Scarica Evolution of English Language, Literature & Theatre: Old English to 17th Century e più Dispense in PDF di Lingua Inglese solo su Docsity!
Capitolo 1- Historical context from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. The English language develops through three phases:
- Old English (700-1100) Old English was synthetic and with a grammar structure and a vocabulary similar to modern German
- Middle English (1100-1500); Middle English contained a predominance of French influences.
- Modern English (1500-). - presented some characteristics “You, your, yours” were “thou, thy, thine”; - the relative pronoun “which” also referred to a person; - the use of the auxiliary verb “do” in negative and interrogative forms was optional John Skelton (1460-1529) was an important Medieval English poet who contributed to the enrichment of the English language. wrote satirical poems such as Colin Clout, discusses material and spiritual life. known especially for his irregular and quick rhyming lines (called “skeltonic metre”) used Latin because he was also a priest and a tutor to Prince Henry, in the language of international communication. Thomas Malory: most important prose writer: wrote eight romances. story of King Arthur from his birth to his death. used a simple language. Tudor dynasty: , England achieved a new internal stability and political identity. Modern English language developed, was a detachment from the use of Latin and Catholic cultures, thanks to King Henry VIII’s declaration of independence from Papal authority , archbishop Thomas Cranmer played an important role , annulled Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon and he crowned Anne Boleyn queen in 1533. Edward VI, English liturgy and the Book of Common Prayer in all the churches , Mary Tudor, reconcile England and Rome by persecuting all those who were against Catholicism. For this reason she was also known as “Bloody Mary”. , Elizabeth I became queen (1558). a national Church (the Church of England, succeeded in making England a major European power , Virgin Queen married to England , her constant concern was Mary Stuart, the Catholic claimant to the English throne as a direct descendant of Henry VIII; Mary Stuart, son James VI was the one who united the crowns of England and Scotland , first king of the Stuart dynasty who governed England during most of the 17th century. Capitolo 2 – Early sixteenth century poetry The English language, a major development , The invention of printing, facilitated the circulation of European culture and English poetry , the new literary English language. Sonnet : Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey , “Songs and Sonnets” written by Henry Howard and of the “Tottel’s Miscellany”, which included 97 poems by Wyatt and 40 by Surrey. . “Tottel’s Miscellany” a model of poetry for lots of Elizabethan poets, structure and metric elements
Thomas Wyatt (1503-1542) had a good knowledge of the Italian poetic tradition, introduction of Petrarchanism in England ,Wyatt’s poems in two groups: Poems with shorts stanzas that talk about courtly love , Poems that introduced the sonnet form to English. Petrarch’s sonnets. Henry Howard Earl of Surrey, influenced by Wyatt , create sonnets smoother than Wyatt’s. translated Virgil’s Aeneid, the first to use the English blank verse (unrhyming lines), sonnets three quatrains, alternate rhyming and a final rhyming couplet became the standard English model. George Puttenham: “The Art of English Poesy, comments on past authors such as Chaucer and Skelton Sir Philip Sidney; “The Defence of Poesy” defends poetry from Puritan attacks and underlines its ancient origins, citing Virgil and Dante. the first English book of poetry “Astrophil and Stella” consists in 108 sonnets 11 songs on the love relationship. William Shakespeare, sonnet 154 Sonnets - 1° group → 126 sonnets dedicated to the “fair youth”. Sonnets 1-17 are also about marriage; - 2° group → 26 sonnets dedicated to the “Dark Lady”; - 3° group → 2 sonnets that play with the erotic theme and are about Cupid. inspired by Petrarch’s sonnets. Dedicated to a mysterious Mr. W. H 14 line structure of three quatrains with alternate rhyming and a final rhyming couplet. 126 about time and mortality poetry can defeat time and death. wrote two narrative poems to Henry, Earl of Southampton. he wrote poems measuring himself against the standards set by his “rival” Christopher Marlowe. Capitolo 3 – Sixteenth century poetry: Edmund Spenser During the second half of the 16th century, English poetry is characterised by the sonnet, inspired to Petrarch, introduced by Wyatt and Surrey and further developed by Philip Sydney and William Shakespeare. Another important narrative like “The Faerie Queene” by Edmund Spencer, developed poetry by Shakespeare and Marlowe. greatest poet of the Elizabethan age: to Queen Elizabeth “The Faerie Queene” most famous work” is written in the stanza invented by Spenser, composed of eight lines of ten syllables and a ninth line of twelve syllables. Capitolo 4 – English humanism and the sixteenth century religious prose A close knowledge of Greek and Latin classics study of ancient Greek literature and philosophy introduced by William Grocyn and Thomas Linacre. Desiderius Erasmus: Platonic enthusiasm of the English humanists friends with Thomas More dedicated to him his most famous book: “Praise to Folly” against theologians. Erasmus and More different Erasmus believed that the world could be best improved by writing and education, while More thought that the world could be improved by engaging in political business and he thought that the highest duty of a man was to serve his king. Thomas More (1478-1535) born in London and studied at Oxford translated with his friend Erasmus a number of “Luciano’s Dialogues” wrote Utopia masterpiece most important contribution as a humanist written in Latin and translated into English. The first book of Utopia debates the classic dilemma of Humanism, whether to devote oneself to public affairs or to pursue philosophic wisdom. The second book of Utopia, instead, presents the tale of a traveller who describes his trip to the Island of Utopia, giving details of the laws and customs of its society. “The History of King Richard III”,antother masterpice
a scoundrel of low birth who faces a lot of adventures and misfortunes ,expression different social conditions and circumstances ,story is told with much spirit and wit, a lot of humour. Thomas Deloney: realistic prose fiction three tales the life of craftsmen: “Jack of Newbury” about the life of the clothworkers, “Thomas of Reading”, “The Gentle Craft, life of shoemakers. is very innovative and close to reality English explorations: expeditions of Sir Francis Drake , Tales of all these voyages were published during the century and were met with great popularity. Richard Hakluyt : a geographer and he devoted himself to collecting and publishing the accounts of English explorations. He wrote “The Principal Navigations, Voiages and Discoveries of the English Nation” talked about the most important expeditions Thomas Hariot : an important and talented mathematician and astronomer who went to Virginia and wrote a book in which he talks about that expedition. Walter Ralegh : most sophisticated author in this genre an explorer, a writer and one of Queen Elizabeth’s most talented courtiers. to her, “The Ocean to Cynthia”, “A Report of the Fight about the Isles of the Azores”, Ralegh tells with great simplicity the story of what actually happened in the defeat of the English fleet “Revenge” in a naval clash with the Spanish forces. “The Discovery of Guiana” simple account of his exciting adventures and they are told in pure and vigorous English. unfinished “The History of the World” (1607-1614), an ambitious prose work written in a rigorous style. the history of the Jews, the early Egyptian history and Greek mythology Capitolo 6 - The development of English theatre from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance religious dramas presented moralistic contents called morality plays conflict between Good and Evil fighting to conquer the soul of the protagonist. Other morality plays are: “The Castle of Perseverance”, “Wisdom”, “Mankind” and “Everyman”. The miracle plays and the morality plays were very popular and were also performed in the following century. John Skelton: three morality plays y his play “Magnificence” survived. a play dedicated to Henry VIII a benevolent ruler who is corrupted by bad counsellors, but restored by good ones. morality play ,moral problems, a more realistic way and with comical elements, In the Middle Ages the actors were called jesters and they played in the streets, Henry Medwall: The most ancient interlude is “Fulgens and Lucrece” a short dramatic play in two parts. In his play, Medwall combines romantic and comical elements. John Heywood.: first English playwright to make the interlude an independent dramatic form After the Tudor Reformation, plays became also a vehicle to discuss politics as well as religion. John Bale: used his plays as a vehicle for Protestant polemics and his most important play, King John, was the first English drama based on national history. Nicholas Udall,: considered the first English comedy, “Ralph Roister Doister”. George Gascoigne wrote “The Supposes” is a translation of Ludovico Ariosto’s “Suppositi”, about a student who, with the help of his servant, manages to win over the older generation and finally to get his young lady.
Seneca : tragedy “Gorboduc, or Ferrex and Porrex”. Senecan tragedies became popular at the time, criticised by Philip Sidney who thought those tragedies were too violent. Queen Elizabeth I established her power and control over the theatre, silencing the claims of the Corporations Of The City Of London to control plays and players: The earliest company of Elizabethan actors was “the Leicester’s Men” James Burbage, the leading actor. Thomas Kyd : is probably the author of “The Spanish Tragedy” themes of love, conspiracy, murder and revenge, and he adopted some elements of the Senecan tragedy. Christopher Marlowe : most impressive dramatist among the University Wits, and he was particularly skilled in the use of an eloquent and musical blank verse. His first successful play was “Tamburlaine the Great”, a tragedy in two parts presenting the story of a shepherd and his rise to power. Capitolo 7 - William Shakespeare Very little is known about Shakespeare’s life eldest son of John Shakespeare and Mary Arden born at Stratford Upon Avon attended the free grammar school. In 1582 he married Anne Hathaway and they had three children: Susannah, Hamnet and Judith. his name is mentioned in a pamphlet by Robert Greene. was a plague epidemic in London and the theatres were closed: produced many of his sonnets and his poems “Venus and Adonis” and “The Rape of Lucrece” dedicated to the Earl of Southampton. part of a theatre company known as the “Chamberlain’s Men”, Shakespeare did not simply “invent” his plots but took inspiration from various sources and he transformed them into a new artistic creation. Shakespeare’s artistic importance was officially acknowledged with the publication of his works in the First Folio, published by John Heminges and Henry Condell, actors and collaborators of Shakespeare. The volume contained 36 plays written by Shakespeare, they defined Shakespeare “a happy imitator of nature” and they praised him as one of the greatest dramatists of all times. Shakespeare reflected the complex reality of his age ,Shakespeare’s plays also propose a new ending, with no proper solutions and conclusions: the problems were left unsolved and this was an idea that only 20th century men could understand and accept Capitolo 8 – William Shakespeare’s Histories 1592 and 1599 Shakespeare wrote a series of plays about English kings about the nature of leadership, the value of nationalism and the duties of a king two groups of four, called tetralogies first tetralogy about Henry VI and Richard III; second Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V FIRST TETRALOGY: The play about Henry VI is divided into three parts. the quarrel between Gloucester and Winchester to control the infant-King Henry VI. Richard III is another play about Richard III who gets the crown thanks to his ambition and intelligence. Richard III is a tragedy, the drama of an evil soul who is totally isolated as a consequence of his uncontrollable thirst for power and violence. Once he becomes king, he has nothing left to do but to look into his own emptiness and loneliness SECOND TETRALOGY: Richard II is a play about Richard II who had unquestionable title to the throne, but he was a weak and indecisive king .Henry VIII talks about the execution of the Duke of Buckingham, the royal divorce, the coronation of Anne Boleyn as Queen of England and the final christening of Princess Elizabeth. Shakespeare’s histories are very important for their historical and political contents, but they are also very important in a theatrical perspective as they are characterised by a number of
The Merry Wives of Windsor: this play is defined as an “occasional play” because it was probably written by Shakespeare just to show his character Falstaff again, with whom the audience had fallen in love Much Ado About Nothing: from the title it seems a light comedy, but this play also offers a disturbing experience. A young woman, Hero, is wrongly accused of betrayal, and at her wedding she is publicly rejected by Claudio. Capitolo 11 – Shakespeare’s problem plays Shakespeare’s problem plays are: “Troilus and Cressida”, “All’s Well That Ends Well” and “Measure for Measure”, all written between 1600 and 1605. They have been called “dark” or “bitter” comedies and later “problem plays”, always avoiding the word “comedy”. TROILUS AND CRESSIDA This play focuses on love, faithfulness and honour, combining the public conflict (the war of Troy) with a private affair (the love story of Troilus and Cressida), and showing how in both plots treachery and dishonour prevail in a world in which the old values are lost. ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WELL The idea of a sick society is also fundamental in this play. The settings are all aristocratic: the court of the king of France, the court of the Countess of Roussillon and the court of the Duke of Florence. All these courts are struck by some kind of pestilence. MEASURE FOR MEASURE This play presents a number of disturbing aspects. The concepts of law and justice are central, as well as chastity and unlawful sexual behaviour. The main protagonist of this play is Duke Vincentio, who at the beginning of the play withdraws from Vienna because it has become necessary to re-establish the law against unruly sexual behaviour. Capitolo 12 – William Shakespeare’s Roman plays Roman State. Plutarch’s “Parallel lives” is the historical source for his Roman plays: “Julius Caesar”, “Antony and Cleopatra” and “Coriolanus” Roman history and creates new myths, presenting four characters in particular: Caesar, Brutus, Antony and Coriolanus, who are torn between their private and public roles. Cleopatra is a great queen and an intelligent political leader, but her human fragility makes her a woman in love. JULIUS CAESAR Julius Caesar is about the declining moments of the Roman Republic before the outbreak of the civil war which transformed it into an empire. It presents an open debate on political choices and forms of government. ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA Antony and Cleopatra represents a sort of continuation of Julius Caesar because it resumes the same political and historical themes. The major theme of this play is the power conflict within the Roman Empire, especially the clash between Rome and Egypt. Shakespeare also represents the sphere of love and passion between Antony and Cleopatra. CORIOLANUS The Tragedy of Coriolanus is based on the life of the legendary Roman general Caius Coriolanus, who leads the Romans to the victory against the Volscians and conquers the city of Corioli. Capitolo 13 – William Shakespeare’s Early Tragedies
TITUS ANDRONICUS “Titus Andronicus” was published in 1594. It’s a “revenge tragedy” and it has often been criticised as crude and immature, and there have been attempts to deny Shakespeare’s authority. Revenge tragedy had become popular in the late 1580’s after the great success of Kyd’s “The Spanish Tragedy”. ROMEO AND JULIET “The Most Excellent and Lamentable Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet”, was written a couple of years later and it echoes the poetic writing Shakespeare was producing at the time (sonnets and poems) and is characterised by the use of a lyrical language. The play opens with a Prologue in the form of a Shakespearean sonnet. Much of “Romeo and Juliet” is written in iambic pentameter; however, the most common form used is blank verse. Capitolo 1 4 – William Shakespeare’s Great Tragedies HAMLET revenge tragedy revenge of his father’s assassination also : the presence of a ghost, the “play within the play” and the final killing which leaves the stage covered with blood and corpses. a model for Shakespeare’s problem plays, because it focuses on the dialectic confrontation and the search of truth rather than on revenge itself. Hamlet’s tragedy is his confrontation with a mutable reality in a changing world where the old values are lost. Hamlet begins with the presentation of a political and military conflict between the reign of Denmark and the reign of Norway, because Hamlet (Prince of Denmark) killed the Prince of Norway’s father. the Prince of Norway decides to attack Poland rather than Denmark. internal psychological conflicts Hamlet: he has existential questions about men, life and death and there’s a debate within his own conscience. tragedy opens with a question – “Who’s there?” – and a lot of question marks are present in the text. The whole play is about the dualistic essence of life, structured on the basic oppositions “true/false” and “being/seeming”, and it focuses on intellect and man’s conscience. questions everything and doubts everything because he knows that it is impossible to distinguish true and false and seeming and essence, and that it is impossible to have any certainty. use of metatheatre, and in fact for this play the theatre is used as a mirror of life and as a stage for human conscience. There’s also an extended use of the “play within the play” device: in fact, Hamlet engages a group of actors to present the play “The Murder of Gonzago” at court. He does so in order to reveal the supposed murder of his father at the hands of the present king, Claudius, changes the name to “The Mousetrap”, changing the crucial part of the plot as well so that the murder is committed by pouring poison in the victim’s ears, just like Claudius did with Hamlet’s father. So this “play within the play” is a replay of what happened before and its purpose is clearly revenge because it allows the hero take his revenge by staging the villain’s original crime the Oedipus complex in the relationship between Hamlet and his mother Gertrude and between Hamlet and his uncle Claudius; the presence of a ghost as an element of revenge tragedy and as a projection of Hamlet’s conscience and old feudal values in contrast with Hamlet’s sceptical approach , the concept of the human body as a prison of the soul and life seen as a condemnation etc… The contrast between old and new values is represented in character of Fortinbras, who is always ready to act, and the character of Hamlet whose main concern is to understand and find answers to his questions. “Othello” also opens with the presentation of a political and military conflict between Venice and Turkey. Again, Shakespeare chooses to shift the focus of the tragedy onto the internal psychological conflicts that take place within the conscience of the hero. KING LEAR King Lear (1605-1606) is a tragedy about power and responsibilities of rulers. It opens with an irresponsible act by King Lear, who abdicates in favour of his daughters and, in doing so, he creates
his Declaration of Indulgence (1672), but Parliament forced him to withdraw it and it was during this crisis that the opposition between the Whig (reformers) and Tory (conservatives) started his brother was crowned king as James II , converted to Roman Catholicism and by putting Roman Catholics in charge of his army, he started a conflict with the Parliament. William of Orange was about to invade England with his army, but James refused the assistance of Louis XIV and when William arrived, many Protestant officers joined William and James had to escape to France. This is known as the Glorious Revolution, or Bloodless Revolution, because the King was deposed without a fight Capitolo 17 – Seventeenth century prose writing the English prose went trough an extraordinary development: different forms of non-fiction prose developed and in the first half of the century prose was plain and direct, characterised by brevity, energy and strength. At the same time, philosophical writings by Bacon, Hobbes and Locke also became very important and they privileged a form of empirical prose characterised by a plain and direct style. FRANCIS BACON : an English philosopher, belong to the fields of philosophy and literature a large philosophical work, the “Instauratio Magna” two parts, “The Advancement of Learning” and “Novum Organum”. two kinds of truth: a theological truth derived from God and a scientific truth based on the observation of nature. Bacon’s theories are further developed in another work, “The New Instrument” where Bacon underlines that the human mind is subject to limits which are classified in four categories or “Idols”: those originated by human nature itself, those determined by aspects connected to single individuals and circumstances, those caused by verbal confusions in men’s interaction and those created by popular superstitions. is the “Essays”, 58 short texts e inspired by Michel de Montaigne and they are written in a colloquial and conversational style dealing with society, politics, marriage, human nature. “The New Atlantis” about political philosophy in the form of a fable written in plain and expository style. ROBERT BURTON: “The Anatomy of Melancholy”, a treatise which explores the causes and effects of melancholy. It has been considered as the earliest work of English psychology, but it covers many areas, including science, history, and politics. first described various kinds of melancholy; the second proposes several cures and the third analyses the melancholy of love and of religion. Burton’s style is characterised by frequent digressions, his prose style is informal and he uses numerous quotations. THOMAS HOBBES: “The Leviathan” (1651) is a political-philosophical a huge sea monster whose strength is compared to the power of the State, necessary for the maintenance of law and order. Book four parts: the first defines the quality of human nature part two is devoted to the examination of the society; in part three Hobbes investigates the nature of the Commonwealth, while in part four he explores the main causes of ignorance. According to Hobbes, chaos and civil war could only be avoided by a strong central government and he thought that men are not naturally social beings who wants to be in a community, but they are selfish creatures seeking their own advantages. JOHN MILTON: political and religious issues of the time and also with social problems such as education and divorce. He was a devoted Puritan and in one of his works he criticized the Anglican Church: he believed that Scripture, and not the Church, was the true source of authority. He published “The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce” in which he claimed the right to dissolve a marriage if husband and wife were incompatible. Capitolo 18 – Late seventeenth century prose writing
Prose writing in the Restoration period (1660-1700) includes a variety of different genres, such as political, philosophical and religious writing; it also includes new prose genres such as the novel, diary writing and literary criticism, which developed greatly in the 18th and 19th century. JOHN LOCKE (PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING) : He is a major figure of philosophical writing and his “Essay Concerning Human Understanding” focuses on the importance of experience as the only source of knowledge, contributing in this way to the development of empiricism. JOHN BUNYAN (RELIGIOUS WRITING) : John Bunyan was an English writer and preacher and, in a way, he was the purest voice of Puritanism. He wrote an allegorical novel, “The Pilgrim’s Progress”, which was published in two parts. It has been considered one of the three greatest allegories in world literature, along with Spenser’s “The Faerie Queene” and Dante’s “Divina Commedia”. The style is very easy and direct. APHRA BEHN (FICTION) : Aphra Behn is the first fully professional woman writer in English leaving entirely by her own earnings. Her wit, eroticism and sense of female power were atypical and were considered scandalous at the time. She is also one of the most significant figures in the rise of the novel in the Restoration period. She began to write for the stage, but then she turned to prose fiction composing an epistolary novel. Behn’s most famous work is “Oroonoko”, a short novel about a noble slave and his tragic love. JOHN DRYDEN (LITERARY CRITICISM): John Dryden is considered the initiator of literary criticism and his essays are his main contribution to Restoration prose. DIARISTS The genre of the diary form also developed during the Restoration. author’s private thoughts in a simple and often telegraphic style John Evelyn’s Diary : of Evelyn’s travels on the Continent, and it also contains brilliant portraits of his contemporaries. His tone is almost always impersonal and his style is simple but accurate. Samuel Pepy’s Diary: in a secret code of his own invention, characterized by a mix of contractions and foreign words. This diary is more intimate and personal than Evelyn’s diary: indeed, Pepys is the main protagonist of his diary and is the central character of all the events. His style is simple, frank and natural, rich in detail and humor. Capitolo 19 – Jacobean poetry James I Stuart to the throne and in this period there were religious and political conflicts between the Crown and the Parliament, which increased during the reign of his son Charles I, whose anti-parliament and absolutist reign led to a general anti-royalist dissent. it ended with the execution of Charles I and the birth of a Republic (the Commonwealth). JOHN DONNE: the initiator of a poetical movement known as metaphysical poetry his poetry a more critical consideration of human experience. He uses a very cultivated language, full of puns, paradoxes and metaphors. Love is the major theme of his works, which can be grouped into love poems, including the works of his youth: “Songs and Sonnets” and “The Anniversaries: An Anatomy of the World” and “Of the Progress of the Soul”. “Songs and Sonnets” include 55 poems focusing on different love situations and the love-objects are numerous and never idealized
CITY COMEDY: THOMAS DEKKER ,Thomas Middleton and Philip Massinger, who created a new theatrical genre, the “City comedy”. Their plays present real life, unheroic characters and they provide a critical comment on religious hypocrisy. DOMESTIC TRAGEDY: THOMAS HEYWOOD “A Woman Killed with Kindness” a professional dramatist who produced a large number of plays, many of which are lost. REVENGE TRAGEDY: TOURNEUR, MARSTON, CHAPMAN .Domestic tragedies were focused on the middle-class violent passions and were set in England, while the background for the traditional tragedies was Italy. John Ford : “The Broken Heart” which presents a variety of themes involving love, revenge and regret, and “Tis A Pity She’s a Whore”, which is set in Italy
. James Shirley, instead, was an author of tragicomedies, comedies of manners and masques, and tragedies. In 1642, the outbreak of the Civil War caused the closure of theatres and until they reopened in 1660, plays could only be read and not performed. Capitolo 23 – The theatre restored: 1660-1700 When Monarchy was restored, in May 1660, there was an almost universal satisfaction; re-opening of public theatres s Thomas Killigrew and William Davenant obtained from the king Charles II the consent to form acting companies and to build theatres Thomas Killigrew: tragi-comedies “The Parson’s Wedding” Killigrew’s theatre company, the “King’s Men”, “King’s Company” because of a woman who was employed to play Desdemona in a production of Othello. William Davenant : “The Siege of Rhodes”, use of machinery, dancing and music in the production of plays John Dryden : heroic drama, a play without music that presents conflicts of love and honour used the heroic couplet (rhymed couplet), heroic tragedy were an epic plot and characters, the theme of love and honour, exotic background and rhymed couplets used by Dryden in “The Indian Queen”. “The Conquest Of Granada” is the most well known and successful of Dryden’s heroic plays returned to blank verse in “All for Love, or The World Well Lost”, Restoration tragedies retelling of the story of Antony and Cleopatra comedy of manners :presents the social behavior of the upper classes of the town in a critical and cynical way. Ben Jonson’s “comedy of humors” ridicules human types the comedy of manners criticizes social models... founder of the comedy of manners George Etherege: “The Comical Revenge, or Love in a Tub” was his successful debut on the English stage and it presents four different plots about different social classes and it’s set in London. Etherege’s second play, “She Would if She Could”, is considered the first proper comedy of manners. William Wycherley: Restoration comedies which are very powerful attacks on the vices of the day William Congreve, a master of the comedy of manners, using brilliant language to display the narrow world of fashion and gallantry brilliant comedy was “The Way of the World.
