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William Shakespea
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DefinitionThe term “literary canon” refers to a
group of literary works that are considered important and relevant of a particular time period or place.
It establishes a collection of similar or related literary works.
The complete works of Shakespeare are the Shakespeare Canon.
The Shakespeare Canon.
The Shakespeare Canon is generally defined by 35 plays.Two mythological narrative poems “Venus and Adonis” (1593) and “The rape of Lucrece” (1594)An allegorical poem “the phoenix and the turtle” (1601)A collection of 154 sonnets such as “A Lover’s complaint”
A chart of Canonical Plays.
Approximate Date Plays First Printed
By 1594 Henry VI (three parts) Folio 1623
The two gentlemen of Verona
Folio
The comedy of errors Folio
The Taming of the shrew
Folio
Richard III 1597
Titus Andronicus 1594
Lover’s labour’s lost 1598
Approximate date Plays First Printed
1594- 1597 Romeo and Juliet 1599
A Midsummer night’s dream
1600
Richard II 1597
King John Folio
The Merchant of Venice
1600
Approximate date Plays First Printed
1597- 1600 Henry IV (part I) 1598
Henry IV (part II) 1600
Henry V Folio
Much Ado about Nothing
1600
Merry Wives of Windsor
Folio
As You Like It Folio
Julius Caesar Folio
Troilus and Cressida 1609
Approximate Date Plays First Printed
1601- 1608 Hamlet 1604
Twelfth Night Folio
Measure for Measure Folio
All’s Well that Ends Well
Folio
Othello 1622
Lear 1608
Macbeth Folio
Timon of Athens Folio
Antony and Cleopatra Folio
Coriolanus Folio
Approximate Date Plays First Printed
After 1608 Pericles 1609
Cymbeline Folio
The Winter’s Tale Folio
The Tempest Folio
1613 Henry VIII Folio
PoemsPoems First Printed
Venus and Adonis 1593
The Rape of Lucrece 1594
Sonnets 1609
A lover’s Complaint 1609
The Phoenix and The Turtle 1601
In any study of the development of Shakespeare’s art the date when each play was written must first be discovered. This is not easy...
So few of the necessary records survive that Elizabethan plays can seldom be exactly dated.
Shakespeare’s plays must therefore be dated by argument, and deduction from such evidence as can be collected.
This is of three kinds:A-EXTERNALB- INTERNALC- STYLEBy a combination of the three methods most plays can
be dated approximately and placed roughly in the order of their writing, so that it is possible not only to trace Shakespeare’s development but also to see his plays against the background of his times.
External evidence.The most valuable kind of evidence is external, that is, a
clear mention or reference to a particular play.External evidence seldom gives the date of the first
performance of any play, but it certainly shows that the play had been written before a certain time.
EXAMPLE: A German traveller named Platter who came to London in
1599 noted in his diary a visit to the Globe Theatre: “after dinner on the 21st of September, at about two o’clock, I went with my companions over the water, and in the strewn roof-house [i.e. Playhouse with thatched roof] saw the tragedy of the first Emperor Julius with at least fifteen characters very well acted. At the end of the comedy they danced according to their customs with extreme elegance. Two in men’s clothes and two in women’s gave this performance in wonderful combination with each other.
Internal EvidenceThe second kind of evidence is internal, where in the play
itself there is some unmistakable reference to an identifiable event.
There are not many of these in Shakespeare’s plays, for although he often reminded his audience of current events in some significant speech, he seldom made a direct reference.
Sometimes the internal evidence in a play consists on several casual topicalities, none very significant or certain in themselves, but taken together fairly conclusive. Thus, “as you like it” can be dated with some probability as summer 1599. The latest date is fixed by a note in Stationer’s Register (dated 4th August 1600) that “As You Like It”, Henry the V, very Man in His Humour, and the Comedy of Much Ado about Nothing are to be STAYED, not printed until the printer has established his right to print.
EXAMPLE:A clear reference to the triumphant departure,
on 27th March 1599, of the Earl of Essex for Ireland in the Chorus before act V of Henry V . As Essex failed utterly and returned secretly to London on 28th September, it follows that the Chorus was written soon after March and some time before September 1599.
StyleThis method of dating is the most difficult, for
there are no reliable objective tests which can be mechanically applied. Nevertheless the changes and developments in Shakespeare’s Style are so noticeable that a play can reasonably be placed by style alone in one or four groups
A- EARLYB- MATUREC- CONCENTRATEDD- LATE
Some of the most famous lines in the history of literature come from the writings of William
Shakespeare
He produced many highly-praised stories of human drama, comedy and romantic sonnets and his work continues to influence writers to this day
Shakespeare created the majority of his popular plays and stories in the late 16th century.
For many years he enjoyed writing comedies and historical plays until he found his true love: writing tragedies and dark dramas, such as Hamlet and Macbeth.
When Shakespeare began to write for the stages the standard of
acting was set by Edward Alley and of plays by those who
wrote for him, especially Marlowe, Greene and
Kyd. At first Shakespeare
imitated the common style and mannerisms so closely that some critics argue hotly whether he
was indeed the sole author of some of the
early plays attributed to him in the First Folio.
Early style Audiences in the early 1590s were still
unsophisticated, simple in their demands and hearty in their appetites. They expected characters on the stage to talk in high-sounding phrases and to make long speeches on every occasion, full of rhetorical devices, stuffed with mythology and
bookish similes.At first Shakespeare admired the current fashions.
Style in General: Technically rigid; somewhat immature. The plots generally are well organized. Characterization: Often superficial or shallow compared with the characterization in later plays
Shakespeare’s earliest style is quite distinguishable. His rhythms are regular, rhymes are common , used
sometimes in alternate lines, more often in couplets. He even inserts a sonnet into the dialogue.
In the comedies there is much clever language, especially when young gentlemen are talking. Imagery is often used for its own sake and not to clarify or intensify thought.
In tragedy, especially historical tragedy, Shakespeare was often bombastic and speeches were more heroic than suited occasion.
Shakespeare was more interested in fine writing than in drama.
The best and the worst traits of his immature style are to be seen in the finest of his early plays Romeo and Juliet, when Lady Capulet urges Juliet to fall in love with Count Parisin a speech which is tediously clever.
The early style disappeared rapidly as Shakespeare’s experience grew and with them his power of expression.
Some Plays of the Early Period.
Comedyof ErrorsHenry I (part I)Henry VI (part II and III)King JhonLove’s Labour’s LostMidsummer Night’s
DreamRichard IIRichard IIIRomeo and JulietTwo Gentlement of Verona
Comedy was still Shakespeare’s natural outlet. It gave him the chance of choosing words and phrases with an ease and subtlety which no one else ever touched.
It is shown at its best in “love’s Labour’s lost” in such a speech as the defence of barbarism which he gave to Berowne (character), a bubbling, many-coloured cascade of words. The thought is simple: that those who neglect everything for the sake of learning and never fall in love, miss more than they gain by their studies.
Here he takes up the idea of light and darkness, to juggle with them in a dazzling display of verbal trickery.
Mature StyleThe early style disappeared rapidly as Shakespeare’s
experiences grew and with them his power of expression.Shakespeare gradually developed and changed his writing
style from the traditional form to a more self-expressive style.
This style is less technically rigid; more creative. The plots are generally well designed.
Shakespeare demonstrates his range by writing outstanding works in three genres:
comedy (As You Like It, Twelfth Night). He presents a highly tragic character, Shyloc, in a comedy (The Merchant of Venice)
tragedy (Hamlet, Julius Caesar) history (Henry IV Part I, Henry V).
Characterization: Strong, reflecting deep insight into human nature. Among the magnificent character portrayals of this period are those of Hamlet, Macbeth, Shylock, Othello, Brutus.
In Henry IV Parts I and II, Shakespeare achieves a wonderful balance between the comic (represented by Sir John Falstaff) and the serious (represented by Hotspur and others).
Dialogue: A mixture of verse and prose. Shakespeare also uses the soliloquy as more than a device to disclose the direction of the plot, to present pretty poetry, or to deliver long-winded asides
SoliloquiesThe soliloquies or monologue was a common
device that Shakespeare used to tell his stories. They served to reveal the character’s thoughts,
as well as to create the play’s setting.It also brings the audience into the story and let it
in on secrets that the rest of the characters in the play may not know.
In Hamlet, Mac Beth and Julius Caesar, soliloquies plumb the depths of the characters’ souls, revealing doubt, indecision, fear and ambition.
These famous lines from “Hamlet” are the opening lines to his most famous soliloquy.
“TO BE OR NOT TO BE, THAT IS THE QUESTION.”
All’s Well that Ends WellAs you like itHamletHenry IV (parts I and II)Henry VJulius CaesarMerchant of VeniceOthelloTwelfth Night
Some plays of this period:
Concentrated PeriodThis style is highly creative, bursting with insight.Shakespeare ignores many rules to allow his
genius to overflow.The plots of this period sometimes twist and turn,
challenging the reader with their complexity.Characterization: Superb, deeply insightfulDialogue: often highly suggestive of the
speaker’s state of mind and suffused with memorable metaphors, similes and other figures of speech. Many passages are in prose
Plays of this periodKing LearAntony and Cleopatra
MacbethCoriolanusTimon of Athens
Late StyleStyle in general:
MASTERLY.Shakespeare has just the
right mix of technical skill, creativity and wisdom.
Exhibition of hope for flawed humanity.
He tends to prefer times and places far removed from Elizabethan England, as in The Tempest, Pericles and Cymbeline.
Several plays of this period introduce characters who suffer loss, then regain what they have lost.(as inPericles, The Winter’s Tale, Cymbeline). Supperb, deeply insightful.
The dialogue is highly creative, with many memorable passages in both verse and prose.
The following passages, the first in verse and the second in prose,
are from “The Tempest” Ariel's Song, Act I, Scene II
Full fathom five thy father lies; Of his bones are coral made;
Those are pearls that were his eyes: Nothing of him that doth fade But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rich and strange. Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell
Prospero Speaking to Ferdinand and Meranda, Act IV, Scene I Our revels now are ended. These our actors,
As I foretold you, were all spirits and Are melted into air, into thin air:
And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great globe itself, Ye all which it inherit, shall dissolve
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded.
Plays of this PeriodHenry VIIICymbelinePericles
The Tempest The Winter’s Tale
William Shakespeare was the most
influential writer of all-time, bringing a
lyrical element to plays about great
kings and poor paupers.
His verses utilized a natural rhythm of the English language and his themes as well as
his literary devices continue to inspire
and influence writers even now in the 21st
century.
