DATES
We have three ways to date a Shakespeare’s play:
1. EXTERNAL EVIDENCE: a clear mention or reference to a particular play—> it shows
that the play was written before a certain date
2. INTERNAL EVIDENCE: the play itself includes a reference to an event.
3. STYLISTIC EVIDENCE: the change of the author’s style is so noticeable that we can
place a play in a precise period of its evolution.
STAGE DIRECTIONS
most of the stage directions (istruzioni della sceneggiatura) were added by editors especially
in the 18th century and they’re indirect.
Originally it was the text itself that provided (forniva)information about atmosphere, feeling
of a scene and the way characters entered the stage and left it.
CHARACTERS
the author chose characters from different social classes:
- HIERARCHY (king, nobles) forms the background of every play
- NURSES and RUSTICS
- SERVANTS
Really important were FAMILY TIES (legami familiari) that often occur in contrasting form
suggesting rivalry or a conflict between the generations.
There are often SYMMETRIES: three lords, two lovers, two families…
PROGRESSION
the progress of a play is linked to a GRADUAL CLARIFICATION OF THINGS. Themes are
suggested and made clear much later. Opinions and assumptions are formed and even
though they seem to be useless, they turn out to be decisive. There is often a FREQUENT
CONTRAST:
- public scene-private scene
- scene with a few characters- scene with many characters
the author sometimes leaves questions unanswered so that we can continue to think about
the puzzle after the end of the play
DESCRIPTIVE LANGUAGE
the plays were performed in daylight with little to no scenery so the author had to evoke
places using a descriptive language. He used a wide variety of rhetorical figures
(SIMILES,METAPHORS AND IMAGE CLUSTERS (raggruppamenti di similitudini e
metafore)).
Some plays have characteristic IMAGE MOTIFS such as light and dark in Romeo and Julieti
and blood in Macbeth.
STYLE
Shakespeare's style is a mix of VERSE and PROSE to show the social status of his
characters (characters form the lower classes spoke in prose while nobles used the iambic
pentameter). He also played a lot with the RHYTHM to make his characters’ speeches more
effective.
