Uploaded by Subrata Halder, Assistant Professor in English, Sivanath Sastri College, Kolkata, For more , feel free to contact through email address- subratahalder7878@gmail.com

1. UNIVERSITY WITS
PRESENTED BY
SUBRATA HALDER
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR IN ENGLISH
SIVANATH SASTRI COLLEGE, KOLKATA, W.BENGAL,INDIA
Email address- subratahalder7878@gmail.com

2. “University wits” refers to the notable
group of pioneer English dramatists
who wrote during the last 15 years of
the 16th century ( NEARLY 1585 -
1600)

3. The term university wits was not
used in their lifetime ,but was
coined by George Saintsbury, a
19th –century journalist and author.

4. MEMBERS
•Christopher Marlowe, Robert Greene,
and Thomas Nashe (all graduates of
Cambridge), as well as Thomas
Lodge and George Peele, John
Lyly ( of Oxford). Another of the wits,
though not university-trained,
was Thomas Kyd ( He graduated in
Merchant Taylor’s School)

5. COMMON QUALITIES
AMONG THEM
1. ALL YOUNG
2. LED BOHEMIAN OR UNCONVENTIONAL LIFE
3. ASSOCIATED WITH OXFORD OR CAMBRIDGE
UNIVERSITIES
4. ACQUAINTED WITH EACH OTHER
5. WITTY AND SCHOLAR
6. MERITORIOUS

6. COMMON FEATURES OF THEIR
WRITING
1) MAINLY DRAMATISTS
2) HEROIC THEME COMMON
3) GREAT FULLNESS & VARIETY COMMON
4) LONG SWELLING SPEECHESAND OFTEN BOMBASTIC
OR BIG WORDS WERE USED BYALL
5) HIGH SOUNDING LINESAND MAGNIFICENT EPITHETS
WERE USED BY THEM
6) THEIR THEME IS TRAGIC IN NATURE

7. JOHN LYLY(1554-1606)
In 1632 Blount published Six Court Comedies, the first printed
collection of Lyly's plays. They appear in the text in the following
Endymion (1591)
Campaspe (1584)
Sapho and Phao (1584)
Gallathea (1592)
Midas (1592)
Mother Bombie (1594)

8. John Lyly’s other works include
• Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit
• Euphues and his England
• Love’s Metamorphosis
• Endymion

9. Thomas Lodge ( 1558-1625)
• His dramatic work is small in quantity
• Rosalynde – his prose romance ( Shakespeare took
inspiration for his “ As You Like it”
• His plays are- The Wounds of Civil War and A Looking
Glass for London and England
• His pamphlet is – A Defense of plays

10. THOMAS NASHE ( 1567-1601)
1. Mainly a dramatist
2. He wrote “ The Isle of Dogs” for which he
was sent to prison. His other play is “
Summer’s Last Will and Testament”
3. His satire and prose romance “ The
Unfortunate Traveller or the Life of Jacke
Wilton”
4. Was a good prose writer

11. ROBERT GREENE( 1558-92)
• Famous play is - “Alphonsus, King of Aragon” (
1587) is an imitation of Marlowe’s “Tamburlaine”
• Other plays are- Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay,
History of Orlando Furioso and Scottish History
of James IV.
• He wrote “The Wounds of Civil War” in
collaboration with Thomas Lodge
• His prose romance is- “ The Triumph of time”
from which Shakespeare derive “ The Winter’s
Tale”

12. THOMAS KYD( 1558-1594)
One of the most important members of the
university wits
A friend of Marlowe
Famous play is “ The Spanish Tragedy” . It is
Senecan in spirit, not in form. Its horrific plot,
involving murder, frenzy, and sudden death, gave
the play a great and lasting popularity.
His tragedies are- “Solyman and Perseda” and
“Cornelia”
His “ Cornelia” is an adaptation in Senecan
tragedy

13. GEORGE PEELE( 1558-92)
His plays are-
“ The Arraignment of Paris ( A Pastoral play and a
kind of romantic comedy),
“ The Old Wives’ Tale”,
The Love of King David and Fair Bethsabe
( Biblical play)
The Famous Chronicle of King Edward I
( Historical Play)
He used Blank verse

14. FIRST EXAMPLE OF BLANK VERSE
“A lion now he stalks with fiery glare;
Then as a tiger, who by chance hath spied
In some purlieu two gentle fawns at play
Straight couches close; then, rising
His couchant watch, as one who chose his ground
Whence rushing he might surest seize them both
Gripped in each paw;(PARADISE LOST BOOK IV)

15. 2nd example of BLANK VERSE
Re-enter HELEN
Faustus: Was this the face that launched a thousand ships
And burnt the topless towers of Ilium?
Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss. [Kisses her.]
Her lips suck forth my soul; see where it flies!—
Come, Helen, come, give me my soul again.
Here will I dwell, for Heaven is in these lips,
And all is dross that is not Helena.

16. CHRISTOPHER MARLOWE( 1564-93)
• Marlow’s plays are all tragedies
• His four major plays are-
Tamburlaine
The Jew of Malta
Dr. Faustus
Edward II
His other plays are
“Dido, Queen of Carthage” and “The Massacre of Paris”
His non-dramatic poetry- "Hero and Leander”, “The
Passionate Shepherd”
(more next ppt)

17. • Shakespeare is supposed to have been influenced by him
in Hentry VI, Titus Andronicus and Richard III
• He is the master of blank verse.
• His poetry influenced Spenser also.
• He died in a tavern fight with his friends at the age of 29

18. THANK YOU FOR ENJOYING THE
SLIDE