WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE Tragedy and Romeo and Juliet

SHAKESPEARE: THE MAN   Stratford-upon-Avon, England  Wrote 37 plays, about 154 sonnets, and started as an actor  Main actor and principal playwright was Lord Chamberlain’s Men theater company

THE GLOBE THEATER  Most of Shakespeare’s plays performed here  Roofless, open theater with no artificial lighting  Surrounded by 3 levels of galleries  The wealthy received benches, “groundlings” stood in the “pit” where the stage extended

STAGE AREAS: THE GLOBE  Dressing & Storage rooms in galleries behind and above stage  2 nd level gallery: Famous balcony scene for Romeo & Juliet  Trap door for ghost scenes  “Heavens” were for the angelic beings in scenes  No scenery, so changes were discussed in dialogue  Elaborate costumes, props, and very fast paced (less than 2 hours)

THE ACTORS  Only men and boys performed  Young boys whose voices had not changed played female parts  Women did not perform because it would be considered indecent

BLANK VERSE  Much of Romeo and Juliet is written in blank verse This is unrhymed verse Iambic (unstressed, stressed) Pentameter (5 feet to a line) or 10 syllables per line.

PROSE  Ordinary writing that is not poetry, drama, or song  Only characters of lower social classes were depicted to speak this way in Shakespeare’s plays.

TRAGEDY  Drama in which central characters suffer disaster / great misfortune that result from: Fate Character flaw / fatal flaw A combination of fate and flaws  In Shakespearean tragedy, it may only be called one because the story of exceptional calamity leads to the death of a man of high estate.

TRAGIC HERO  Usually there is only one tragic hero (although in Shakespeare’s “love tragedies” there can be more than one)  The tragic story leads up to, and includes, the death of the hero with exceptional suffering and calamity  They are striking, unexpected, and contrasted previously with happiness and/or glory  Responsible for their own catastrophe of their fall and torn by internal struggle

DRAMATIC FOIL  A character whose purpose is to show off another character often through contrasting traits Benvolio is a foil for Tybalt Who are others in Romeo and Juliet?

OTHER CHARACTERS  Round character: One that has many personality traits like real people  Flat character: one-dimensional, single trait character Often these characters are used for comic relief in Shakespeare’s plays  Static character: Remain the same through the story, never changing mind, opinion, or character  Dynamic character: One that changes in some way (usually for the better) during the course of the plot

MONOLOGUE  One person speaking on the stage (even if others are present on stage) Example: Prince of Verona telling the Capulets and Montagues to cease feuding

SOLILOQUY  Long speech expressing the thoughts of a character alone on stage Example: Romeo gives a soliloquy after the servant has fled and Paris has died.

ASIDE  Words spoken, usually in an undertone not intended to be heard by all characters

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE  Simile: compares using “like” or “as” Her face is like a summer’s day….  Metaphor: compares unalike things by saying one thing is another I am the East, and Juliet is the West

PUN  Humorous use of a word with two meanings Sometimes these are missed by the reader of Shakespeare’s plays because of the language or sexual innuendo implied “Vandals destroyed many road signs. They really pulled out all the stops.”

IRONY  Dramatic: Contradiction between what a character thinks and what the reader/audience knows to be true in the story  Verbal: words used to suggest the opposite of what is meant  Situational: An event occurs that directly contradicts the expectations of characters, readers, or audience

COMIC RELIEF  Use of comedy within literature to provide “relief” from seriousness or sadness  In Romeo and Juliet, look for comic relief that helps “relieve” the tragedy of the situations occurring

CONFLICTS  External Person vs. Person Person vs. Nature Person vs. Society  Internal Person vs. Self

THEMES  Light and Dark Look for references to light and dark in word choice  Time Look for references to time, especially passage of time and when it seems “rushed”  Fate Look for instances when events and actions are blamed on “fate,” “destiny,” or “the stars”

THE PLOT: IN A NUTSHELL  A man of high estate experiences a flaw in character  Intrusion of time added to a sense of urgency brings misreadings and rationalizations.  Murder, exile, alienation of enemies and allies lead to gradual isolation of the tragic hero and mobilization of opposition

THE PLOT: IN A NUTSHELL  Tragic recognition of the flaw by the tragic hero comes too late  Last courageous attempt to restore lost honor /greatness helps the audience recognize potential for greatness  The death of the tragic hero leads to a restoration of order and the end of the play