3. Stage Celebrity
• Actor for Lord Chamberlain’s
Men (London theater co.)
• Also > principal playwright for
them
• 1599> Lord Ch. Co. built Globe
Theater where most of Sh. Play’s
were performed
6. The Theater
• Plays produced for the general
public
• Roofless>open air
• No artificial lighting
• Courtyard surrounded by 3 levels
of galleries
7. Spectators
• Wealthy got benches
• “Groundlings”>poorer people
stood and watched from the
courtyard (“pit”)
• All but wealthy were
uneducated/illiterate
• Much more interaction than today
8. Staging Areas
• Stage>platform that extended into
the pit
• Dressing & storage rooms in
galleries behind & above stage
• second-level gallery> upper stage>
famous balcony scene in R & J
• Trap door>ghosts
• “Heavens”> angelic beings
9. Differences
• No scenery
• Settings > references in
dialogue
• Elaborate costumes
• Plenty of props
• Fast-paced, colorful>2 hours!
10. Actors
• Only men and boys
• Young boys whose voices had not
changed play women’s roles
• Would have been considered
indecent for a woman to appear
on stage
11. Elizabethan (QE1) Words
• An,and: If
• Anon: Soon
• Aye: Yes
• But: Except for
• E’en: Even
• E’er: Ever
12. QE1 Words (contin.)
• Haply: Perhaps
• Happy: Fortunate
• Hence: Away, from her
• Hie: Hurry
• Marry: Indeed
14. Blank Verse
• Much of R & J is written in it:
–unrhymed verse
–iambic (unstressed, stressed)
–pentameter( 5 “feet” to a line)
•ends up to be 10 syllable lines
15. Prose
• Ordinary writing that is not
poetry, drama, or song
–Only characters in the lower
social classes speak this way in
Shakespeare’s plays
–Why do you suppose that is?
17. Exposition
• The plot usually begins with
this:
–introduces>>>>
•setting
•characters
•basic situation
18. Inciting Moment
• Often called “initial incident”
–the first bit of action that occurs
which begins the plot
–Romeo and Juliet “lock eyes” at
the party
19. Conflict
• The struggle that develops
–man vs. man
–man vs. himself
–man vs. society
–man vs. nature
20. Crisis
• The point where the
protagonist’s situation will
either get better or worse
–protagonist>good guy
–antagonist>bad guy
21. Climax
•The turning point of the
story>everything begins
to unravel from here
–Thus begins the falling
action
23. Denouement
• The final explanation or
outcome of the plot
–If this is included in
literature, it will occur after
the resolution.
24. Tragedy (Shakespearean)
• Drama where the central character/s
suffer disaster/great misfortune
– In many tragedies, downfall results
from>
•Fate
•Character flaw/Fatal flaw
•Combination of the two
26. Metaphorical Language
• Comparison of unlike things >
–Paris standing over the “lifeless
body” of Juliet, “Sweet flower, with
flowers thy bridal bed I strew…”
–“Thou detestable maw…”Gorged
with the dearest morsel of the
earth…” Romeo
27. Dramatic Foil
•A character whose
purpose is to show off
another character
–Benvolio for Tybalt
•look for others in R & J
32. Monologue
• One person speaking on stage
> may be other character on
stage too
–ex > the Prince of Verona
commanding the Capulets and
Montagues to cease feuding
33. Soliloquy
• Long speech expressing the
thoughts of a character alone
on stage. In R & J, Romeo
gives a soliloquy after the
servant has fled and Paris has
died.
35. Pun
• Shakespeare loved to use them!!!
–Humorous use of a word with
two meanings > sometimes
missed by the reader because of
Elizabethan language and
sexual innuendo
36. Direct Address
• Words that tell the reader who is
being addressed:
• “A right fair mark, fair coz, is
soonest hit.”
• “Ah, my mistresses, which of you
all/ Will now deny to dance?”
39. Situational Irony
•An event occurs that
directly contradicts the
expectations of the
characters, the reader, or
the audience
40. Comic Relief
• Use of comedy within literature
that is NOT comedy to provide
“relief” from seriousness or
sadness.
• In R & J, look for moments of
comic relief that help “relieve” the
tragedy of the situation