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Humanities 3IV. Skepticism and Self-Knowledge

Lecture 15

The Price of Liberty

Outline

• Shakespeare’s England

• Shakespeare and the Theatre

• Historical Background to Julius Caesar

• What’s at Issue in the Play

• Shakespeare’s Language

Elizabeth I (reigned 1558-1603)

Elizabeth’s Reign• Elizabeth comes to the throne unexpectedly at a

young age (25)• As an unmarried woman, her authority is

vulnerable from the start. Throughout her reign,she brilliantly (and ruthlessly) controls thepowerful men around her

• Religion and a powerful Spain are constant threats• England defeats the Spanish Armada in 1588; this

brings Elizabeth enormous popularity• The cult of the queen (virgin, warrior, goddess)

grows (think Botticelli’s Pallas Athena)

Elizabeth to her People

“I know I have the body but ofa weak and feeble woman, butI have the heart and stomachof a king, and of a King ofEngland too, and think foulscorn that Parma or Spain, orany Prince of Europe shoulddare to invade the borders ofmy realm.”

Final Years• Elizabeth faced one of her last threats from Robert

Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex (b. 1565), whoearlier had been one of her favorites

• He wins glory fighting the Spanish, but fails whengiven the task of suppressing rebellion in Ireland

• Against the queen’s orders he returns to England;a series of legal proceedings ensue to reduce him;he resists and ultimately leads a troop of hisfollowers to force an audience with the queen

• He is arrested for treason, convicted and beheadedon February 15, 1601

England under James I• Son of Mary, Queen of Scots (daughter of Mary of

Guise, widow of Francis I of France) and her secondhusband Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. Descendent ofMary Tudor, the sister of Henry VIII.

• Ruled Scotland as James VI from 1563-1603, whenhe ascended to the throne of Great Britain,succeeding Elizabeth I.

• James’ parent were Roman Catholics; he was raiseda Protestant.

• With his wife, Anne of Denmark, he fathered threesurviving children, including Charles who succeededhim in 1625 and was executed in 1649.

The Divine Right of Kings• Prior to ascending to the English throne, James

wrote two works in which he laid out his view ofthe absolute authority of monarchs.

• He presents the view in his speech to Parliamentof March 1609.

• The issue is whether the king’s policies andrequests for funds are subject to the approval ofparliament or whether parliament assembles onlyto hear and assent to the king’s intentions.

Kings as Gods• Kings are not only “God’s Lieutenants” on earth,

but are in effect gods themselves:• Kings are justly called Gods, for they exercise a

manner or resemblance of divine power on earth.• Kings have, under the “law of nature,” paternal

authority (Patriam potestem), which is “the powerof life and death” over their children.

• As the head of the natural body (the nation), theking has the power of directing all the members ofthe body to that use which the judgment of thehead thinks best. (p. 106)

Shakespeare and the Theatre• Around 1585 Shakespeare leaves Stratford and

joins a company of players as a minor actor andplaywright

• Between 1590 and 1611 he composes as many as40 plays, as well as 154 sonnets and several othermajor poems

• 1599: Globe Theatre, in which Shakespeare is aninvestor, opens; Julius Caesar written andperformed

• 1603: James I issues a patent to Shakespeare’stroupe, who rename themselves the “King’s Men”;plague kills at least 33,000 in London

The Plays:1623Folio

Edition

Place of the Theatre in London• Plays offer an occasion for the people to

congregate and express their views; they alsoshape public opinion. For these reasons they aredangerous in the eyes of the authorities

• Playwrights are subject to censorship, suppression,imprisonment and worse, if deemed to be covertlypolitical

• Shakespeare is careful not to step over the line andis able to stay on good terms with the monarchy.He problematizes the understanding of politicsand morality without challenging the status quo.

Shakespeare’s Aims• Entertainment: plays are pitched simultaneously to

the people (lots of low humor) and noble, educatedaudiences (including the sovereign)

• Address the issues of the day: the idea of theEnglish nation (historical plays); the conflict amongvalues (e.g. honor and loyalty)

• Most originally, the enactment of psychologicalconflict; in S’s greatest works, the play mirrors themind of a character struggling to act as the situationrequires (most famously, Hamlet)

Cassius to Brutus (1.2)

And since you know you cannot see yourselfSo well as by reflection, I your glassWill modestly discover to yourselfThat of yourself which you yet know not of.

Julius Caesar• The production of Julius Caesar occurs at a moment

in English history when people are growing anxiousabout Elizabeth’s reign. The play dramatizes topicalquestions: What allegiance is owed to a ruler? Howfar must a ruler go before that allegiance can bebroken? How are honor and loyalty to be balanced?

• S. is able to address these questions through JuliusCaesar because he is not a lawful king; he hasusurped power. The question of what is permissiblein defense of the republic does not arise in England.

Julius Caesar: Main Characters

• Julius Caesar• Calpurnia: wife of Caesar• Plebeians’ Tribunes: Flavius, Marullus• Conspirators: Cassius, Brutus, Casca, etc.• Allies of Caesar, who form triumvirate after

his death: Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony),Octavius Caesar, Marcus Lepidus

History of the Roman Republic• Founded in 509 BC, after defeat of last king• Republic governed by two consuls, elected

annually, and the senate• Power divided between the patricians (ancient

noble families) and the plebeians (includingproperty owners who lack noble status)

• Throughout the history of the republic conflictbetween the classes is a constant

• Crucial is the power of the army and the generalswho command it; for this reason, the army is notallowed within the borders of the republic

First Triumvirate• 59 BC Three generals, Caesar, Pompey and

Crassus make private agreement to share theconsulship

• 53 BC Crassus killed in battle• 51 BC Caesar conquers Gaul and publishes The

Gallic Wars• 49 BC Pompey granted dictatorial powers

(supported by “Optimates”= Patricians); Caesarcrosses the Rubicon and marches on Rome;Pompey flees with Optimates to Egypt

• 48 BC Caesar arrives in Egypt: Pompey killed;affair with Cleopatra

Roman provinces in 44 BC

Background to Julius Caesar• 44 BC (actually October 45): Julius Caesar returns

to Rome after quelling a revolt led by the sons ofhis former rival Pompey

• He is hailed by some, but other resent thecelebration because triumphs are reserved forvictories over foreign enemies

• February 44: C. named “perpetual dictator”;offered crown by M. Antony, but C. refuses

• March 15 (the Ides of March): Caesar assassinatedby conspirators

Issues in Julius Caesar• Caesar has amassed too much personal power and

has taken on the trappings of a king; some want tomake him king

• Other Romans cling to the ideal of the republic,and see only one way to preserve it: kill Caesar

• The drama of the play centers on the psychologyof Brutus, a noble of unimpeachable character

• Brutus’ choice can be seen as a judgment on thelegitimacy of the act, yet it is an act that willdestroy him. That is the essence of the play as atragedy

Caesar above himself

• Flavius: “These growing feathers pluck’d fromCaesar’s wing / Will make him fly an ordinarypitch, / Who else would soar above the view ofmen / And keep us all in servile fearfulness.” (1.1)

• Cassius: “Why, man, he doth bestride the narrowworld / Like a Colossus, and we petty men / Walkunder his huge legs and peep about / To findourselves dishonourable graves…” (1.2)

Shakespeare’s Language

• Caesar: “Let me have men about me that are fat, /Sleek-headed men, and such as sleep o’ nights: /Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look; / Hethinks too much: such men are dangerous” (1.2)

• Casca: “but for my own part, it was Greek to me.”(1.2)

• Mark Antony: “Friends, Romans, countrymen,lend me your ears…” (3.2)