The Cultural Triumph of Queen Elizabeth I & Elizabethan Literary Achievements

1. THE RENAISSANCE 1485-1660 Part II Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

2. Succession of the Throne • Elizabeth I • Henry VIII’s daughter by his second wife, Anne Boleyn • Queen from 1558-1603 • Only twenty-five when she came to the throne • strong national unity and triumphant cultural achievement Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

3. Queen Elizabeth I • Had a sharp intellect and an excellent Renaissance education • Encouraged literary and artistic developments • Clever diplomat and a shrew, at times even ruthless, politician • Promoted peace and prosperity by steering a moderate religious course between Protestant extremism and the yielding to Catholicism Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

4. Queen Elizabeth I • Became an expert in foreign affairs • used her unmarried status to benefit England • England’s victory in 1588 over the Spanish Armada (the strongest naval force of the age) marked the culmination of Elizabeth’s authority in a country that had become, in less than a century, one of the most powerful in the world Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

5. Elizabethan Literary Achievement • Sir Philip Sidney • 1554-1586 • Living embodiment of the ideal Renaissance gentleman • Known for his political ideas, military prowess, personal charm and literary ability Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

6. Elizabethan Literary Achievement • Edmund Spenser • 1552-1599 • Saw himself as a scholar-poet • The Faerie Queene • dedicated to Queen Elizabeth • celebrates and assesses the values and achievements of her reign Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

7. Elizabethan Literary Achievement • Drama • Greatest and most distinctive achievement of Elizabethan literature • Elizabethan drama grew from a fusion of native English and classical traditions • The triumph of Elizabethan drama is a result of the triumph of dramatically spoken English • Elizabethan stagecraft was rudimentary and sketchy Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

8. Elizabethan Literary Achievement • Public Theaters • first public theater erected in Shoreditch, an area just outside the London city limits, in 1576 • Others were soon built in Southwark across the river Thames • The Globe • Home theater of Shakespeare’s company Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

9. The Globe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

10. The Globe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

11. The Globe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

12. The Globe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

13. The Globe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

14. The Globe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

15. The Globe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

16. The Globe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

17. Public Theaters • All walks of life made up the audiences • Nobility given a special seat right on stage • Sophisticated (i.e. law students) would have bought a seat under the roofs in the gallery • Less well-off would fill the “pit” • Would eat, drink, hiss, catcall, and applaud Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

18. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes • The most striking feature of Elizabethan artistic taste is a delight in elaborate pattern and complicated ornament • fantastically decorated gowns • intricate designs of Elizabethan buildings and gardens • in musical forms such as the madrigal • poetic forms like the sonnet or the sestina Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

19. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gowns Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

20. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gowns Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

21. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gowns Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

22. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gowns Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

23. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gowns Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

24. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Architecture Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

25. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Architecture Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

26. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Architecture Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

27. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gardens Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

28. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gardens Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

29. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gardens Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

30. Elizabethan Taste and Attitudes:Gardens Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

31. Elizabethan World Picture • Elizabethans viewed the world as a vast, unified, hierarchical order, or “Great Chain of Being,” created by God • Every existing being or thing was ranked within a category in the chain • Categories were ranked by the attributes of their members, from the lowest group (all matter and no spirit) to the highest group (all spirit and no matter). • Inanimate things • Plant and animal kingdoms • Human beings (above animals because the possession of souls and free will) Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

32. Elizabethan World Picture • As each group had its place in the chain, so each member had its place within the group • Animals • Lion highest • Oyster lowest • Metals • Gold highest • Lead lowest • Plants • Rose highest Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

33. Elizabethan World Picture • This perfect order allowed for the doctrine of correspondences • Gold analogous to the oak (greatest of trees) or to the sun (first among stars) • The lion could represent a king or queen (head of a nation) • A rose could represent God • As a result, Elizabethan writers had a wealth of symbolic relationships, references, and allusions Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

34. The Jacobean Era • James I • 1603-1625 • Cousin of Elizabeth • Already King of Scotland • Son of Elizabeth’s former archenemy, Mary, Queen of Scots Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

35. The Jacobean Era • The reign of James I initiated a time of deep religious and political unrest in England • James I was an intelligent but morose man who possessed none of Elizabeth’s instincts for practical politics • During James I reign, the first group of English Puritans came to America because they did not feel free to practice their dissenting beliefs in England • The House of Commons asserted its growing power against the Crown and also gained the support of the people by refusing to vote taxes Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

36. The Jacobean Era • Deep philosophical and intellectual changes were beginning to undermine faith in the older Elizabethan world view • Copernicus (1473-1543) and Galileo (1564-1642) argued that the sun, not the earth, was at the center of the universe and that there might even be a plurality or infinity of worlds • These and other scientific investigations called into question the very basis of the divinely ordered, hierarchical universe Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

37. The Jacobean Era • Copernicus • 1473-1543 • Galileo • 1564-1642 Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

38. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Charles I • Son of James I • Took over the throne in 1625 • Lasted until 1649 Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

39. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • England was well on its way to civil war • Causes were both political and religious • The Puritan movement had developed into a powerful enemy of the Anglican establishment • Charles I tried to crack down on organized religious protest • He was met with violent opposition Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

40. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Civil War (continued) • In Parliament, the lawyers and landlords who controlled the House of Commons withheld more and more funds from the executive functions of government • Charles responded by trying to rule without the support of Parliament Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

41. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Civil War (continued) • His strategy did not work • Parliament had grown too strong • Parliament determined to call the king and his supporters to account • Executed Charles’ two biggest supporters • Charles left London and established his army at Nottingham • By August of 1642, England was in the throes of open civil war Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

42. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • The king’s supporters (rich, carefree, long-haired, reckless, young; called “Cavaliers”) were no match for the Parliamentary forces (grimly determined Puritans who wore their hair cropped off; called “Roundheads”) Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

43. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Oliver Cromwell • 1599-1658 • Commander of the Parliamentary forces • Molded his men into a fearless and disciplined New Model Army • known as “Ironsides” • fought fiercely because it saw itself as the agent of God’s vengeance and punishment Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

44. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • By 1649, the royalist forces had been defeated and King Charles was a prisoner • Charles was tried as an enemy of the English people • On January 30, 1649, he was beheaded Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

45. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Eventually, Cromwell took the power of the government into his own hand and established what he called the Protectorate (1653-1658) • Basically a military dictatorship • Cromwell died in 1658 Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

46. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Charles II • By 1660, the English people had had enough of harsh Puritan rule • Brought back Charles II • Charles I’s eldest son • Exiled in Paris • Ruled from 1660-1685 Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

47. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Charles II’s return called the “Restoration” of the monarchy • New Parliament was elected • England returned to the form of government it had known before the war Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

48. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Effects of the Civil War and Cromwell’s Protectorate • Parliament had a new sense of its importance in directing the affairs of the country • The old authoritarian and hierarchical pattern of Elizabethan and Jacobean England was reconstituted along looser, more tolerant lines Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

49. Disruption and Change1625-1660 • Effects of the Civil War and Cromwell’s Protectorate (continued) • England had more than ever before become a country of multiplicity and diversity regarding politics and religion • The Anglican Church and the monarchy had been restored to prominence • but no longer dominated English life as they had done before the Civil War Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance

50. Literature in a Century of Change • Drama • The early decades of the seventeenth century saw a continuation of the boundless creativity of the Elizabethan stage • In much Jacobean drama, a darker and more disturbing image of life appears • themes of violence, madness, and corruption come to the fore Geschke/British Literature Introduction to The Renaissance