IMAGERY in MAAN Act 1 and Act 2.1 Saturday, 24 November 2018

IMAGERY USED Illness Food Clothing Classical mythology Exotic travel Military/warfare Animals To name a few…

Why is it used? To engage an audience and relate ideas to their experience – this is a bit woolly but relevant in the theatre of Shakespeare’s day. To show character traits in the user To exaggerate character faults in the person being described To entertain To show off…

Consider the context: Illness: London was a city of plague. Illness was thought to be carried in the air. Food: Diet was poor with little variety. Good diet was a sign of great wealth. Clothing: Hugely expensive – laws prevented the middle classes from wearing silks and satins, even if they could afford them. Men were extremely fashion conscious. Classical mythology: education consisted of Classics and Maths. Exotic travel: England’s navy was beginning to dominate the world – Sir Walter Raleigh was a great explorer of the day. Audience are interested. Military/warfare: England constantly at war with Queen Elisabeth as the commander in chief. Animals – everyday part of life, animals slaughtered on street corners, exploration produces tales of fabulous creatures.

Let’s try to PEE… P: Beatrice suggests that Benedick is a bad influence E: “He will hang upon him like a disease” E: This simile compares Benedick to a disease. In the 16th Century disease was so serious and commonplace that the whole audience will recognise Benedick as a threat to Claudio’s health.

Explanation A B C (not to scale) In triangle ABC, angle ABC is 90 degrees and angle ACB is 39 degrees. Find angle BAC. Show your working. PEE is exactly the same. Do not give a simple answer, but show your thought processes. Which words or phrases are you using to establish your point? (51 degrees)

Or… P: Beatrice is so unpleasant that she is a danger to public health (says Benedick…) “If her breath was as terrible as her terminations…to the Northern Star” Benedick exaggerates when he suggests that Beatrice’s words would carry like a disease. In the 16th century an audience would relate to the idea of airborne disease due to the regular outbreaks of plague.

Animal Imagery brings characters to life Claudio: Lamb/lion, poor hurt fowl, a very forward March chick… What do these suggest? Write a PEE triplet in which you explore these images – choose your favourite. P: Claudio’s youth is accentuated in description… E?

PEEing For Beatrice, Benedick, Claudio and Don Pedro, try to make PEE groupings. Decide on a point to make, then choose a good quotation and finally try to explain how your point is supported by the quotation.