Art reflects mankind, in good and bad, in glory and horror. Art is essentially, an imitation of life at large, painted to mirror the beautiful and the tragic. Art can take several forms, and literature is one of them, intricately painting worlds with lavishly worded strokes. Every age produces its spectrum of art, the signature to its identity, defining the mainstream and the undercurrents of the period.
Elizabeth’s Reign and the Onset of Drama: a Brief Overview
The Elizabethan age is often recalled as the most glorious and celebrated age in the history of England. Be it in terms of prosperity or peace, England was in full bloom, under the rule of Elizabeth the First. It seemed as if England, “had risen from sleep”, into, “strength and invincibility”, as critics have remarked. With progress, in all spheres; national, political, social, economic, and cultural, England was moving forward in giant leaps. The people of the Elizabethan age felt free, and the fervour of this sense of liberty galvanized the people’s artistic and scientific sensibilities, of which the Renaissance had already sowed the seed.
The free and tolerant atmosphere of the age fueled the literary passions of the people and the result was the production of awe-inspiring poetical and dramatic pieces by several poets and dramatists. Drama was the most flourishing and popular genre of the age. In all its glory, Elizabethan drama broke away from all the pre-existing notions and forms of dramatic representation. Whether it was the classical Aristotelian rules or the models of the miracle, mystery, and morality plays, Elizabethan drama introduced a new kind of vivacity and representation, closer to life. This found its flowering in the “University Wits”, who understood the stage and the taste of the audiences. These included John Lyly, Robert Greene, George Peele, Thomas Nash, Thomas Kyd, and the most renowned Christopher Marlowe. The University Wits cleared the ground for dramatic development and it is often said that they paved the way for Shakespeare, the most extraordinary dramatist known to date.
A Brief Introduction to Shakespeare
Shakespeare, the greatest-known playwright in the history of English drama, and literature brings the best of what drama has to offer, to the table. Born in Stratford, London, during the Elizabethan age, William Shakespeare closely worked in the dynamic theatre line. The influence of this was huge, and it slowly became evident as Shakespeare eventually became the best-known playwright of his age and the ages to come. His works in poetry and drama are the prime example of what literature is capable of as he efficiently makes us view and contemplate the interplay between reality and fantasy, through his engaging plots, life-like characters, witty dialogue, and universal themes, along with the beautiful stylistic elements that he wealthily puts to use.
What Shakespeare’s plays have, goes beyond entertainment. It is a reflection of our joys and sorrows, our failures and successes, and our best and our worst. His works offer the perfect blend of the romantic and tragic literary essence, garnished with wit to bring about entertainment and introspection with the efficient portrayal of social evils, norms, etc. along with the complexities of love, power, and fate. His famous plays include 'Hamlet', 'Romeo and Juliet', 'King Lear', 'Macbeth', 'A Midsummer Night’s Dream', 'Othello', 'The Tempest', etc.
Shakespeare has about thirty-eight plays to his credit, including the ones he wrote, modified, or collaborated on, all of which encompass features and characteristics of his age, and also incorporated patterns and practices of his predecessors and contemporaries, but elevated them to unreal aspects. Shakespeare, who had no university education as such, had an irrefutable reputation regardless, undoubtedly owing to his exceptional prowess as a man of words, observational dexterity, and keen understanding of human nature. His unparalleled genius is visible in his works and a careful study of his works gives us an insight into his dramatic flair. Other than this, we can also find a perfect representation of the picturesque ideals of his age in his works the prominent features of the English Renaissance Theatre, or the Elizabethan Theatre, are excellently brought out in his works, with a curious intricacy.
Elizabethan Dramatic Edge in Shakespeare’s Works
Popular Elizabethan Dramatic Techniques in Shakespearean Drama
The Rose, the Swan, and the Globe theatres, among others, were opened rapidly between 1587 and 1598 because drama became an integral part of the national identity of Elizabethan England. The theatres were open and plays were performed during the day. Theatres were the best entertainment and the Queen herself was the most significant patron, so drama in Elizabeth’s time flourished like never before, bending and creating conventions, breathing life into the stage. Most of the theatrical conventions were very recognizable and most of the plays followed similar formats and patterns but each one had something fresh to offer.
(trigger warning: mention of death, and suicide)
One of the commonly used stage conventions was the use of soliloquy, a means of presenting the innermost thoughts of the characters, effectively creating dramatic irony and suspense. This is very artfully employed by Shakespeare in many of his plays, and one of the best examples can be seen in “To be or not to be…” which is the soliloquy given by Prince Hamlet in 'Hamlet', a speech in which he contemplates death, suicide, and life. Other than this, we consistently also note the use of aside, a technique in which a character speaks to the audience, 'on the side', and gives them valuable information concerning the play or the characters. An example of this can be found in Shakespeare’s 'Macbeth', “Time thou anticipat’st my dread exploits…… The firstlings my hand.” This aside gives us an insight into Macbeth’s character as he transitions into a violent and ambitious man.
Many plays had an added feature of using a play within a play, like in 'Hamlet' where Prince Hamlet brings a troupe to perform in front of King Claudius, playing out the scenes that happen in the main plot as a cunning way to reveal the truth about his father's death. This ingenious device is known as a "play-within-a-play" or a metadramatic technique and is a clever way to let the characters explore the play and themselves. Other than these, Shakespeare also made use of dramatic devices like eavesdropping in 'Much Ado About Nothing', 'Twelfth Night', 'Romeo and Juliet', etc. This technique added humour or seriousness to the scenes and the plot, heightening the overall mood of the scenes.
Most of the roles during that time, were played by men or boys, as female participation was legally prohibited and so cross-dressing was often seen in the plays, like a man would usually play the role of Viola in 'Twelfth Night' by Shakespeare. This also led to the use of cross-dressing as a technique in the plays, where a female character would often disguise herself as a male to fit in a required setting. Examples include Viola disguising herself as Cesario in 'Twelfth Night', Portia as Balthazar in 'The Merchant Of Venice', Julia as Sebastian in 'The Two Gentlemen of Verona', etc. This often created humorous situations and elevated the overall experience of the play.
The Elizabethan theatre was mostly graced by three main genres of drama; namely the Tragedies, Historical Plays, and the Comedies. The Tragedies were undoubtedly really popular among the audiences and the playwrights. The main features of these tragedies included themes of revenge, intense inner conflicts, the presence of ghosts, etc. The Tragedies usually followed in the footsteps of the Roman playwright Seneca, whose tragedies were driven by bloody revenge, murder, and betrayal and often employed sensational elements of the supernatural and things like torture. This was introduced to the theatre by Thomas Kyd in his 'Spanish Tragedy' and perfected by Shakespeare with his fantastic characterization and several dramatic tools. His 'Hamlet', 'King Lear', 'Macbeth', and 'Othello' are perfect examples of this, with ghastly and thrilling murders, intensely melodramatic scenes, and passionate display of emotions. 'Hamlet' and 'Macbeth' also put supernatural horror to use, with the ghost in Hamlet and the witches in Macbeth.
The History or the Chronicle plays are plays that draw their plots partially or entirely from historical events. Shakespeare wrote at least ten plays of this type. They either ended in triumph which came at a price, or in catastrophe. Shakespeare’s history plays were primarily set in medieval times but usually presented a kind of social commentary. This genre includes his 'King John', 'Henry IV' (Part I and II), 'Richard II', 'Henry V', 'Henry VI' (Part I, II and III), and 'Henry VIII'.
The greatest variety was found in the third genre of the plays, namely the Comedies. There were tragic comedies, romantic comedies, etc. and examples of both can be noted in the works of Shakespeare. His comedies usually followed young people in love and their misunderstandings which were portrayed with humorous and fun situations. They had a dream-like atmosphere that mirrored the free spirit of his age but were essentially rooted in a realistic temperament, coated with a romantic and fantastic tint. They had unique employment of wit and carefully laid situations to add to the dreaminess of the plots. We also see elements of farce in some of them. Some of the popular comedies of Shakespeare include, 'The Taming of the Shrew', 'A Midsummer Night’s Dream', 'As You Like It', 'Twelfth Night', etc.
Shakespeare is considered a romantic playwright. The Elizabethan drama which Shakespeare and his predecessors had produced, strongly reconstructed dramatic conventions, departing completely from the classical rules of ancient drama. It did not follow the unities of time, place, and action, the rigorous maintenance of subject, tone, and themes, and also opposed the lack of action on stage. Elizabethan drama sought independence from these rules and established its own rules, which manifest well in Shakespeare’s art. His drama made free use of variety in themes and tone. He blends the tragic and the comic, and nearly all the scenes in the action of the play were presented on the stage, despite the violence or other heavy elements. The unities are also frequently distorted, as we see subplots and underplots, and the stories extend over days and months, as opposed to the traditional one-day approach.
Another important element in the Elizabethan plays is the use of blank verse. The careful use of blank verse aids the display of passion-driven expression very artfully in the speeches of the characters of several plays by Marlowe and Shakespeare. The tone of these rises and falls with the feelings of the speaker, ably assisted by the blank verse. All of Shakespeare’s tragic heroes brilliantly use this; in the blank verse, in iambic pentameter, for instance, in 'Hamlet'. The syllables are very ingeniously used to create dramatic effect and the variations are very adeptly brought out by the use of caesuras or pauses, as in “But, woe is me, you are so sick of late, ../So far from cheer and your former state….”, a typical example of his blank verse.
We see this in many other works by him. To quote from 'Macbeth', “Tomorrow and tomorrow, and tomorrow…..The way to dusty death…”, where the blank verse is used without rhyme, in iambic pentameter.
Shakespeare's Legacy: A Reflection of Elizabethan Vivacity
The Elizabethan age was a time of transformation, a time during which the Renaissance ideals bloomed in a zealous temperament. The scientific and artistic tempo of the age was like no other, never seen before or after the age. It was a celebration of the human mind and what it's capable of expressing. The spirit of the age incited its people to take part in the celebration and be one with the expression of that vigour.
Drama flourished like it never had, and set a standard for the generations to come. Shakespeare defines the liveliness of the age in his works, through his beautiful and lifelike characters, scenic and romantic settings, witty dialogue, and the plentiful use of dramatic techniques. His drama is the epitome of what the Elizabethan age had to offer, carefully, but delightfully woven into a stunning tapestry. They explore love, revenge, ambition, fate, etc. beautifully stitching them with a blend of the tragic and the romantic.
In Shakespeare, we see the faultless portrayal of the typical dramatic conventions, themes, forms, patterns, and genres of the English Renaissance theatre. We can count on Shakespeare and his works to show us with felicitous and elaborate generosity of the Elizabethan age, the nature of its men, and the trends of the time.
Hence Shakespeare’s works become an absolute representation of his age.