Elizabethan World View And Macbeth Golden Age of England Elizabethan World View And Macbeth

Elizabeth I Ruled from 1558-1603 Daughter of Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII Her mother was beheaded for adultery. Anne was Henry VIII’s second wife of six Raised as a Protestant Created the strongest army Improved the treasury of England to be one of the richest nations Supporter of the Arts

Queen Elizabeth was popular with her subjects… Both her parents were English She made many public appearances Refused to marry …other than to England. As a result nicknamed the “Virgin Queen” Kingdom became the most powerful and the richest

Elizabethan World Picture The Chain of Being or Cosmic Order of the world was inherited from Christianity and the Middle Ages, in which society occupied a middle position with God and the angels above.

Elizabethan World Picture The structure of society followed the structure of the universe in many ways. In the universe, God was at the top. In society, the king or queen was at the top.

Elizabethan World Picture The ruler possessed power from but not subject to that of God. A monarch ruled, therefore, by Divine Right.

Elizabethan Order of the Universe

Order Versus Disorder The natural condition of a state was “order”. Since the state was part of the divine order, any challenge to the throne was a violation, punishable by God.

Order Versus Disorder Shakespeare’s images of order, patriotism, and monarchy in his plays supported a political system which claimed to be a copy of the divine hierarchy.

Order Versus Disorder Shakespeare often constructed plots around evil men or women who revolt against the order of the universe, but in the end, moral order triumphs and harmony is restored.

The Language of Shakespeare Began the period of Modern English All standards of correctness had not been constructed yet Focus was on increasing the richness of language Artificial and ornate language was valued above “correct” or plain expression

Elizabethan Witches Elizabethans believed that witches could fly. The broomstick was added to the superstition because it was a common household item.

Elizabethan Witches A witch was often portrayed as an old crone or hag with no man to defend her against accusations.

Elizabethan Witches Witches were thought to live alone

Elizabethan Witches Witches were known to keep animals like the cat, frog, raven, crow, bat, or mouse. These animals were believed to be evil spirits used by the witch to cast spells.

During the Elizabethan Era, there were 270 witchcraft trials During the Elizabethan Era, there were 270 witchcraft trials. Of those tried, 247 were women. OLD…POOR…SINGLE…UNPROTECTED

The Witches of Macbeth play a significant role in the plot

The fear of witches and their supernatural abilities led to the following beliefs…

Elizabethan Superstitions Believed the devil could enter your body when you opened your mouth to sneeze. As a result, people said, “God Bless You” to ward off the Devil.

Elizabethan Superstitions 2. It was unlucky for a black cat to cross your path because they were demons in disguise.

Elizabethan Superstitions 3. An eclipse was seen as an omen of evil

Elizabethan Superstitions 4. Spilling salt or pepper was bad luck (also, these spices were expensive)

Elizabethan Superstitions 5. Shoes on a table were an invitation for imminent death

Elizabethan Superstitions 6. Walking under a ladder was bad luck since ladders were associated with the gallows or execution. Also, the ladder forms a triangle representing the Holy Trinity. Passing under it would break the Trinity and put one in league with the devil.

Elizabethan Superstitions 7. Peacock feathers were thought to be the “Evil Eye”

Elizabethan Superstitions 8. Touching wood guarded against bad luck according to the Celts who believed that trees possessed magical powers

Elizabethan Superstitions 9. Pinning bay leaves to a pillow led to dreams of one’s future husband

Elizabethan Superstitions 10. Seventh son of the seventh son possessed supernatural powers

Elizabethan Superstitions 11. Considered good luck to touch a man about to be hanged

Elizabethan Superstitions 12. The number 12 was considered lucky, and it is now represented by a dozen

Elizabethan Superstitions 13. It was bad luck to stir a pot counter-clockwise

Elizabethan Superstitions 14. Good luck charms involved iron, silver, fire, salt, and running water

Elizabethan Superstitions 15. Good luck to spit into a fire or be breathed on by a cow

Elizabethan Superstitions 16. Magic was associated with plants, names, animals, metals, colors, and numbers

Elizabethan Superstitions 17. Friday the 13th has its roots in both Christianity and Norse beliefs. Some say Christ was crucified on a Friday with 13 guests at the Last Supper. The 13th guest was Judas.

Elizabethan Superstitions 18. Crossing your fingers is superstition most common today. By making the sign of the cross with one’s fingers, evil spirits would be prevented from destroying good fortune.

Elizabethan Superstitions 19. It was a common belief that the sound of a bell would drive away demons. Bells were rung when someone died to ward off evil spirits or at weddings for protection.

Elizabethan Superstitions 20. Candles lit during church services, weddings, and funerals are meant to ward off evil spirits. If a lit candle is blown out, it might be a sign of evil spirits nearby.

Elizabethan Superstitions 21. Mirrors were thought of as magical objects. They believed one’s reflection was a visual representation of the soul. A cracked mirror meant grief or bad luck. The Elizabethan practice of looking into a mirror to see the future was similar to looking into a crystal ball.

Elizabethan Superstitions 22. “Knock on wood” is an expression from pre-Christian times. It was believed that good spirits lived in trees. Knocking on anything made of wood called down spirits for protection.

Elizabethan Superstitions 23. The Beard inspired many reactions. Elizabeth I imposed taxes on men with beards, so few wore them during her reign. Bearded men are believed to be shifty and untrustworthy.

Elizabethan Superstitions 24. Mistletoe is said to protect a house from thunder and lightening, cure disease, and bring good luck and fertility. English people have been kissed under the mistletoe since Anglo-Saxon times.

Elizabethan Superstitions 25. Ship figureheads were carved in wood and placed on the prow of the vessel to guard the ship. Sailors believed the figurehead embodied the soul of the ship since its roots are from the ancient practice of dedicating ships to certain goddesses. This idea continues today in the form of emblems and mascots in cars and trucks.

Elizabethan Superstitions The superstition surrounding the play Macbeth led many to refer to it as the “Scottish play”

Elizabethan Superstitions Macbeth was written in the early 1600's by William Shakespeare. According to legend, it was performed at Hampton Court in 1606 for King James I and his brother-in-law, King Christian of Denmark, and was clearly designed to appeal to King James who had previously published a book on witches and how to detect them. Because of this, Shakespeare decided to give his play a supernatural twist in another effort to please the King.

Elizabethan Superstitions For the opening scene of Act IV, he reproduced a sacred black-magic ritual in which a group of witches danced about a black cauldron, shouting out strange phrases and ingredients to be thrown into it. The practitioners of rituals such as this one were not very amused by Shakespeare's public exposure of their witchcraft, and as punishment they decided to cast their own spell on the play Macbeth that still haunts it to this day.

Elizabethan Superstitions Supposedly, saying the name "Macbeth" inside a theater will bring bad luck to the play and anyone acting in it. The only exception is when the word is spoken as a line in the play.

Elizabethan Superstitions It is said that the play Macbeth with its witches, spells and incantations was nervously performed by Shakespeare’s actors, and that the fear that the play was cursed was confirmed when an actor died while playing Lady Macbeth in 1606. William Shakespeare himself was forced to play Lady Macbeth. King James was so displeased with the play that it was banned for five years.

Elizabethan Superstitions In Amsterdam in 1672, the actor playing Macbeth substituted the blunt stage dagger with a real one, and with it killed his co-actor playing Duncan right in front of the live audience.

Elizabethan Superstitions There was even an incident in 1721 where the army had to be called in. Some hecklers were annoying some of the actors on the stage. The actors responded by attacking the hecklers with their swords.

Elizabethan Superstitions During its 1849 performance at New York's Astor Place, 31 people were trampled to death in a riot that had broken out.

Elizabethan Superstitions In 1934, British actor Malcolm Keen turned mute on stage, and his replacement developed a high fever and had to be hospitalized.

Elizabethan Superstitions In 1937, a 25 pound stage weight crashed within an inch of Laurence Olivier (who was playing Macbeth). Not only that, but his sword broke on stage flew into the audience, hitting a man who later suffered a heart attack. And if you think that was enough bad luck for one production, think again. Both the director and the actress playing Lady Macduff were involved in a car accident on the way to the theater, and the proprietor of the theater died of a heart attack during the dress rehearsal.

Elizabethan Superstitions In the 1942, three actors in another production of Macbeth died, and the costume and set designer committed suicide.

Elizabethan Superstitions Diana Wynyard sleepwalked off the stage in 1948 and fell down 15 feet.

Elizabethan Superstitions In Bermuda, 1953, Charlton Heston suffered severe burns in his groin and leg from tights that were accidentally soaked in kerosene.

Elizabethan Superstitions An actor's strike struck Rip Torn’s 1970 production in New York City. Two fires and seven robberies plagued the 1971 version, and finally J. Kenneth Campbell, who played Macduff, was mugged soon after the play's opening in 1981

Elizabethan Superstitions And, it was Macbeth that Abraham Lincoln chose to take with him on board the River Queen on the Potomac River one afternoon. The president was reading to a group of friends passages of the play that happened to follow the scene in which Duncan was assassinated. Within a week, President Lincoln himself was assassinated.

Elizabethan Superstitions Finally, the superstition reared itself during a recent performance of the Bottom’s Dream Theater Company’s performance of Macbeth in Greenville, Michigan. Local lore points to the curse as cause for the serious auto accident that befell the actor playing Macbeth. The wife of the actor resigned herself from playing Lady Macbeth in order to care for her husband. The Greenville Daily News even ran an article about the incident.

Elizabethan Superstitions “However, the ACTUAL reason for this fear is probably more sensible. The superstition actually began in the old days of stock companies, which would struggle at all times to remain in business. Frequently, near the end of a season a stock company would realize that it was not going to break even and, in an attempt to boost ticket sales and attendance, would announce production of a crowd favorite . . . Macbeth. If times were particularly bad, even 'the bard's play' would not be enough to save the company; therefore, Macbeth often meant the end of a company's season or the company's demise. Therefore, the fear of Macbeth was generally the fear of bad business and of an entire company being put out of work.”

Is it Macbeth or The Scottish Play? You Decide… Is it Macbeth or The Scottish Play?