Understanding Shakespeare
Summary
TLDRThis video script explores the enduring legacy of William Shakespeare, often referred to as The Bard, and delves into his writing techniques used to appeal to diverse audiences at the Globe Theater. It explains the use of prose and verse to entertain both the nobility and commoners, highlighting the importance of Shakespeare's ability to resonate with different social classes. The script also discusses the structure and significance of sonnets in his works, using 'Romeo and Juliet' as an example to illustrate the call and response pattern and the contrast between spiritual and sensual imagery. The video encourages viewers to appreciate Shakespeare's dense and layered writing, meant to be experienced through performance rather than just reading.
Takeaways
- 🎭 William Shakespeare is often referred to as The Bard, a term indicating his authority and headship in English literature.
- 👑 Shakespeare was highly regarded in his time, even being commissioned by Queen Elizabeth I and rumored to have worked on the King James Bible.
- 🏟️ The Globe Theater, where Shakespeare's plays were performed, had a unique structure with different social classes occupying different areas, influencing his writing style.
- 📜 Shakespeare's plays were written to appeal to a diverse audience, alternating between prose for the commoners and verse for the nobility.
- 🤹♂️ Prose was used for comedic relief and lower-status characters, making the plays accessible to the groundlings in the pit.
- 🎭 Verse was utilized for higher-class characters to engage the nobility with complex themes and vocabulary.
- 📝 Shakespeare's writing often switches between prose and verse without a constant standard, depending on the editor of the book.
- 📚 Sonnets are a key form of verse used by Shakespeare, characterized by a specific rhyme scheme, rhythm, and structure.
- ❤️ The use of sonnets in 'Romeo and Juliet' signifies a mature love, contrasting with the spiritual and sensual imagery throughout the play.
- 📖 Shakespeare's works are best experienced through performance rather than just reading, emphasizing the importance of the theatrical experience.
- 📚 The Norton anthology of Shakespeare's complete works is recommended for those interested in exploring Shakespeare's extensive contributions to literature.
Q & A
What is the significance of the term 'The Bard' in reference to William Shakespeare?
-The term 'The Bard' refers to a poet with authority and headship, similar to how presidents of clubs or universities are referred to with a lowercase 'b' compared to the President of the United States. In this case, 'The Bard' with a capital 'B' signifies Shakespeare's high regard and authority in English literature, indicating his status as perhaps the greatest English-speaking writer.
Why was Shakespeare commissioned by Queen Elizabeth I and King James I?
-Shakespeare was commissioned by Queen Elizabeth I to write plays that honored her family's lineage, including the famous histories of Richard III and Henry V. It's rumored that he was also commissioned by King James I during the production of the King James Bible to reconstruct and analyze the Psalms, reflecting his influence and the esteem in which he was held.
What was the challenge that playwrights faced when writing for the Globe Theater?
-The challenge was to entertain a diverse audience with vastly different social statuses, ranging from nobility to commoners. There was always the fear that either the nobility wouldn't endorse the play or the commoners would openly mock and heckle it during the live show.
How did Shakespeare adapt his writing style to cater to the different social classes in his audience?
-Shakespeare effectively altered his writing style from character to character and scene to scene. He used prose for comedic relief characters and those of lower stature, which resonated with the commoners, and verse for characters of higher class to entertain the nobility due to the greater working vocabulary and complex character development.
What is the difference between prose and verse in Shakespeare's works?
-Prose is made up of sentences and paragraphs without any rhyming structure, similar to normal writing today, and was usually attributed to characters of lower stature or for comedic relief. Verse, on the other hand, is poetry and was used for characters of higher class, offering a greater working vocabulary and complex character development.
How does the script describe the visual cue for when Shakespeare switches between prose and verse in his works?
-The script mentions that prose lines often run continuously from margin to margin, while verse is usually made up of narrower lines all aligned on the left, creating jagged right-hand edges determined by the end rhyme or rhythm. Editors might also indent every other line of poetry to align the end rhyme.
What are the three attributes that identify a Shakespearean sonnet?
-A Shakespearean sonnet can be identified by its rhyme scheme, rhythm, and structure. It consists of 14 lines with a specific rhyme scheme, predominantly written in iambic pentameter, and follows a structure of three quatrains followed by a couplet.
What is the role of the couplet in a sonnet?
-The couplet in a sonnet serves a vital role, usually arriving in the form of a grand conclusion to the theme or idea explored in the quatrains. It often provides a summary or a twist that wraps up the sonnet's message.
How does the use of spiritual imagery in the sonnet between Romeo and Juliet signify their relationship?
-The use of spiritual imagery, such as words like 'holy', 'saint', 'pray', 'sin', and 'faith', contrasted with the imagery of sensual body parts like hands and lips, signifies that their romance is not just a childish lusting but a higher form of love, indicating an equal partnership.
What does the repetition of the word 'sin' in the following quatrain of the sonnet suggest about Romeo and Juliet's relationship?
-The repetition of the word 'sin' four times in immediate succession might foreshadow that their romance is doomed from the beginning, hinting at the tragic nature of their love story.
What is the recommended resource for those interested in exploring Shakespeare's complete works as mentioned in the script?
-The script recommends the Norton anthology of Shakespeare's complete works, which is formatted clearly with history and information, making it a great resource for anyone looking to delve into Shakespeare's poems and plays.
Outlines
🎭 Shakespeare's Playwriting Mastery
This paragraph delves into the intricacies of Shakespeare's writing style and the historical context of his work. It highlights how Shakespeare was revered as 'The Bard' and his plays were commissioned by royalty, including Queen Elizabeth I and King James I. The paragraph explains the unique challenges of writing for the diverse audience at the Globe Theater, where both nobility and commoners were entertained. Shakespeare's ability to switch between prose and verse to cater to different social classes is emphasized, with prose used for comedic relief and verse for complex themes and character development. The paragraph also discusses the visual cues in the text that indicate a shift in writing style, such as the alignment of lines for verse.
📜 The Art of Shakespearean Sonnets
This paragraph focuses on the structure and significance of sonnets in Shakespeare's work, particularly the use of rhyme scheme, rhythm, and structure. It describes the 14-line structure of sonnets, consisting of three quatrains and a couplet, which often serves as a grand conclusion to the theme. The paragraph explains the iambic pentameter rhythm, characterized by ten syllables per line, divided into pairs. It also discusses how Shakespeare uses sonnets to convey the depth of love in 'Romeo and Juliet,' employing a call and response pattern to signify equal partnership. The spiritual and sensual imagery in the sonnets is analyzed, with words like 'holy,' 'saint,' 'sin,' and 'faith' contrasted with 'hands' and 'lips.' The paragraph concludes by emphasizing the performance aspect of Shakespeare's work, suggesting that his words are meant to be experienced rather than read silently.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Profane
💡Palmer's kiss
💡Saints
💡Pilgrim
💡The Bard
💡Globe Theater
💡Prose
💡Verse
💡Sonnet
💡Iambic pentameter
💡Call and response
Highlights
Shakespeare's works are often considered impenetrable due to their complex writing styles and historical context.
Shakespeare was highly regarded in his time, referred to as 'The Bard', implying authority and headship.
Queen Elizabeth I commissioned Shakespeare to write plays honoring her family's lineage, including 'Richard III' and 'Henry V'.
Shakespeare's plays were performed at the Globe Theater, which had a diverse audience from nobility to commoners.
Playwrights had to entertain a wide social spectrum, balancing the approval of nobility and the engagement of commoners.
Shakespeare's brilliance is evident in his ability to alter his writing style to resonate with different audience members.
Pros, or prose, was used for comedic relief and characters of lower stature, making the dialogue accessible to commoners.
Verse was attributed to characters of higher class, appealing to the nobility with complex vocabulary and themes.
Shakespeare's best lines are often in verse, showcasing his ability to please both immediate audiences and secure noble patronage.
The transcript explores the use of sonnets in Shakespeare's writing, characterized by a specific rhyme scheme, rhythm, and structure.
Sonnets typically consist of 14 lines with a specific rhyme scheme and are written in iambic pentameter.
The couplet in a sonnet often serves as a grand conclusion to the theme explored in the preceding quatrains.
Shakespeare uses spiritual and sensual imagery in his sonnets to convey the depth of romantic relationships.
The call and response pattern in 'Romeo and Juliet' signifies an equal partnership, setting the tone for their love story.
The use of the word 'sin' in the sonnet foreshadows the doomed nature of Romeo and Juliet's romance.
Shakespeare's writing is dense and multi-layered, requiring an understanding of the context and style to fully appreciate.
Shakespeare's works were meant to be experienced through performance rather than just read on the page.
The Norton anthology of Shakespeare's complete works is recommended for those interested in exploring his poetry and plays.
Transcripts
[Music]
if I profane with my unworthiest hand
this holy Shrine the gentler sin is this
my lips two blushing pilgrims ready
stand to smooth that rough touch with a
tender kiss good
Pilgrim you do wrong your hand too much
which manly devotion shows in this for
Saints have hands that Pilgrim's hands
do
touch and palm to Palm is the holy
Palmer's kiss have not Saints lips and
holy Palmer too I Pilgrim lips that they
must use in prayer oh then dear Saint
let lips do what hands do they pray
Grant thou lest Faith turn to despair
Saints do not
move though grant for prayer sake then
move not while my prayers effect I take
through childhood past schooling and
into adulthood we've been told time and
time again that William Shakespeare is
perhaps the greatest English-speaking
writer to ever live after all his
admirers and peers would refer to him as
The Bard Bard meaning poet and that's
Bard with a capital B implying Authority
and headship similar to the way
presidents of clubs or universities are
lower case compared to the president of
the United States or how Norse and Greek
gods are lower case compared to the
judeo Christian God Shakespeare was so
highly regarded in his time that he was
commissioned by Queen Elizabeth the to
write plays that honored her family's
lineage including the famous histories
of Richard III and Henry V it's even
rumored that he was commissioned by
Queen Elizabeth's successor King James I
6 during production of the King James
Bible to reconstruct and lyze the Psalms
so we've seen Shakespeare's continued
influence throughout history but when we
sit down to pour over the text ourselves
it feels almost impenetrable like it was
written in another language in order for
us to better understand the nuances of
Shakespeare's complex writing styles we
must first acknowledge the context in
which these Works were created in the
late 16th century Shakespeare wrote and
performed as a part of the Lord
Chamberlain's men a troop of actors that
established the famous Globe Theater on
the outskirts of London and it's when we
examine how the globe practically
functioned as a theater that we begin to
understand Shakespeare's writing style
and the reasoning behind it the Globe
Theater was one of the first playhouses
constructed in London it consisted of
three tiers of galleries overlooking the
stage below and a standing area on the
ground surrounding the stage called the
pit or yard nobility sat in the
galleries which consisted of wooden
benches and roofs to protect from
inclement weather while the commoners
would occupy the pit below that was the
hardest task for playwrights at the time
you had to entertain a single room
consisting of vastly different ends on
the social status Spectrum there was
always the fear that either nobility
wouldn't endorse the play or the
commoners would openly Mock and Heckle a
play during the live show that's where
Shakespeare's Brilliance begins to show
he knew how to effectively alter his
writing style from character to
character and scene to scene in order to
resonate with the diverse audience he
would accomplish this by fluctuating
between pros and verse Pros is what we
would consider normal writing today made
up of sentences and paragraphs without
any rhyming structure whereas verse is
poetry Pros was usually attributed to
the comedic relief characters as well as
characters of lower stature this allowed
the audience specifically the
Groundlings in front of the stage to be
quickly entertained in such a way that
they could understand what was being
said by the actors on stage that way
they were invested in the story
throughout which kept them from growing
restless and bored and actively booing
and throwing food on the stage verse was
usually attributed to the characters of
higher class which would entertain the
audience members of higher stature due
to the greater working vocabulary and
complex character development and themes
they would enjoy seeing characters on
stage that resembled themselves
ultimately Shakespeare understood that
he had to please the miners in the
immediate for the individual performance
but he also knew that without the
approval and finances from nobility the
entire play itself would collapse and
fail that's why a vast majority of his
best lines are written in a form of
verse now is the winter of our
discontent to be or not to be that is
the
question oh Romeo
Romeo with four of the room you you
won't find a constant standard for when
Shakespeare switches between pros and
verse in his works because we're now
reading a format that varies from book
to book based on that particular book's
editor but in every book there's usually
a visual cue for the audience telling
them when the style of writing is
Shifting since Pros is plain speaking
it's common for those lines to run
continuously from margin to margin while
verse is usually made up of narrower
lines all aligned on the left creating
Jagged right- hand edges determined by
the end Rhyme or rhythm depending on the
editor they might also indent every
other line of poetry to align the end
Rhyme now verse encompasses many sub
genres of poetry but the main genre that
Shakespeare utilized is sonnets sonnets
can be identified by three attributes
rhyme scheme Rhythm and structure this
14line rhyme scheme is broken down into
three quatrains followed by a coulet
here the couplet serves a vital role
usually arriving in the form of a grand
conclusion to the theme or idea explored
in the quatrains in this example Romeo
and Juliet build a flirtation towards
the couet conclusion of their first
kiss the rhythm of these sonnets are
predominantly written in I Amic
pentameter in this style each sonnet
line consists of 10 syllables divided
into five pairs referred to as I AMS or
I Amic feet an AM is a metrical unit
made up of one unstressed syllable
followed by one stress syllable an
example of this unique Rhythm would be a
heartbeat
beat and that Rhythm sounds like this if
I profane with my unworthiest
hand now Shakespeare isn't only using
sonnets to appeal to the higher class
audience members he's also establishing
character and story elements the use of
poetry between Romeo and Juliet tells
the audience that this isn't a childish
lusting but true love this is a higher
faded love and what's unique about this
particular Sonet in the long list of
Shakespearean sonnets is that it's
spoken by two people there's a call and
response pattern that signifies that
this romance is an equal partnership
notice the spiritual imagery Shakespeare
uses throughout the sonnet words like
holy Saint prey sin and Faith are
contrasted with the imagery of Sensual
Body Parts such as hands and lips which
can be used for both praying and kissing
if we look at the next quatrain
immediately following this sonnet and
their first kiss the word sin is used
four times in immediate succession
perhaps foreshadowing that this romance
is doomed from the very
beginning Shakespeare's writing is dense
and multi-layered which can make it
extremely difficult but it helps to know
what to expect and look for when reading
however remember that Shakespeare's
words were never meant to be read on the
page they're to be experienced through
performance good
Pilgrim you to wrong your hand too
much which manly devotion shows in this
for Saints have hands that pilgrims
hands do touch and palm to Palm is Holy
Palmer's kiss have not Saints lips and
holy Palmer too I Pilgrim lips that they
must use in
prayer well then dear Saint let lips do
what hands do I pray Grant
thou lest Faith turn to despair
Saints do not move go grant for prayer
sake then move not while my prayers
affect I
tank hey everyone thanks for watching my
latest essay I definitely stepped
outside my comfort zone on this one but
I knew from the very beginning of
launching entertain the elk that I
didn't just want to pinge and hole
myself into exploring TV and film but I
wanted to explore all things art and
entertainment so I hope you're walking
away having a little more respect for
Shakespeare than you already did and are
maybe even inspired to pick up some
Shakespeare and read it again or for the
very first time I wanted to recommend
the Norton anthology of Shakespeare's
complete works I referenced this
countless times when making this essay
if you go to the link below in the
description it'll take you right there
you can pick it up it's great everything
is format Ed very clearly there's
history and information in here and it's
just a really great read to see
everything poems and plays wise of
Shakespeare so I can't recommend it
enough and if there was any footage or
music featured in this video that you
would like to see more please check the
description box below I'll have
everything laid out there for you thanks
again everyone for watching and I will
see you next time thanks
Voir Plus de Vidéos Connexes
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English Unit 1 - Summary of the Monologues from 'Romeo and Juliet' by Mrs. Reena J Monteiro
What's the difference between Verse and Prose?
Introduction to The Seven Ages of Man by William Shakespeare
Shakespeare was the First Gangster Hip-Hop Artist | Doug Rappaport | TEDxEdgemontSchool
Juliet: Character Analysis
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