was triggered by Henry VIII’s
divorce and remarrying,
2012-3-22 7
2,Renaissance and Humanism,
? (1) Renaissance,a French word,meaning
“rebirth”,The art and science of ancient Greece
and Rome were being rediscovered after long
years of neglect,
? (2) English Renaissance had two impulses—
humanist reverence for the classics and English
pride and sense of national identity,
? (3) Humanism emphasized the dignity and
potential of the individual and the worth of life in
this world,
2012-3-22 8
3,The flourishing of drama,
? The reason for the flourishing of drama;
? The structure of the Elizabethan theatre;
?,The University Wits”,Robert Greene;
Thomas Kyd; Christopher Marlowe,They
were the predecessors to Shakespeare,
? Christopher Marlowe,The Tragic History
of Doctor Faustus
2012-3-22 9
4,William Shakespeare (1564-1616),
? Life,
? 1564,Born in Stratford-on-Avon,
? Ca,1588-1592,in London as actor and
playwright;
? Ca,1592-98,devotes himself mainly to chronicle
histories and comedies;
? Ca,1601-1609,period of the greatest tragedies
and romantic comedies
? Ca,1610,retires to Stratford;
? 1616,died,
2012-3-22 10
4.1 Shakespeare’s Sonnets,
– Sonnet,A fixed form of lyric poetry that
consist of fourteen lines,usually written in
iambic pentameter,There are two basic types
of sonnets,the Italian and the English Sonnet,
?
2012-3-22 11
? Shakespeare’s sonnets,Shakespeare wrote
154 sonnets,The first group was addressed
to a Mr,W,H,The second group was
addressed to a Dark Lady,
? Shakespeare’s sequence suggests a story,
Certain motifs are evident,
?
2012-3-22 12
?,Sonnet 18”,the immortality of Art;
?,Sonnet 29”,eulogy of friendship;
?,Sonnet 66”,criticizing social injustice,
2012-3-22 13
Shakespeare wrote 37 plays in all,His writing career
can be roughly divided into four stages,
? 1,1592-1594,a period of experimentation,
(The Comedy of Errors,The Taming of the Shrew)
? 2,1595-1600,period of rapid growth and development
(Middle Summer Night’s Dream,Romeo and Juliet,As
You Like It )
? 3,1601-1608,period of gloom and depression,(Hamlet,
King Lear,Othello,Macbeth)
? 4,1608-1612,restored serenity,a period of calm (The
Winter’s Tale,The Tempest )
4.2 Shakespeare’s Plays,
2012-3-22 14
4.2.1 Hamlet
? (1) Hamlet,It supports a massive variety of
interpretations and understandings; It reflects the nature of
humanity in the universe; the play is about the relationship
in human life between thought and action,
? (2) Hamlet’s "tragic flaw”,the imbalance between his
active and passive natures; the moral question of suicide in
a malevolent universe; the question of Hamlet's sanity
? (3),To be or not to be” soliloquy,It's human nature to
feel cowardly and ineffective when you're unable (or too
smart) to take decisive (or rash) action,
2012-3-22 15
4.2.2 Romeo and Juliet,
? Shakespeare’s earliest success in tragedy;
? Setting,Verona,a city in Italy;
? Two families in feud,Montague,Capulet
? Main characters,Romeo,Juliet,Friar Laurence
? Romeo sees Juliet at the Capulet’s ball,falls in
love with her and stands beneath her balcony,
? Despite the family feud,a pair of innocent lovers
express their love for each other,
? Butterfly Lovers is often considered as A Chinese
Version of Romeo and Juliet, Make a
comparative study of the two,
