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The Renaissance: Literary Background

The Renaissance: Literary Background. Writers no longer believed in fixed ideas of truth and morality ( imposed by the Church) but wanted to enquire about the role of man in the cosmos and asked themselves questions about the meaning of human existence .

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The Renaissance: Literary Background

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  1. The Renaissance: Literary Background • Writers no longerbelieved in fixedideasoftruth and morality (imposedby the Church) but wanted toenquireabout the roleof man in the cosmosand askedthemselvesquestionsabout the meaningofhumanexistence. • On onehandsociety wasbased on an idea oforder and stability(derivedfrom the Middle Ages), on the otherhandliteratureexpressed the intellectualuncertaintyof the age(typicalofanageoftransition).

  2. Renaissance Prose • In the Renaissance therewas no separationbetweendifferentfieldsofknowledge (religion, philosophy, science, maths) • Prose wasmainlyusedforphilosophical, scientific or religiousessays and sermons.

  3. The twomainworksof the periodwereaboutanideal society: • Utopia by Thomas More: written in Latin, itdescribes a society ruledbyharmony and justice, without private property, with free educationforeverybody. • The New Atlantisby Francis Bacon: a study on animaginary culture dominatedbyphilosophers. • 1611: the first English versionof the Bible (King James Bible) influenced the English language, literature and the developmentofreligion in England.

  4. Renaissance Drama • Renaissance drama (differentlyfrommedievaldrama) begantoexplore the humancondition and the manysidesofhuman nature • The greatestdramatistsof the agewere: • Christopher Marlowe, whosemostfamous play isDoctorFaustus: the protagonistis a symbolof the humanistrevolution, of man’s willtoreachabsoluteknowledge and to go beyond the limits set byGod. Faustussellshis soul to the devil in ordertoacquireunlimitedpower and knowledge.

  5. William Shakespeare • Accordingtomanycritics Shakespeare wasn’t only the mainplaywrightof the Renaissance butofalltimes. • Why? • First, becausehisplaysexploreeveryaspectofhuman life. • Furthermore,hewas the first toconsider the problemsofexistencewithoutfollowingfixedmodelsofthought. • Finally,hisworks formulate universal, unanswerablequestionsformen and intellectualsofalltimes (about the self, love, evil, sanity and madnessetc…)

  6. Elisabethantheatre • In the Middle Agesactorstouredaround, and performanceswerestaged on movableplatforms. • In the Renaissance playswereperformed first at court and then in propertheatres. All social classesenjoyeddrama. • The first permanenttheatrewascalled“the theatre”, builtby James Burbage just outside London in 1576. • The mostfamoustheatreof the timewasthe Globe (usedby Shakespeare’s company), built in 1599 on the South bankof the riverThames. In 1613 itburned (the fireoriginatedduring a performance of Henry VIII). Itwasthenrebuilt and closed down by the Puritansin 1642.

  7. The structureof the theatres • Theatreswerecircular or polygonal • Thereweregalleriesaround the theatrewalls, wherericher people sat. The seatscost 2 pennies. • Lowerclassesusuallystood in the arenawhichsurrounded the stage on threesides. Theypaidone penny. • The theatrewas open air , no artificial light, so performancestookplace in the afternoon. • The stageprojected out into the audience closecontactbetweenactors and audience (differentfromtoday). • The stage washalfcoveredbya roof, oftencalled “heavens”, sometimesusedtolower down heavyprops. Therewasalso a trapdooron the stage floor, fromwhichactorscouldsuddenlyappear.

  8. The Globe Theatre

  9. The production ofplays • No useofsceneryimportanceofcostume (more symbolicthanrealistic) • Therewereno women actors (youngboysplayedfemaleroles) • Useofformalspeech and gesture; rhetoric(=the art ofspeech) and metaphorswereoftenused (especially in monologues and soliloquies). • Mixtureoftragedy and comedy, ofcultivatedlanguage and indecentbehaviour, toentertain people fromdifferent social classes.

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