Lecture 01 - Introduction to William Shakespeare and Shakespearean Studies

Added: 2026-05-12

[00:00:21]Welcome learners to lecture one uh of this 4 weeks online course on understanding Shakespearean drama tragedy and comedy. I am Shakha Singh, assistant professor at the department of English at the faculty of arts of Banaras Hindu University. In today's lecture, we will delve into the background of Shakespearean studies and uh we will also have a look at the Shakespearean theater conventions.

[00:00:49]Briefly speaking, today's lecture objectives are the political, social, religious conditions that prevailed in the times of Shakespeare. We will also look at the effects of Renaissance and the popular beliefs that prevailed uh in the age of Shakespeare. We will also be looking at Shakespearean theater convention. So we will also be discussing the emergence of the playhouses, the players, the playing companies, the audience and the patrons who were influential in the rise of theater and professionals like William Shakespeare. Let us begin today's lecture with an interesting anecdote that took place in 1594. In 1594, Rodrigo Lopez, the physician general of Queen Elizabeth, was accused of poisoning the queen. He was put on trial. He was found guilty and he was condemned to death. This particular incident created a huge controversy in the Elizabethan society because not only Lopez was an immigrant from from Portugal but he was also a person who had recently converted from uh Jewish religion to Christianity.

[00:02:04]This incident rad lot of controversies and it created a deluge of uh criticism and bitter remarks on uh the Jewish people who were residing uh in England.

[00:02:18]This incident could be a factor that led Shakespeare to think of a character like Shillock in the play The Merchant of Venice. It could also be that this uh incident triggered certain ideas uh regarding the nature of uh the Jewish immigrant uh as a victim and as a perpetrator in uh the line in the land of England.

[00:02:44]This incident throws light on the intricate ways in which Shakespeare used historical events, historical characters, events taking place in his time into his play to adapt them and give them a subtle political and cultural bent uh to uh his plays. We also need to remember that these references often come up in Shakespeare's plays and a good knowledge of the social political background of Shakespeare's times is very important for us to properly understand and interpret his plays. Let us take a look at the age of Shakespeare. Briefly speaking, the age of Shakespeare would begin in 1558 and end in 1625.

[00:03:33]This particular time period encapsulates the reign of two different rulers, Queen Elizabeth and King James I. This period is considered to be the golden history is considered to be the golden period in the history of uh English theater and English literature. Many changes in the field of politics, economy, religion and uh intellectual and cultural fields laid the foundation of a future England. This period also resulted in the emergence of some of the most famous playwrights, poets, writers and uh uh pamphlet pamphleteers such as uh Christopher Marlo, Francis Bacon, Edmund Spencer, Sir Phillip Sydney and so on. Let us also take a look at the social conditions that prevailed in Shakespeare's times. If you look at the screen, there are three classes that were predominant in the times. So we had the nobility and the gentry who were at the top. They were known for their lavish lifestyle. They were the patrons to art and literature and they were the ones who controlled the court and politics in Queen Elizabeth's times.

[00:04:47]They also continued to dominate the court and politics in James's times. We also had the merchants and trade mens, a group of people rising and emerging under Queen Elizabeth, mostly due to the rise of capitalism and imperialism.

[00:05:06]These people mostly professed Puritanism, a distinct sect within Christianity. They were known for their wealth and influence and they were slowly making their mark in Elizabeth's court. We also had the peasants and laborers who formed the majority of the population. These people were often exploited and poor but they found uh some pleasures in popular entertainment and seemed to be very interested in theater and performances. We next come to the political conditions that uh dominated the age of Shakespeare. There is one thing that we need to remember is with the end of the rule of Henry VIII, the father of Queen Elizabeth, the middle ages or the dark ages come to an end in England. So essentially the rule of Queen Elizabeth which uh followed a brief period of strife and chaos is considered to be the beginning of the modern period in England. This period uh under the rule of Queen Elizabeth was a period marked with stability uh with peace with growth and development conditions that were rife for the development of art, culture and literature.

[00:06:21]We also have James I who followed uh Queen Elizabeth. He's known as James I of England and James IVth of Scotland.

[00:06:31]He was Elizabeth's nephew. And uh even though he was Elizabeth's nephew and even though his uh rule were mired in some political and religious tensions, he seemed to have done well uh in controlling the power politics uh of his times. This period is also marked as the period when British colonialism uh had its foundations in uh the first colony that was established in the western coast of North America. Uh this colony later came to be known as James Town and was established in 167 marks an important point in the history of British capitalism and imperialism. We also need to uh take a look at the court and the parliament. Uh during Elizabeth and James's times, the king or the ruler was the monarch. He had the absolute control over the parliament and the council. He was in charge of selecting members to the parliament. The parliament did play an important role but its role was limited on account of the absolute power of the king. We also find that a very distinguishing feature of Queen Elizabeth's court is the presence of gentleman courtiers.

[00:07:53]Something which only emerges in the court of Queen Elizabeth. These people were known for their social etiquette, excellence in martial arts and acquaintance with classical literature and learning. A good example of uh the gentlemanly courtiers will be Sir Philip Sydney who was present in Queen Elizabeth's court and seemed to be considered as one of the most ideal uh gentlemen uh existing in uh that period.

[00:08:22]A good example in the play the merchant of Venice is also presented in the character of Basano who is also described as a scholar soldier a gentleman quotier uh from an aristocratic uh background and who turns out to be the winning suitor in Porschia's lottery test. The next most influential section in the Elizabeth and Jacovian times was the cler was the church and the clergy.

[00:08:55]The church had lost its power to a considerable extent under Henry VII's rule and by the time Elizabeth comes to the throne, the church is only a mere token of its past glory. we find uh reformation singularly altering the role and agency of the church in England. The reformation uh let me remind you was a religious reform movement that took place in the first half of the 15th and later half of the 16th century. was mostly inspired by the teachings of Martin Luther, a German missionary who wanted to uh who wanted to purge the court of the corruption and vices that had emerged in the early 15th century.

[00:09:45]These changes were also a result of uh the sentiments against political interference from outside and anti-immigration politics of Queen Elizabeth's times where people resented the interference of the Roman Catholic Church in their personal domestic matters. There was also an emergence of a feeling of nationalism and patriotism that governed these changes in the religious and political sphere in England. Next we come to the effects of the Renaissar on Elizabeth Nanjikov in England. Even though the origin of Renaissar is dated to mid 15th century, its effects were felt very late in England. Many scholars consider the Elizabethan times to be uh the flowering of Renaissar in England. To give you a brief introduction to the Renaissar, the term itself comes from the French language which means rebirth. It was an intellectual and cultural movement which was inspired by a revival in interest in classical learning especially Greek and Roman literature, art and philosophy.

[00:10:58]It its influence remained not limited to a revival in learning in classical literature but also an interest in vernacular forms of art and literature uh mostly impelled by the translations and adaptations that took place from the classical literature to vernacular and native art traditions. Thus this was also a period of a revival of vernacularism, indigenous uh art and learning in England and also in Europe.

[00:11:33]This period was also marked by an interest in science, technology and a curiosity for excavation and exploration of nature. Uh remember this was also the time when many of these gentlemanly courtiers and merchant adventurers were traveling to the different ends of the world not just for the purposes of knowledge but also to extend the influence of European culture and mercantile relations all around the world. We should also take a note of the popular beliefs in Elizabethan and Jacobian England. The Elizabeth and Jacobian society presents with us with a strange paradox. It was modern yet there were elements which were positively backward-looking. It was mostly a Christian society where the past beliefs and superstitions directly contrasted with the modern renaissance tendencies.

[00:12:31]We find the uh we find the society to be highly hierarchical and people believing in these natural hierarchies that existed in nature. Hence the king was considered to be superior to all the subjects. The father considered above all the other members of the household.

[00:12:52]Man again considered superior to women.

[00:12:56]Uh human beings placed above animals and so on. The Europeans or uh the Elizabethans and Jacobians also believed in the idea of humors uh which they believed regulated the character the character and tendencies of a human being. These humors were essentially bodily fluids which uh in ideal state remained in a balanced proportion but when uh distortions creep in it severely affects the character of the person. So depending on the humors the person can be flegmatic coleric sanguin or melancholic. A good example of these humors again can be presented in the play The Merchant of Venice where in the initial scene uh in act one, scene one, Antonio presents himself as a man uh down with melancholia as a person who is probably infected with a melancholic uh disposition. Another interesting popular belief that prevailed during this time was the idea that man is created in the image of God and that he has the ability and power to control all other elements of nature and creations of God. It was also believed that uh human beings tussle with their fate and destiny.

[00:14:21]However, it is their free will that usually triumphs over the scripted fate.

[00:14:27]The Elizabethans and Jacobians also believed in the idea of free will as something which usually triumphs over their fate and destiny. We now come to the next important section of the lecture which is the theater conventions that prevailed in the age of Shakespeare.

[00:14:45]Theater follows stage conventions. What are these stage conventions? These are the instruments, the agents, the conditions under which a theatrical performance is staged. It includes things like the playh houses or the theater buildings, the sceneries, the backdrop, the costumes. It also includes the conventions of acting, uh the methods of acting. uh it also uh includes the audience, the patrons as well as the managerial companies that look after these performances. It must be remembered that during Shakespeare's times uh theater emerged as a secular and commercial enterprise quite different from the religious plays uh performed in the medieval times. Another thing important to note here is that acting emerged as a prestigious occupation as a professional occupation and shed its uh lineages of discrimination which it had experienced uh in the previous ages. You also need to look at the cultural heritage and pride uh of theater in England which sparked interest in all uh aspects of theater and performances. This was also the time when some of the most influential theater companies also known as playing companies came into existence who were again quite influential in building theaters and institutions that had a lasting impact on the theatrical history of England. The first uh element that we will take note of are the playing companies. Playing here refers both to light entertainment and acting.

[00:16:33]These companies were commercial enterprises run mostly by actors and financiers. These companies would then take control of the entire staging and management of the performances. They would hire playrights. They would hire actors. They would manage uh the performances of the play. They would have the last say on how uh the performance will be done and so on and so forth. Usually a playing company consisted of 10 to 12 professional actors and some boy actors who were who uh would play the role of female characters. These uh playing companies were usually associated with the noble patron so that uh they could enjoy certain amount of protection and uh financial help from time to time. The staging of a play required 2 to four weeks of time and it is believed that around 30 to 40 plays were performed in a year. The man the theater companies used both past plays and new plays and uh also adapted plays from other writers uh that were available to them. These are some of the famous playing companies of Shakespeare's time. So we have the Lord Chamberlain's men who later came to be recognized as King James who later came to be recognized as the king's men under the King James I. This is the company which is associated with William Shakespeare. We also have the Admiral's men uh which was led by the actor Edward Allen. It was the particular company, it was this particular company that performed and managed the plays of Christopher Marlo. We also have certain other important playing uh we also had certain other important uh uh playing companies like the Queen's men or the Earl of Leers's men who played an important role in the development of theater and theater conventions in 16th century England. Next we come to the actors also known as players. Playing was considered a dishonorable profession in the medieval times but it gained in cultural prestige during the times of Elizabeth and James. Acting was usually uh based on stereotypical and routine mannerisms or exaggerations in the early years of uh Elizabeth and later on it became more refined where actors would use uh details uh detailed mannerisms and psychological insights uh to present nuances in the reactions of the characters. Most of the roles were performed by men. In fact, all the roles were performed by men and even female characters were uh even female characters were represented by young boys.

[00:19:36]It was not until 1660 that women uh were welcomed on the stage in England. Some of the famous actors uh who dawned uh the stage uh in Elizabeth and James's times were Richard Burbage who was one of the leading actor of William Shakespeare's plays, Edward Allen, Will Kemp who was a comic actor usually uh playing the roles of the comic fool and uh later Nathan Field. The most important constituent of the theater system in Elizabeth and James's times is the structure of the Shakespearean playhouse. In the initial years, playing companies used existing buildings meant for bull baiting and other forms of entertainment for staging the plays. But in 1576, Richard Burbage, an actor uh came upon this idea to establish his own playinghouse. Hence we had hence the theater was established in 1576 which is considered to be one of the first uh theater houses one of the first professional theater house in England.

[00:20:49]Most of the theater houses had the same structure um which we will look at in the next uh slide. We also need to take a note of the location of these theater houses. Most of these theater houses were built on the outer banks of the Thes River in Surk because these places were considered to be vices. These places were considered to be den of vices and crimes. Uh it was also done to manage the law and order situation uh in England.

[00:21:22]Another important thing to remember is that a number of inns and guest houses were also at times converted into uh makeshift theaters. The first private theater, a private indoor theater came into existence uh during the reign of King James and uh this was the black friars theater. Let us also look at some of the important uh constituting elements of the Shakespearean playhouse.

[00:21:52]So a playhouse would usually consist of four different parts though there were other uh parts and spaces which we would for the sake of convenience avoid here.

[00:22:02]So we have the stage which is usually open to the sky. There is no lights, no background scenery and very little props or decoration. The area right in front of the stage uh was called the pit. This was the place reserved for the sundry and the common people. It had the lowest entry fee. It was usually crowded and noisy where people would stand and watch the play. This place was also sometimes uh littered with hawkers and sellers uh selling their fair to the crowd who has come to watch the place. Next included the public galleries. These were the these were the galleries surrounding the pit. They were accompanied with wooden seats where people from the middle class uh could come and sit and watch the play. These were relatively more expensive than the pit. Uh however, they provided some shade from uh the sun and rain. The most expensive seats in the Shakespearean theater belonged to the private galleries or the gentleman galleries. These galleries were mostly occupied by the nobility and the aristocrats. They provided an intimate space and uh were usually considered uh spaces for diances and sexual intrigues.

[00:23:25]uh they also had wooden seats and uh provided enough shelter from the prying eyes of the audience members. Sometimes these private galleries were also used to stage scenes from the play as is seen in uh the play Romeo and Juliet uh where Juliet appears in the balcony and Romeo is seen on the stage. Here the balcony scene is uh staged using one of these private galleries which were usually placed near the stage. In front of you is a imaginary representation of uh the Shakespearean theater. So if you look at the screen you can uh see the stage here which is surrounded by a sunken area which is the pit. It is surrounded by a building on all sides and the different uh galleries there uh are the places which were occupied by the middleclass men. The gallery closest to the stage is what we now regard as the private gallery or the gentleman's gallery. They were the most expensive uh seating. They were the most expensive seats at the theater. the galleries close uh to the stage on the uh floors above. These were the galleries that were used for uh staging different scenes from the play.

[00:24:52]Uh let me also take you through some of the important playhouses or theater houses during Shakespeare's times. So we have uh the theater which I already spoke about. We also have the curtain which was arrival to uh the theater. the rose where most of the Marlo's plays were staged, sworn uh which was famous for its background scenery. The Globe associated with William Shakespeare and the Lord Chamberlain's men. We also have the Black Friars Theater, an indoor private theater, very expensive, usually reserved for nobility and the upper classes. Let us now discuss the patronage system during Shakespeare's times. While theater was a commercial enterprise, selling tickets would not always ensure financial viability for the playing houses. Thus, these people needed patrons to fund their activities from time to time. Also, remember playing and acting was considered a certain was considered disreputable and were often seen with suspicious eyes. Therefore, they needed to associate themselves with certain important figures or dignitaries in the society so as to lend them uh a cultural so that to lend them uh a sort of a cultural standing in the society. The playwrights and actors usually dedicated their works to these noble patrons and in return they received gifts, money as well as cultural influence. Uh they associating with these noble patrons also also helped them attain a license to perform and especially during times of plague or lean uh months they could depend on these noble patrons to survive and sustain themselves. The audience of Shakespeare's times was an interesting mix of people from all walks of life.

[00:26:51]Like I said uh earlier, theater became secular and a commercial enterprise.

[00:26:58]Most of the performances were done for profit. The plays were usually performed in the afternoon. They would usually be very hastily presented to the audience.

[00:27:09]There were no intervals and the audience had to be very alert and uh receptive uh and receptive to the dialogues and costumes and nuances of the actors. One interesting fact that has been noted by many scholars is that the audience members of Shakespeare's times were much more lively, much more interactive, much more responsive than today's audience.

[00:27:35]They were also very keen in getting the nuances in word plays, figure of speech, metaphors, punts and other uh figures of imageries that the writers used. They were also very quick in getting the references whether political uh whether uh religious or whether cultural and they were also very adept in making themselves heard uh to the dramatist. In fact, many scholars and critics believe that it is the audience that made Shakespeare the genius as we know him.

[00:28:08]Thus, we have come to the end of today's lecture. It is important that we take a note of the background of uh Shakespeare before we delve into the place of Shakespeare. many social, political, religious and cultural uh matters and events inspired Shakespeare and helped him become the man that we came to recognize later on as a genius playwright in the history of English literature. We also uh need to think about the theater conventions, the stage conditions, the audience, the patrons, the structure of the playhouses and the management of the playing companies in order to envision uh Shakespeare writing in order to envision the influences on uh William Shakespeare and his uh playwriting skills. Thus, I hope today's lecture uh proves useful to you and you are inspired to further explore the background of Shakespeare and the theater conventions that ruled uh his skills at playwriting. Thank you.