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The Middle Ages 2018
- 1. Crash Course Dark Ages: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QV7CanyzhZg
- 3. Syrian Aramaic Abwoon d’washmaya Nethgadash shmakh Teytey malkuthakh Nehwey tzevyanach aykanna d ’bwashmayo aph b’arha Hawvlan lachma d’sungana yaomana Washboglan khauboyn (waktahayn) Aykana daph khnan shbwogan l’khayyabayn Wela tachlan l’nesyna. Ela patzan minbisha Metol dilakhie malkutha wahayla Wateshbukhta l’ahlam almin Ameyn.
- 4. Translation Source of wisdom and life, Carve out a space within us where you your Presence can abide. Fill us with imagination to be empowered on our mission. Endow us with the wisdom to produce and share what each of us needs to grow and flourish. Untie the tangled threads that bind us, as we release others from the entanglement of our past mistakes. Do not let us be diverted from our true purpose, but let us ever be aware. For you are power and fulfillment, as all is gathered and made whole once again and for all time. Amen. M. Shani Illahan (translation)
- 5. 2. Feudalism
- 6. “Unlike the cold bureaucratic relationships that bind modern man to abstract corporate and government structures, the feudal bond was extremely personal. In the widespread feudal bond of vassalage, for example, the vassal freely put himself under his lord whom he treated with all the duities and sentiments of a son to a father to whom he owed affection, counsel, aid, and fidelity. On his part, the lord was like a father obliged to give protection, help, security, and means of support. Each party, in its great need, was forced to appeal for help and resources beyond that of his own family. As a result, this forged bond was so strong that it often was comparable to, and frequently stronger than, the solidarity of the kinship group.” David Herlihy The History of Feudalism
- 7. 3. Plague
- 9. “They died by the hundreds, both day and night, and all were thrown in ditches and covered with earth. And as soon as those ditches were filled, more were dug. And I, Agnolo di Tura buried my five children with my own hands. And so many died that all believed it was the end of the world.” --The Plague in Sienna: An Italian Chronicle “How many valiant men. How many fair ladies, breakfast with their kinfolk and the same night supped with their ancestors in the next world! The condition of the people was pitiable to behold. They sickened by the thousands daily, and died unattended and without help. Many died in the open street, others dying in their houses, made it known by the stench of their rotting bodies. Consecrated churchyards did not suffice for the burial of the vast multitude of bodies, which were heaped by the hundreds in vast trenches, like goods in a ship’s hold and covered with a little earth.” --Giovanni Boccaccio
- 11. Early Middle Ages 500-1000 Retraction of Rome leaves Wars Famine Disease Vikings NO [state sponsored] THEATER!
- 13. Scop
- 14. Brave Sir Robin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZwuTo7zKM8&feature=kp
- 16. Liturgical Drama (and comedy) Quem Quaeritis Angels: Quem quaeritis in sepulchro, o Christicolae? (Whom seek ye in the tomb, Oh Christians?) The Three Marys: Jesum Nazarenum crucifixum, o caelicolae. (Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified, O Heavenly Beings) Angels: Non est hic; surrexit sicut praedixerat. Ite, nuntiate quia surrexit de sepulchro (He is not here, he is risen as he Foretold. Go and announce that he is risen from the tomb) Quem Quaeritis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNwu9YHOvVI
- 17. Hrosvitha of Gandersheim (c. 953-973) Abraham Callimachus Dulcitus Gallicanus Paphnutius Sapientia
- 18. Theatrical Nuns Hildegard of Bingen (? – d. 1179) Ordo Virtutum Catherine de Sutton
- 19. High Middle Ages (c. 1000-1300)
- 20. Romanesque
- 22. Gothic
- 24. Liturgical Drama in High Middle Ages Staging Conventions Carmina Burana O Fortuna: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWiyKgeGWx0
- 26. Late Middle Ages 1300-1500 Guilds Vernacular Religious Drama Secular Dramatic Forms
- 27. Vernacular Religious Drama Mystery Plays Miracle Plays Morality Plays
- 28. Mystery/Cycle Plays 2012 trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAKzf4zndmc Community involvement: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8STHka1x3w&list=PL50395213DCBBC67C&index=5
- 29. Oberammergau Passion Play 1632-(present) 2010 trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7uFUB2tl3A
- 30. Elements of Production Pageant Master Actors Playwrights Stages Pageant Wagons Hell Mouth
- 33. Morality Play
- 34. Secular Dramatic Forms Tournaments Mummers Confrerie de la Passion Farce Chambers of Rhetoric Interludes Street Pageants Tableaux Vivant
- 37. Confrérie de la Passion
- 38. Farce Typical Subjects: Marital Infidelity Quarreling Cheating Hypocrisy General Human Failing Sex Digestion
- 41. Islam 6 articles of Faith Pillars of Islam
Editor's Notes
- p. 103 last paragraph “Theater is a reflection of society” Thoughts? 3 groups to European society: Aristocracy (here we have a knight but he seems representative of the ruling class) Clergy Great mass of peasants Three major things to keep in mind as we explore this era: Christianity, Feudalism, and the plague Perhaps this would be a better summation to watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EAMqKUimr8 (the middle ages in 3.5 minutes)
- Creed Belief in the trinity Death/resurrection/ascention The holiness of the church and saints Judgement day 10 commandments Jesus Christ Testament
- The Lord’s Prayer Matthew 6:9-13 The King James Bible “Our father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. They kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever: Amen.”
- The power of translation. What is it that happens when a text is translated from one language into another? Me: "this is the original Aramaic version" and prints it in Aramaic and then lists a translation by M. Shani Illahan that purportedly tries to translate the words as closely as possible to their original meaning rather than impose values from a different time/place/perspective. Allison: Oh, Ah, ok. First, don't think of "the bible" as a single thing. Almost every book is comprised of either multiple texts edited together, or has gone through multiple editings. That does NOT mean, however, that we scholars can't get underneath most of that toward something that would have been recognized in the time any particular passage was written. None of the very first manuscripts survive, of course, but that doesn't mean that any copy is wrong either. I googled it, and found your book on google books. the note at the bottom of the page is pretty good. Absolutely share the two versions - but distance yourself from the word "original" What we have in the aramaic text is another tradition, probably oral first, then written, then translated. You aren't teaching theology, silly, just talking about versions and translations and meanings!
- Cooperation and mutual obligation Feudalism is the first western culture that did not practice slavery on a large scale (p. 106) Why do you think that is? (Christianity)
- Growth from the fealty of Greek Polis? Consider the difference, in theory, between the feudal relationship of a serf to vassal and the corporate relationship of worker to CEO. Do you think there is any difference? Does one seem, in structural terms at least, better or worse than the other?
- The epidemic reached its zenith between 1348-1350 though the disease never vanished entirely This was actually the second major outbreak; the first happened in the eastern roman empire in the spring of 542 and wiped out somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 million people over 2 centuries of recurrence. Mainly spread by infected fleas from small animals (like rats); though it may be spread from exposure to fluids from infected humans Killed 30-60% of European population (estimated 50 million souls) 80% of victims die in 2-7 days Society becomes obsessed with death and the afterlife Profound impact on art and literature Because the plague killed so many of the working population, wages rose due to the demand for labor. Some historians see this as a turning point in European economic development. It is also believed that society subsequently became more violent as the mass mortality rate cheapened life and thus increased warfare, crime, popular revolt, and persecution. Originated in near China (probably in Mongolia) and spread from Italy and then throughout other European countries. People believed the plague to be a punishment from God, and that the only way to be rid of the plague was to be forgiven by God.
- Clearly Cracow was the place to be in the 14th century
- Pieter Bruegel The Triumph of Death Station 11 not just for the travelling theater but for the decimating effects of an epidemic “why doesn’t god save us?” The plague begins to undermine the power of the church
- These three (Christianity, feudalism, and the plague) deeply affected the art and the people of the era so they are worth keeping in mind as you go through this era
- Three categories to the middle ages (traditionally) Early (500-1000), high (1000-11400), and late (1350-1500) 4th c. onward we have general disorder in Western Europe Vikings raiding and attacking from the late 8th century onward Raids in Europe were not something new and also seen long before the Vikings came. The Jutes invaded the British Isles three centuries earlier. The Saxons and the Anglos did the same, embarking from mainland Europe. The Viking raids were the first to be documented in writing by eyewitnesses, and they were much larger in scale and frequency than in previous times Monasteries become oasis End of the Roman era also means the end of organized and state sponsored theatrical activities however 4 known elements survived Remnants of Roman Mimes Teutonic Minstrelsy Popular festivals and pagan rites Christian ceremonies What would your post-apocalyptic life be like? If your primary focus changed to a constant search for food, water, and safety where would creating theater (or whatever your primary focus is) fall in your lists of priorities?
- Loss of state funding Still bands of nomadic performers – storytellers, jesters, tumblers, jugglers, rope dancers, trained animals, etc No record of dramatic pieces Denounced by the church (obvs) Re clip: I don’t care how jaded you are by modern technology: you will still stop and watch this – and think it’s cool!!– if it goes by. Imagine what this must have meant to these small agrarian communities.
- The scop was a singer/teller of tales from the 5th – 8th centuries Deeds of Teutonic (Germanic, Celtic) heroes Principal preserver of the tribe’s history – oral history tradition -- as such awarded a place of honor in society Major features of feasts and festivals The scop’s performance was a history lesson, moral sermon, and a pep talk rolled into one, instilling cultural pride and teaching how a true hero should behave. At the same time, in true Anglo-Saxon fashion, the scop reminded his listeners that they were helpless in the hands of fate and that all human ambition would end in death. With no hope for an afterlife, only an epic poem could provide a measure of immortality. These epic poems were an oral art form: memorized and performed, not written down. Later, as Christianity spread through Britain, literacy spread too, and poems were more likely to be recorded. In this age before printing presses, however, manuscripts had to be written out by hand, copied slowly and laboriously by scribes. Thus, only a fraction of Anglo-Saxon poetry has survived, in manuscripts produced centuries after the poems were originally composed and performed.
- The most famous survivor is the epic Beowulf, about a legendary hero of the northern European past. In more than 3,000 lines, Beowulf relates the tale of a heroic warrior who battles monsters and dragons to protect the people. Yet Beowulf, while performing superhuman deeds, is not immortal. His death comes from wounds incurred in his final, great fight. Here is another comedic take on the idea of the scop
- What elements of theatricality are a part of festival celebrations? Church making slow headway against the pagan festivals of Western Europe Many people only nominally Christian Pagan festivals are then usurped into Christianity Christmas // Winter Solstice Easter // Ostara Halloween // Samhain Valentine’s Day // Imbolc May Day // Beltane Lammas // feast of st. peters Lithia (summer solstice) // st. john’s day
- What is a trope? In the late early middle ages (c. 900) the sung trope leads us into actual liturgical drama Many theatrical elements had been incorporated into the annual celebrations Symbolic objects, actions, and emblems Dramatizes a part of the book of Luke – when the three marys went to Christ’s tomb and find he has been resurrected and ascended to heaven. “on that single moment the whole of christian salvation rests. Dramatizing that moment appeals to the emotion and develops an emotional connection to the latin text story with mimetic action, music, spectacle #aristotle Different parts of the bible dramatized
- Hrosvitha C. 935-973 German canoness Wrote 6 plays modeled after Terence’s comedies Feminist drama (awwwyeah!) Hildegard of Bingen Catherine de Sutton
- Hildegard of Bingen (d. 1179) Benedictine abbess Wrote Ordo Virtutum (c. 1155) Catherine de Sutton Abbess of Barking Producing theater in England in the 14th c. Important to note: in Ancient Greece and Rome the only real avenue for a woman to express her intellect was if she was a courtesan (though, not in Egypt where Cleopatra was extremely well educated along with her sisters); in the middle ages intellectual women became nuns (though admittedly, the monastery was also where intellectual men went). Women of intellect have been regarded with skepticism throughout history (important to remember as we head towards st. patrick’s day) to say the least.
- Vikings have been converted to christianity Town life is stable Industry and trade begin to flourish Sizable cities arise Feudalism declines Universities and schools begin to displace monasteries as primary seats of learning 6 crusades (between 1096-1229) Enlarge political, intellectual, artistic horizons Stop the spread of Islam (also kill many innocent people who were otherwise minding their own business #obviousparallel)
- Large scale building became common by the 11th century By 1300 monumental gothic churches had been built throughout western europe Liturgical drama began to be performed in these churches Far more accessible to the general public than just in monastaries
- How do you think liturgical drama would have been affected by the change from Romanesque churches to gothic cathedrals?
- There are a large number of surviving dramas from this era Each church would have had one or two performances per year Length and complexity vary Playing area had 2 basic components (mansion/platea) The church structure itself used Choir loft = heaven Crypt = hell Elaborate machinery for special effects Costumes were church vestments + accessories Actors were clergy or choir boys Plays were in latin Liturgical drama continued to be performed until the 16th century, but by the end of the high middle ages (1300) it ceased to play a significant role in the development of theater The Carmina Burana (songs from Beuern 254 poems and dramatic texts mostly from the 11th or 12th c. 55 songs of morals and mockery 131 love songs 40 drinking and gaming songs (and this is why it’s important to us) 2 long liturgical dramas 1 crucifixion story 1 christmas story The pieces are mostly bawdy, irreverant, and satirical Mostly Latin (some high German) Written by students and clergy satirizing the Catholic church Collection was found in 1803 in the Benedictine monastery of Benediktbeuern (Bavaria) 24 poems were set to music by Carl Orff in 1936 and you will most likely recognize it immediately as O FORTUNA has been used in numerous filmsca
- One of the many feast days assigned to Christmas (on the 8th day of xmas) Important in the development of comedy Reminiscent of earlier pagan rites (Roman Saturnalia also appointed a lord of misrule) Revelry passing over into licentiousness buffoonery and burlesque (social revolution however brief, never popular with the church) Presided over by a Lord of Misrule (best job title ever) Efforts to suppress the FoF unsuccessful until the 15th/17th c. The draw of the FoF lay in the inversion of status Celebrated from the 5th to the 17th centuries throughout Europe, was a celebration marked by much license and buffoonery. It in many ways resembled the pagan Roman celebration of Saturnalia. In the medieval version the young people, who played the chief parts, chose from among their own number a mock pope, archbishop, or abbot to reign as Lord of Misrule. Participants would then consecrate him with many ridiculous ceremonies in the chief church of the place, giving names such as Archbishop of Dolts, Abbot of Unreason, Boy Bishop, or Pope of Fools. The protagonist could be a boy bishop or subdeacon, while at the abbey of St. Gall in the 10th century, a student each December 13 enacted the part of the abbot. In any case the parody tipped dangerously towards the profane. The ceremonies often mocked the performance of the highest offices of the church, while other persons dressed in different kinds of masks and disguises, engaged in songs and dances and practised all manner of revelry within the church building. This was never a sanctioned feast – and indeed was often condemned by the church – but it was a popular feast. The FoF was finally forbidden under the very severest of penalties by the Council of Basel in 1431, but the festival didn’t die out until 1644 when the last FoF was celebrated in Paris (featured in Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame) Painting: the fight between carnival and lent (brueghel) Hunchback of Notre Dame clip starts at about 20:30
- Guilds The late middle ages was a time of growth and increasing commerce; new institutions were created to address this situation: guilds Formation of cities and renewed contact with the Islamic world created new opportunities for trade By pooling resources guilds could become powerful players in town politics and social life Many guilds donated items to the local church or put on fairs and theater performances to improve their reputation and create more opportunities for selling their products Terminology (apprentice, journeyman, council of masters) still in use today Drama continues to be primarily religious but the plays are finally in the common language and they move outside the church --
- Drama continues to be primarily religious but the plays are finally in the common language and they move outside the church -- It’s not known how plays evolved in this way – moving from liturgical to vernacular religious dramas – and many scholars think they evolved separately from liturgical dramas. But it is worth considering this move is happening at the same time as the plague. The plague which has so many people asking “why doesn’t god save us?” Definitely undermines the power of the church and starts a new trajectory away from Church doctrine being the central defining law What’s the difference between these three? Mystery plays: (also called cycle plays) Short medieval dramas based on events of the old and new testaments Miracle Plays: dealt specifically with the lives of saints and as such were not taken from the bible Morality Plays: Medieval dramas designed to teach a lesson. The characters were often allegorical (conveying meaning through symbolism) and represented virtues or faults (good deeds in Everyman)
- While the dramas were short, they were generally strung together to make longer events For example The Second Shepherd’s Play that we read about in the chapter is in fact a part of The Wakefield Cycle by the wakefield master They were community wide with different guilds depicting different stories from the bible – connected with their specialty Performances were once a year (if that) Preparations took many months Mostly free All day/all night affairs that lasted many days One in france lasted 40 days 300 actors played 500 roles Performed throughout Europe Most famous: the york cycle York Corpus Christi Plays The plays are one of four virtually complete surviving english mystery play cycles (along with the Chester Mystery Plays, the Wakefield Cycle, and the N Town Cycle) Tells the story of Christianity from Creation to the last judgement 48 playlets First recorded in 1376 – 1579 when religious drama was outlawed (in england) The manuscript was published in 1885 and in 1909 the first revival procession occurred 2000, 2012 were big remountings and there will be another production this year in may (ultimate extra credit)
- Small village in Germany being plagued by the plague in 1632 didn’t know what to do Took the summer stock approach to disease AND IT WORKED They vowed to remount the passion play every 10 years to keep the plague at bay So far so good (we’ll see what happens when the new antiobotic strains hit)
- Pageant Master Director Complex productions requiring careful organization Casts of upwards of 300 people Complex special effects Large sums of money Actors Number of actors varied (few-300) Many roles double cast The Acts of the Apostles Bourges 1536 had 494 roles played by 300 actors Members of the merchant class A few women and girls Mostly locals Combination of realism and stylization Extended comic scenes Show human failings set against the larger framework of divine commandements Mostly dressed like their contemporary counterparts Actors provided their own costumes unless super elaborate This could get expensive with double casting Playwrights = Anonymous Stages Fixed – series of small mansions (you can take the plays out of the church but you can’t take the church out of the plays) Placed side by side Heaven to the east, hell in the west Moveable – audience would assemble in different places and the wagons would travel Possible that the wagons rolled through town with people in tableaus and then set up in a stationary location Pageant wagons – moveable stages were decorated wagons designed to handle the required scenic unit for one play Though there is a debate about what they looked like and how it worked, no doubt that it was happening Hell Mouth The most popular mansions were the ones representing heaven and hell because they would be the most elaborate The entrance to hell was referred to as a hell mouth and was most often depicted as the head of a monster which spewed forth fire and smoke Flames, pyrotechnics, smoke,
- From an illustrated manuscript
- Strictly speaking was a secular dramatic form as it did not tell stories from the bible or of saints. But the plays were designed to tell man what to do. Didactic (intended to teach; particularly having a moral instruction as an ulterior motive) Filled with archetypes Frequently the basis of these dramas is a struggle between two forces (one good, one evil) for the soul of the main character Two best known of these plays Castle of perseverance Oldest extant morality play Housed in the folger shakespeare library in DC (fyi) Contains the same themes as are found in most of the other morality plays but is especially important and unusual because a stage drawing is included which may suggest a theater in the round The earliest drawing of a stage and set design in England is preserved in the manuscript. In the center of the drawing is the castle from the play's title. The writing above the castle explicitly says that the audience should not sit in the area. At the base of the castle is a bed on which Mankind rests. The circle around the castle is labeled as a ditch, which the audience should not cross.The five short text blocks around the circle label scaffolds for some of the characters, including God, Belial, and World. The map is oriented with north towards the bottom, which suggests that it is not merely some abstract suggestion by the playwright or scribe, but rather a real set design that may have been implemented—if not merely an literal implementation of the trope of 'a world turned upside down'.Whether the drawing truly represents theatre in the round or not is debatable. Although the ditch circles the castle completely and it is stated that the audience should not cross it, nowhere does the text state that the audience should sit on all sides of the play. It is possible that they sat on only one or some of the sides. However the rendering was taken quite literally in this 1999 University of Toronto production (canadians, eh?) everyman
- Tournaments began in the 10th century as a means of training nights in warfare Reformations in the 13th century to address high mortality rates Dramatic elements included – updated gladiators Still totally recognizeable enough to parody like they did in the 1989 bill murray movie Quick Change This is my former student Matt Thompson who in addition to doing a lot of stunt work, also has a job performing in the tournements at Medieval times.
- Mummers were masked merrymakers connected to the winter solstice Performed in common areas (not the church) All male – though they wore outrageous costumes and as such sometimes dressed like women This is the medieval version of mime The mummers day parade in Philadelphia is – aside from being the best parade I’ve ever been to – a fascinating contemporary structure that utilizes much of what we know about medieval theater Guilds – community based, rehearsing for months and months Moveable stages Dancing Spectacle – but of the kind that a regular human can rig without computers Music Outrageous costumes
- Brotherhood of the passion An association of amateur actors drawn from merchants and craftsmen of Paris for the presentation of religious plays In 1402 Charles VI granted them permission to produce Mystery plays in Paris Their priviliges were renewed in 1518 with the consequence that none outside the Confrerie could organize plays thus giving them a monopoly over all acting in Paris they dominated french theater for over 250 years – more on them in TH&Lii
- FINALLY! Show imperfect humanity within the social order Typical subjects: marital infidelity; quarreling; cheating; hypocrisy; general human failing; sex; and digestion Pierre Pathelin (1470) – the most famous of medieval farces, also totally innocent, without vulgarity, and has a well rounded plot Second Shepherd’s play Humor could be absorbed into even the most serious religious drama
- 14th-16th century societies concerned with poetry, music, and drama All over europe Competitions A question would be posed Various chambers composed and performed answers Answer form: allegorical drama Outdoor drama contest Stage clear connector to elizabethan stages After 600 years of religious theater it looses popularity Church is weakened by internal conflicts Learning had been thriving outside the church Spirit of theological/philosophical questioning (not helped by the plague) Henry VIII splits with Rome in 1534 and starts his own new religion Elizabeth I forbade all religious plays in 1558 (though we’ll see how the tradition continued to thrive in Spain in a few weeks)
- A word about the east In 330 CE Emperor Constantine moved the capitol of Rome to a city he had built on the Bosporous; the empire splits; then Rome falls in 476 CE. For nearly a millenium the eastern half of the Holy Roman Empire thrives (falling in 1453 to the Turks) Interesting blend, culturally speaking, of ancient Greece, ancient Rome, and Christianity There is little information about the theater that was presented in this time but the glimpses suggest a rich theatrical life throughout the empire (and we know the games continued). One of the lasting effects of this era was the preservation of classical manuscripts. Including the Suda – a massive 10th century encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world – including many quotes and articles about ancient literary history that would have otherwise been lost to us A great source fpr the study of classic literary culture
- Early muslims showed a great respect for learning There were many universities (Oldest existing and continually operating educational institution in the world is the University of Karueein founded in 859 AD in Fez, Morroco) Preserved much of the heritage from Greece, Persia, and Egypt Many contributions made to medicine, philosophy, mathematics, and geography Created a brilliant and graceful civilization that made Europe seem barbarous by comparison Not so good for the arts
- Well, if you don’t count things like this Artists were forbidden to make images of living things Art becomes primarily decorative rather than representational This included acting Though there was one exception
- Origins questionable (east/west) though it appears to be indonesian or chinese in origin In the 16th century this became very popular with muslim turks Shadow theatre, with a single puppeteer creating voices for a dialogue, narrating a story, and possibly even singing while manipulating puppets