Chapter 6: English Theatre from the Middle Ages to 1642

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Chapter 6: English Theatre from the Middle Ages to 1642

Because of wars and internal strife, England was scarcely affected by the Renaissance until the late fifteenth century. Since 1066, when England had been conquered by the Normans, its kings had also controlled extensive territories in France and had inter-married with French ruling families. In 1337 England laid claim to the French throne, thereby precipitating a lengthy conflict (often called the Hundred Years' War) that was to continue until 1453. For a time England seemed to be winning the struggle, especially after 1415 when Henry V was named regent and heir to the French throne. But after his death in 1422 and the appearance of Joan of Arc in 1429, the English rapidly lost control. By 1453 England held only Calais in France. At about the same time a struggle for the throne of England (the War of Roses) began between the rival houses of York and Lancaster. The conflict continued until 1485 when Richard m was defeated by the Earl of Richmond, who united the dissident factious and as Henry VII founded the Tudor line that ruled England until the death of Elizabeth I in 1603. The Tudors brought political stability and a strong central government to England.

EARLY TUDOR DRAMA

Although medieval theatrical practices continued to be dominant, the spirit of the Renaissance also began to be felt in England during the sixteenth century; After a few Italian humamsts came to England at the invitation of Henry VII, English scholars and writers began to develop an interest in ancient literature. The oldest surviving English interlude, Henry Medwall'sFulgens and Lucrece,produced at court in 1497, was written under the influence of humamsm. The new learmng also began to alter the morality play; as can be seen in MedwallsNature (c.1500), John SkeltonsMagmficence (c.1516), and John Rastell'sThe Four Elements (c.1518), all of which treat humamst subjects allegorically. . .

The 1580s also brought to a head the religious and political intrigues that surrounded Mary; Queen of Scotland. Mary (1542-1587), who was descended from Henry VII, had been queen of Scotland (from the time she was one week old) and briefly of France (in 1559-1560 as wife to Francis n), but had been coerced by Protestant forces to abdicate the Scottish throne. In 1568 she fled to England, where she be-came the focus for intrigues by Elizabeth's opponents among English Catholics. Elizabeth eventually agreed to Mary's execution in 1587. Mary's death and the defeat of the Spanish Armada made English Protestantism relatively secure.

But these events did not end religious controversy; for English Protestants were divided into many factions. The best known of the dissident groups were the Puritans, who thought the official Church of England adhered too closely to Catholicism in its ceremonies and governance. They took an even dimmer view of the professional theatre that was beginning to take shape, and launched attacks onit.The first major assault came in John Northbrooke'sA Treatise Against Dicing, Dancing, Plays, and Interludes(1577). This was soon followed by Stephen Gosson'sThe School of Abuse(1579). Both works railed in the harshest terms against the theatre as an instrument used by the Devil to en-courage vice and to take people away from honest work and other useful pursuits. The attack was answered by Thomas Lodge inA Defence of Poetry, Music, and Stage Plays(1579), and especially by Sir Philip Sidney inThe Defence of Poesy(1583), which argued that literature is the most effective instrument for teaching morality and moving people to virtuous action. Sidney's treatise is also noteworthy as the first major statement in English of the neoclassical ideal. It was to exert a strong influence on writers of the next generation, especially Ben Jonson. Although they were not able to suppress the theatre, the Puritans voiced the ideas that dominated the governing councils of many English towns, which for many decades opposed theatre companies.

These religious and political controversies affected drama in several ways. Because drama had been used as a weapon during the reigns preceding hers, Elizabeth in 1559 forbade playwrights to treat religious or political subjects. In addition, she demanded that production of the medieval cycles cease. Although compliance with the latter edict came only gradually; it had effectively silenced religious plays by 1575. Consequently; drama in general was secularized, although it continued to support the belief that a force beyond human control helped to shape human destiny;

Among the influences on this new secular drama was humanism as represented by schools, universities, and the Inns of Court: Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn, the Inner Temple, and the Middle Temple. Principally places of residence and training for lawyers, the Inns admitted young men, primarily recent graduates of Oxford and Cambridge, for further education. These wealthy and aristocratic students were taught music, dancing, and other graces, which were practiced in part through the presentation of plays. Most performances came during the Christmas "revels," which extended over a period of four weeks, but the Inns also mounted many other elaborate entertainments to honor their members, or on such special occasions as royal visits, or births and marriages in noble families. The audiences were aristocratic, well educated, and interested in the latest fashions in drama, both at home and abroad. The first English tragedy,CorboducorFerrex and Porrex,written by two students, Thomas Sackyille and Thomas Norton, was presented by the Inner Temple in 1561, with Queen Elizabeth in attendance. The subject, chosen from the legendary history of England, was developed in a pseudo-Senecan manner. The action is divided into five acts and treats the jealousy aroused between Ferrex and Porrex when their father, Gorboduc, decides to divide his kingdom between them. All of the principal characters eventually are killed, and their fate is used to point a lesson for England about the dangers of leaving uncertain the order of succession to the throne. Although the play now seems weak, it made such a deep impression that it had been printed five times by 1590. During Elizabeth's reign, interest at universities and schools also shifted from classical drama to plays based on English history or recent Italian works. By 1600 the influence of schools and Inns had waned considerably; but by that time they had performed a crucial role by familiarizing students with plays of other times and places and with effective dramatic techniques. When school-educated writers began to work for the professional troupes, English drama entered an era of greatness.

THE UNIVERSITY WITS

During the 1580s all the strands of drama began to coalesce, primarily because a group of educated men, commonly called "the University Wits," turned to writing for the public stage. The most important of these writers were Thomas Kyd, Christopher Marlowe, John Lyly; and Robert Greene.

Thomas Kyd (1558-1594) is remembered primarily forThe Spanish Tragedy (c.1587), the most popular play of the sixteenth century. Its reception established the vogue for tragedy; previously given almost entirely for aristocratic audiences. In telling his sensational story of murder and revenge, Kyd places all of the important events on stage. But while the play ranges freely through time and place, it uses such Senecan devices as ghosts, a chorus (one person), soliloquies, confidants, and division into acts. Most important perhaps, Kyd demonstrates how to construct a well-articulated plot to create a rapid, clear, and absorbing action. Although lacking in depth of characterization or thought,The Spanish Tragedyis a remarkable advance over preceding plays and established the vogue for "revenge" tragedy; of whichHamletwas to be the most lasting example. Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593), after obtaining a classical education at Cambridge, wrote a number of plays for the public theatre, includingTamburlaine,Parts 1 and 2 (1587-1588),Doctor Faustus (c.1588), andEdivard n (c.1592). The focus in Marlowe's plays is on the protagonist, around whom an episodic story is organized to illuminate his complex motivations.Edward nwas especially important in the development of the chronicle play; for with it Marlowe demonstrated how to construct a coherent story out of diverse historical events by rearranging, telescoping, and altering them to create a sense of causal relationships. Above all, Marlowe was a great poet and did more than any of Shakespeare's predecessors to perfect blank verse as a medium for drama. John Lyly(c.1 554-1606) wrote primarily for boys' companies catering to aristocratic audiences. His most characteristic works are pastoral comedies that mingle classical mythology with English subjects. His is a fairy-tale world in which troubles vanish at the wave of a magic wand. All but one of Lyly's plays were written in the carefully balanced, refined, and somewhat artificial prose for which he was famous. Among his characteristic works areCampaspe(1584),Endimion (c.1588), andLove's Metamorphosis (c.1590). These delicate pastoral works established the tradition upon which Shakespeare built inAs You Like It.Robert Greene (1560-1592) also wrote pastoral and romantic comedies, but his works are more varied than Lyly's since he crowded many diverse elements into a single play. In hisFriar Bacon and Friar Bungay (c.1589) andJames IV (c.1591), stories of love and pastoral adventures are mingled with historical materials. Greene is especially noted for his charming and resourceful heroines, who, after wandering in disguise through a series of temptations, are rewarded with the fulfillment of their fondest desires. Thus, by 1590, several dramatists who bridged the gap between the learned and popular audiences had appeared. Their successful blending of classical and medieval devices with compelling stories drawn from many sources established the foundations upon which Shakespeare and his contemporaries built.

SHAKESPEARE AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) is frequently said to be the greatest dramatist of all time. Furthermore, as a playwright, actor, and shareholder in acting troupes and theatre buildings, he was directly involved in more aspects of the theatre than any other writer of his day; Shakespeare is credited with thirty-eight plays, some of which were written in part by others. Although difficult to date precisely; the plays have been dated as follows:Henry VI,Parts 2 and 3 (1590-1591),Henry VI,Part 1 (1591-1592),Richard m and Comedy of Errors(1592-1593),Titus AndromcusandTaming of the Shrew(1593-1594),Two Gentlemen of Verona, Loves Labour's Lost,andRomeo and Juliet(1594-1595),RichardIl andA Midsummer mght's Dream(1595-1596),King JohnandThe Merchant of Vemce(1596-1597),Henry 11,Parts I and 2 (1597-1598),Much Ado About NothingandHenry V(1598-1599),Julius CaesarandAs You Like It(1599-1600),Twelfth mght, Hamlet,andThe Merry Wives of Windsor(1600-1601),Troilus and Cressida(1601-1602),All's Well That Ends Well(1602-1603),Measure for MeasureandOthello(1604-1605),King LearandMacbeth(1605-1606),Antony and Cleopatra(1606-1607),CoriolanusandTimon of Athens(1607-1608),Pericles(1608-1609),Cymbeline(1609-1610),A Winter's Tale(1610-1611),The Tempest(1611-1612),Henry VmandTwo Noble Kinsmen(1612-1613).

It is impossible to do justice to Shakespeare in a short space, for no playwright's work has been more fully studied. Thus, only a few characteristics of his dramaturgy can be reviewed here. Shakespeare borrowed stories from many sources (history; mythology, legend, fiction, plays) but reworked them until they became distinctively his own. Typically; situations and characters are clearly established in the opening scenes,

and the action develops logically out of this exposition. A number of plots are usually interwoven, at first proceeding somewhat independently of each other but eventually coming together as the denouement approaches, so that the resolution of one leads to that of the others; in this way apparent diversity is given unity The action normally encompasses months or years and occurs in widely separated places. This broad canvas creates a sense of ongoing life behind the scenes.

Shakespeare's large casts are composed of well-rounded characters who run the gamut from the inept and ridiculous to the commanding and heroic, from the young and innocent to the old and corrupt. Despite the enormous range of his characters, Shakespeare entered into most of them sympathetically and made them appear to be living individuals rather than mere stage figures. His penetrating insights into human behavior have remained valid. No playwright uses language as effectively as Shakespeare. His poetic and figurative dialogue not only arouses specific emotions, moods, and ideas, it creates a network of complex associations and connotations that transcends the immediate dramatic situation. Shakespeare was by far the most comprehensive, sensitive, and dramatically effective playwright of his day; He attempted almost all of the popular dramatic types and subjects of his time, and in each instance gave them their most effective expression. In his own day, nevertheless,

Shakespeare's critical reputation was lower than that of Jonson or Beaumont and Fletcher. His fame began to grow in the late seventeenth century but it did not reach its peak until the mneteenth century. Like most of his contemporaries, Shakespeare gave little thought to preserving his plays, which in his time were looked upon as momentary diversions (much as television dramas are today). Their survival may be credited in large part to the desire of Shakespeare's fellow actors, especially Henry Condell and John Heminges, to preserve his memory by publishing his plays. (This original edition, which appeared in 1623, is usually referred to as the First Folio.)

Except for Shakespeare, Ben Jonson (1572-1637) is usually considered the finest Elizabethan playwright. An actor for a time, Jonson began writing plays in the mid-1590s and by 1600 was the acknowledged leader of those authors who favored conscious artistry (that is, writing according to a set of principles or rules). More than any other English dramatist, Jonson turned attention to the classical precepts and sought to temper the excesses of native playwrights by recalling the practices of the ancients. Nevertheless, he was no slavish imitator of the past, for he frequently deviated from or altered classical principles. Jonson gained the favor of James I and his court, for whom he wrote more masques than any other dramatist. His receipt of a royal pension in 1616 made him the first "poet laureate" of England. Jonson also did much to change the English attitude about drama, previously looked upon primarily as mere diversionary entertainment, when in 1616 he prepared for publication a carefully edited collection of his plays (a practice which had been reserved by his contemporaries for poetry).

In many ways, then, Jonson was the most influential writer of his time. Of Jonson's twenty-eight plays, the comedies, especiallyEvery Man in His Humour(1598),Volpone(1606),The Alchemist(1610), andBartholomew Fair(1614), are now best known. The scope of these works is limited, for Jonson, concerned primarily with reforming human behavior, concentrated upon the foibles of contemporary types. Jonson's comedy is often de-scribed as realistic and "corrective" since the characters are supposedly based upon direct observation and are castigated for their shortcomings.