hamlet_ppt_background.ppt背景.pptVIP

Historical and Social Background Hamlet Historical Background Elizabeth I reigned from 1558-1603 – victorious monarch, feminine, naval power, secured English boundaries, conquered the forces of evil, economic success, imperial expansion into the new world Reign – stability, prosperity, peace and order in contrast to the unrest and insecurity of an earlier age – Tudor dynasty Consider the impact of religion on any text from this period – Catholic or protestant Exploration Colonisation The reign of Elizabeth was a great age of English exploration and expansion led eventually to the foundation of the British Empire in the C17th C18th but brought England into conflict with Spain. The later years of Elizabeths reign also saw a long and expensive war in Ireland. Trade Most English trade was with Europe, but English merchants were looking further afield: 1581 the Turkey Company was formed, and in 1592 it merged with the Venice Company (founded 1583) to form the Levant Company. It had a patent from Elizabeth I for the exclusive right to trade in currants. The Company also purchased wine, cotton and silk from the Eastern Mediterranean. Social Hierarchy The King The nobility Gentlemen – of varying degrees Yeomen - English freemen who took on various roles of responsibility - jury service, church wardens etc. Free holders of land Tenants Skilled Labourers Landless Labourers (unskilled) Other work such as milkmaids, servants and millers were usually beholden to the Lord of the Manor. Social Background Ordered universe fixed by God (heavenly, human, natural) Class and hierarchy Christ as redeeming and the fall as part of God’s plan Behaviour attributed to astrological causes Duality of human nature Kingship – divinely ordained, Machiavelli Plague Puritanism The English Renaissance Dominant art form Literature, not visual art key literary figures now generally considered to be the poet Edmund Spenser; the philosopher Francis Bacon; poets and playwrights Christopher Marlo