Download FREE Teacher`s Guide

The Life of Galileo by Bertolt Brecht, new translation by David Hare
Cast:
Stacy
Keach
Moira
Quirk
Galileo Galilei
Young Andrea
Alan Shearman
Neil Dickson
2nd Senator/
3rd Senator/Fussy
Federzoni/
Chamberlain/
2nd Monk/2nd Clerk/
Astronomer/
Official
Adult Prince Cosimo
Jill
Gascoine
Signora Sarti
Jeannie Elias
Young Cosimo
Matthew Wolf
Christopher
Simon
Robert Machray
1st Senator
Ludovico/1st Monk/
Neame
Templeman
Mathematician
Chancellor/Cardinal Sagredo/Cardinal
1st Clerk/Man
Astronomer Clavius
Barberini (later Pope)
Inquisitor
Roy Dotrice
Philosopher/
Old Cardinal/
Cardinal Bellarimo/
Puppet Master
Peter
Lavin
Major Domo/
Andrea (Adult)
Darren
Richardson
Little Monk
(Fulganzio)
Joanne
Whalley
Virginia
Martin
Jarvis
Narrator
Directed by: Martin Jarvis Executive Producer: Susan Albert Loewenberg
Educational Resources by Michael Aspinwall with contributions from Vicki Pearlson and Elizabeth Bennett
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Thematic Overview and Cross-Curricular Opportunities
Each of the works at LATW has theatrical as well as literary merit. However, most
teachers will not be able to teach the play in its entirety. In this section of the study
guide, we want to highlight universal themes in the play, illustrate how the play
dramatizes and deals with the themes, and offer ways to associate those themes into
various curriculums.
Theme
“The Life of Galileo” is as rich in theme as it is in controversy. Unrelenting in his search
for “”simple truth”” Galileo Galilei shatters beliefs held sacred for two thousand years.
But, under threat of torture by the Holy Inquisition, his scientific and personal integrity
are put to the test as he argues for his very life in a passionate debate over science,
politics, religion and ethics that resonates to this day. The study guide highlights some of
the themes and moral questions that drive the play. These themes include:
The conflict between religion and science
Main Currents in Science
Iconoclasts
Historical Time Period and Setting
One of the major ways LATW plays can be translated to the classroom is through
association of time period. “The Life of Galileo” follows, with a few liberties, Galileo’s
career as a scientist in Italy beginning in the 1580’s, and highlights the conflict between
Galileo’s ideas and findings and the Roman Catholic Church.
The Historical Fiction
Another fascinating element of “The Life of Galileo” is its genre. Different from a
traditional play, historical fiction weaves a realistic story, with historical characters,
events and issues then brings the combination to life on stage. This form of
reenactment literally breathes life into the past and is made more powerful by its
commitment to historical fact. From a teaching perspective, the play allows students
to not only appreciate the live performance, but also to witness science in action as it
affects our history.
Ideas
for the
Classroom
Religion versus Science
Objective
The overall of objective of this teacher’s guide is to provide interdisciplinary opportunities for the classroom
by exploring scientific principles, using theatre to shape and advance the discussion of those principles, and
giving students opportunities to explore and examine the relationship between the humanities and the world of
science. These lessons are intended for use in any classroom: science, English, history, math, or drama.
Students will be able to bring critical thought and their own value system and apply what they already know to
historic and contemporary debate. Students will shape their own arguments and experience the freedom to
change their minds.
Introduction
Play for students Disc 1 Track 2 for students.
After talking about what happens in the scene, ask students to brainstorm answers to the following question:
In the news today, are there any scientific advances that are met with controversy?
Have students share the ideas they brainstormed in a whole class discussion, and as they share, make a list
on the board. Ask each student to decide whether or not they agree with each scientist or with opposition to
the idea. Give students 5 – 10 minutes to then write their rationale on a sheet of paper.
Activity
Divide the classroom in half either with an imaginary line or create a physical marker. Ask students who agree
with scientific advances to stand on one side of the room, and students who agree with the opposition to stand
on the other side of the room.
Once students have chosen sides, ask each student individually to read their rationale on each issue. After
each reading, students have the opportunity to switch sides of the room, meaning they literally have to walk
across the boundary you have created in the center of the room. The teacher or facilitator may allow students
to “sit on the fence” or to actually straddle the room’s divider if he or she so chooses.
In some classrooms, the students will fuel the discussion entirely. In others, the teacher or facilitator will need
to help move the discussion forward either by playing devil’s advocate or by taking a stance on the issue.
Evaluation
Once all of the students have made their cases, ask students to return to their seats. Ask students to write a
summary of their experience. The summary should include their final stance on the issues and reasons why it
changed over the course of the class, or reasons why it stayed the same.
Time and Materials
• LATW recording of “The Life of Galileo”
• A CD player
• One class period
Main Currents in Contemporary Science
Objective
The overall of objective of this teacher’s guide is to provide interdisciplinary opportunities for the classroom
by exploring scientific principles, using theatre to shape and advance the discussion of those principles, and
giving students opportunities to explore and examine the relationship between the humanities and the world of
science. These lessons are intended for use in any classroom: science, English, history, math, or drama.
Students will look critically at contemporary scientists and how their work influences our world as well as the
social, religious, and political climate of today. Students will also understand some of the techniques Brecht
used in theatre to create awareness.
Motivation
Play for students Disc 1 Track 2 for students.
After talking about what happens in the scene, ask students to brainstorm answers to the following question:
In the news today, are there any scientists or scientific advances that are met with controversy?
Directions
Put students together in groups of four. Each group will be asked to answer the following four questions in
detail.
1. Identify a controversial scientist and his/her field of study
2. What did he/she do to further a specific scientific field?
3. How did his/her actions cause political, social, or religious disturbances?
4. Why did he/she decide to continue the work?
5. Where is this person and his / her research now?
Evaluation
Once student groups have solidified answers to these questions, ask them to compile their findings into an oral
presentation. Two of the four students should talk about the scientist and their contributions as per a ‘standard’
lecture. In the style of Brecht, the other two students should create posters or visual aids that express the
conflicting view or opposition’s sentiments. They should stand silently with their signs along side their group
members during the presentation.
After each presentation, the facilitator should conduct a whole-class discussion about the information
presented on both sides.
Time and Materials
• LATW recording of “The Life of Galileo”
• A CD player
• Poster board / building materials
Iconoclasts
Objective
The overall of objective of this teacher’s guide is to provide interdisciplinary opportunities for the classroom
by exploring scientific principles, using theatre to shape and advance the discussion of those principles, and
giving students opportunities to explore and examine the relationship between the humanities and the world of
science. These lessons are intended for use in any classroom: science, English, history, math, or drama.
Students will understand how details of a scientific discovery can become controversial when applied to an
existing society. Students will be able to write and argue a case for one side of a situation supported with
fictional scientific evidence.
Introduction
Play Disc 1 Track 4 for students. Use this track to launch a discussion about social norms and conventional
beliefs in our society.
Define ‘Iconoclasts’ as a whole class. Then, as a class, brainstorm a list of social norms or ideas we accept as
a society. For each idea the class generates, have a brief discussion about why society accepts this norm or
belief, where it comes from, or how it is passed on.
Activity
Pair students up and ask them to write as an iconoclast who goes against one of the social norms the class
has brainstormed. Each pair of students should generate a fictional stance that combats a social norm or
belief. Students can make up reasons why a social norm should be abolished, and encourage them to write
their justifications as if they were a scientific report. The justifications should be fictional, but plausible.
Evaluation
The facilitator can decide to have the students pitch their ideas to the whole class for feedback and evaluation,
or ask the students to execute their plan of publishing their hoaxes. Publishing their hoaxes can be an
interesting avenue, since students will then be able to experience the public reaction to their false information.
The class should discuss anticipated reactions to the publication of their scientific findings. How, in your
imagination, would society react? Who would have a problem accepting this new truth?
Time and Materials
• LATW recording of “The Life of Galileo”
• A CD player
Discussion Questions and Quick Write Ideas
Do you believe that Galileo’s trial would have been different if he lived in a different time?
Are there any special conditions that you would impose?
If you could have been present at the trial, what role would you like to have taken?
Explain why that would have appealed to you.
Many citizens in the community felt that religious principles should be fostered in school.
What values do you believe should have a greater emphasis in schools today?
Do you think a person can believe in science and the Bible at the same time?
Essay Prompts
“Modern science is a practical examination of the devine”
-John Casey
In a well-developed, multi-paragraph essay, support or refute John Casey’s
statement.
Use details from the “The Life of Galileo” to support your argument.
In a well-developed, multi-paragraph essay, compare and contrast the cases
made by both counsels in “The Life of Galileo”
In a well-developed, multi-paragraph essay, discuss the role propaganda
played in Galileo’s trial.
Additional
Resources
The following information is meant to
supplement the play’s life
in the classroom.
GALILEO’S WORLD: Renaissance Italy
The Political Climate and the City States of Italy
After the fall of the Roman Empire (approximately 476 AD), the region known as Italy emerged
as a collection of city states that were not unified by a central government or leader. Italy remained
this way until the nineteenth century. The most important of these city states were Venice, Milan,
Florence, Naples, Sicily and the Papal States. There were also many smaller city states, such as
Mantua, Genoa, and Verona. During the Middle Ages, the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire
battled to control the region, but neither side succeeded in bringing unity to the city states. They
fought against each other for commercial supremacy, control of trade routes, access to seaports,
territorial expansion, and possession of natural resources. These inter-regional wars opened the
door to other foreign intervention. Italy was invaded by France and Spain, and some powerful
regions fell to those countries. Sicily and Naples came under Spanish rule until the 19th century;
Milan and Florence came under French rule. The result was constant conflict between the regions
as one state tried to dominate all others and as each state’s sense of independence and power grew.
By the 14th century, Italy was the most highly urbanized area in western Europe. Feudalism – the
system that ordered societies and was based on who held the land vs. who worked the land -- had
never been so firmly established in Italy as in northern Europe. This made it easy for cities to
expand their growth into the surrounding countryside, although it meant subduing the nobles and
seizing their land. The land-owning nobles then moved to the towns and became a part of city
life.
Political power within the cities was held by those with wealth: bankers, merchants, and
businessmen. The political life of these cities was filled with struggles for power, and these
struggles were intimately connected with the rise of new classes as the result of economic growth.
When cities began to take control of their own affairs, they were usually ruled by an established
governing class that had ties with the land and the feudal nobility. However, with increasing
wealth and prosperity the members of the guilds (commoners by birth but often rich and powerful)
demanded a greater share in government. Over time, most Italian cities and their governments
came to be dominated by families who had declared themselves “head of state” generations
beforehand. There were great dangers of despotism and too much authority being in the hands
of one person or one family. By the 16th century, Italians were fed up with the fighting and were
willing to let others do the job: many sought law, order, and security. Republics fell, and princes
became more powerful.
The Papal States
During the Middle Ages, the papal monarchy of the Catholic Church had declared itself to be a
political power having primacy over counts, dukes, kings, and even the emperor. This struggle
ended when the papacy was captured by the French king (Philip IV) and moved to Avignon, where
it remained from 1302 to 1378. A total of seven popes reigned at Avignon; all were French, and all
were increasingly under the influence of French rule. From 1309 until 1417 there were two popes
-- one in Rome and one at Avignon. In 1377, Gregory XI moved his court to Rome, officially
ending the Avignon papacy. A second line of Avignon popes rose up but their claims were not
considered legitimate by the Catholic Church.
GALILEO’S WORLD: Renaissance Italy cont.
With the papacy returned to Rome, its ambitions became stronger; Popes wanted more power for
themselves; they did so by decreasing the power of bishops and cardinals. As history progressed, the
Renaissance popes became more interested in enriching their own lives or the areas of interest to which
they were most devoted (often the arts and architecture) rather than investing fully in what was the
best for the Catholic Church. Reform and rebellion were inevitable but slow to come. The Protestant
Reformation in 1517 was a reaction to the selling of indulgences to raise money for the building of the
cathedral of St. Peter in Rome. The Church prepared for battle against the Protestants. In 1540 Ignatius of
Loyola founded the Society of Jesus, an order which owed obedience to the Pope; from 1545 to 1563, the
Council of Trent met and made a number of important pronouncements on the issues that separated the
Protestants from the Catholic Church. By the end of the 16th century, the church was regaining territories
that it had lost to Protestants.
“The Renaissance:” A Cultural Movement
The cultural era commonly referred to as “the Renaissance” spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th
century. The Renaissance was not limited to Italy alone but Italy is the European country most closely
identified with the Renaissance. This is because of the extraordinary developments achieved there. The
city of Florence – also known as “the Athens of the Middle Ages” and “the Jewel of the Renaissance”
– is often associated with the profusion of visual art, architecture, music, and interest in the humanities
that characterize the Renaissance. As a cultural movement, the Renaissance encompassed a resurgence
of learning based on classical sources. But it also provided a more realistic representation of man in
every day life. Instead of iconic images, artists depicted the individual personalities of their subjects.
In literary pursuits, writers expressed themselves in their native Italian language rather than the learned
romance languages of Latin or French. Other important Renaissance developments were that of linear
perspective in painting, widespread education reform, and “humanism,” which searched for realism and
human emotion rather than rational expression. Accomplished visionaries such as Leonardo da Vinci and
Michelangelo worked across different media, inspiring the term “Renaissance man” to refer to a person
of wide-reaching interests and talents and who is successful at all.
Members of the Medici family of Florence were important patrons to many Italian artists. The Medici
weren’t noblemen but were from the “patrician” class of citizens. Through banking and commerce, the
family acquired great wealth in the 13th century. As would be expected, they also acquired political
influence as well. Their generosity extended not just to residents of Florence. Their patronage brought
artists and scholars from all over the world to the Medici home base of Florence. In the 14th century,
Cosimo Medici amassed the largest library in Europe, founded the Platonic Academy and funded
Marsilio Ficino, who later issued the first Latin edition of the collected works of Plato. Later, his
namesake Cosimo I would become Grand Duke of Tuscany and build the Uffizi Palace, now one of
the world’s greatest art museums. Galileo enjoyed a long relationship with the Medici family. Another
Cosimo Medici – Cosimo II – would be tutored in mathematics by Galileo. When he had took the throne,
Cosimo II offered Galileo a position at his court. Cosimo II’s son, Ferdinand II, attempted to protect
Galileo from the Inquisition but failed.
GALILEO’S WORLD: Renaissance Italy cont.
Intellectual Climate
The intellectual climate at this time was more restricted than in the past. Orthodoxy was enforced;
heterodoxies were combated. Giordano Bruno, a monk who embraced the theories of Copernicus was
burned at the stake in 1600. It was in this climate that Galileo argued for the Copernican theory.
However, a philosophical movement developed and challenged the traditional church-bound way of
thinking and living. Renaissance humanism offered the view that man is a rational and sentient being,
with the ability to decide and think for himself. Humanism saw man as basically good by nature. This
philosophy rejected the Catholic Church’s vision of souls as the only absolute reality and the Christian
view of man as born with sin and in need of redemption. Humanism prompted fresh insight into the
nature of reality, questioning beyond God and spirituality. The movement allowed for knowledge about
history outside of the history recorded by and taught by the Church.
The Arts
During the Italian Renaissance, art, architecture, letters, and science flourished as never before. By the
13th century, northern and central Italy had become the most literate society in the world. A summary of
some of the notable achievements and movements includes:
Visual Art: One of the distinguishing features of Renaissance art was its development of highly realistic
linear perspective. The development of perspective was part of a wider trend towards realism in the
arts. To achieve realism, painters developed new techniques, studying light and shadow. Leonardo da
Vinci studied human anatomy in order to more realistically depict the human form. The Dutch painter
Pieter Brueghel the Elder is a particularly masterful painter who depicted common people in settings of
everyday life.
Poetry and Literature: William Shakespeare; John Donne; Christopher Marlowe; Edmund Spenser;
Dante Alighieri; Giovanni Boccaccio, Niccolo Macchiavelli. All of these authors wrote during the
Renaissance. Many of them used classical sources such as the stories and lessons of Plato, Homer, and
Virgil. The new emphasis on writing in the author’s native tongue meant that authors could introduce
readers to these stories for the first time. In many cases, writers continually returned to religious texts
for inspiration and rebellion but incorporated humanism into their explorations and characterizations.
Science: Significant changes came about in how the universe was viewed how philosophers explained
natural phenomena. Perhaps the most significant development was that of the scientific method. This
revolutionary new way of learning about the world focused on empirical evidence, mathematics, and
mechanical philosophy. The new scientific method led to great contributions in the fields of astronomy,
physics, biology, and anatomy. The scientific method was utilized by Renaissance scientists Copernicus
and Galileo. The method was also later used by Isaac Newton and Rene Descartes.
One of the Renaissance’s most noted scientists is also one of its most noted artists: Leonardo da Vinci.
In both scientific theory and in practice, Leonardo was innovative. He set up controlled experiments
in water flow, medical dissection, and systematic study of movement and aerodynamics. Da Vinci is
sometimes referred to as “father of modern science”.
GALILEO’S WORLD: Renaissance Italy cont.
Another odd but interesting footnote is that a major achievement of modern astronomy was made
possible by the efforts of a Catholic pope. By order of Pope Gregory XIII, the western world stopped
using the “Julian calendar” created in 46 B.C. By Galileo’s time, the calendar was 12 days off, leaving
Church feasts behind the seasons for which they were intended. In 1582 Pope Gregory XIII presented
a more accurate calendar. Protestant Europe fumed at the imposition of “popish time” but the accuracy
of Gregory’s calendar led to its acceptance throughout the West. It is still the calendar used today.
Economics and Trade
During the high Middle Ages, Italy was economically and culturally the most advanced country in
Europe. It is estimated that the per capita income of northern Italy nearly tripled from the 11th century
to the 15th century. Its wealth was based on trade with the Near East bringing spices, silk, and other
desired Eastern commodities into Europe; manufacturing, especially of cloth (Florence); armaments
(particularly in Milan); and banking. The port city of Venice became wealthy because of its trade with
the Middle East, and this relationship is still reflected in the Moorish architectural style of many of
Venice’s beautiful ancient buildings.
The Real Life of Galileo
Galileo Galilei was born in Pisa, Italy on February 18, 1564. His family belonged to the nobility but
was not rich. In the early 1570s, his family moved to Florence, where he dabbled in business and
taught music out of his home. The young Galileo hoped to become a monk. But in 1581, Galileo began
studying at the University of Pisa, where his father hoped he would study medicine. Galileo began
his study of the pendulum, which eventually led to his further explorations of time intervals and the
development of his idea for a pendulum clock. Galileo learned the Aristotelian approach to physics -that heavier objects fall faster than lighter ones. Galileo questioned this and began to work on certain
problems in physics, following the system devised by Archimedes. He explored hydrostatic balance
(compression caused by gravity is balanced by a pressure force in the opposite direction). A year later,
Galileo made observations about centers of gravity that went beyond the work of Archimedes. Galileo
eventually disproved Archimedes by asserting that all objects, regardless of their density, fall at the
same rate in a vacuum. To determine this, Galileo performed various experiments in which he dropped
objects from a certain height.
In 1592, Galileo was appointed professor of mathematics at the University of Padua. On his many
trips to Venice, he met Marina Gamba. Though the couple never married, Marina lived with him and
he fathered three children by her. In 1610 Galileo left Padua for Florence, where he took a position at
the Court of the Medici family. He left his son Vincenzio with Marina in Padua. When Marina married
Giovanni Bartoluzzi in 1613, Vincenzio joined his father in Florence. Galileo’s daughters were both
sent to convents.
Galileo invented many mechanical devices. Perhaps his most famous invention was a type of telescope.
In 1609, he learned of telescopes produced in other parts of Europe that could magnify objects three
times. He then improved this model to create one that could magnify objects twenty times. With this
telescope, he was able to look at the moon, discover the four satellites of Jupiter, observe a supernova,
verify the phases of Venus, and discover sunspots. His discoveries proved the Copernican System,
which states that the earth and other planets revolve around the sun. Prior to the Copernican System,
the standard belief was that the sun revolved around the earth (egocentricity). Galileo’s explorations of
sunspots led him to conclude that the earth is not at the center of the world and that it moves around the
true center of the universe: the sun.
Galileo’s belief in the Copernican System clashed with the beliefs and teachings of the Catholic
Church. There were many who believed that embracing the Copernican theory was heresy. Charges
swirled around Galileo. Tact and diplomacy were never Galileo’s strong points, and his acerbic
personality, particularly in scientific debate, caused problems. On December 21, 1614, a Dominican
priest denounced Galileo as an enemy of Catholicism. Though the priest was forced to apologize,
the subject of Galileo’s beliefs and teachings were discussed in the Pope’s circles. Pope Paul V,
uninterested in scientific debates, passed the matter on to the Holy Office to determine if doctrinal
issues were involved. In February 1616, Galileo traveled to Rome to defend himself. A council of
The Real Life of Galileo cont.
theological advisors to the pope ruled that Galileo’s theory was bad science and quite likely
heretical. An edict stating the committee’s conclusion was published. Galileo continued to write
and argue both on the truth of the Copernican hypothesis, and on proper Scriptural interpretation in
the light of scientific developments. In 1624, Galileo was assured by Pope Urban VII that he could
write about Copernican theory as long as he treated it as a mathematical proposition.
However, upon the printing of his book Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems,
Galileo was called to Rome in 1633 to face the Inquisition again. In his trial, Galileo used in
his defense a letter issued by Cardinal Bellarmine in 1616 in which he ordered Galileo to stop
defending his theories as fact, and asked him to avoid discussions of Scriptural interpretation.
Galileo agreed because he thought he could continue to teach his theories as theory. However,
Galileo seems to have not understood – or perhaps the intentions of the committee were not made
clear to him; he also had not been presented with the full force of Pope Urban VII’s rulings. In the
new trial of 1633, seven of the 10 tribunal cardinals condemned Galileo as “vehemently suspected
of heresy” in teaching that the Earth moves and is not the center of the world. Galileo’s book was
banned; he was ordered to be confined to house arrest for the rest of his life; he was forced to
publicly renounce his beliefs through a handwritten confession; and was ordered to perform proper
penance.
By the time that he returned to his home near Florence, Galileo was totally blind. He continued
to be visited by friends and scientific admirers but his movements were monitored by the papacy.
Despite being monitored, he wrote the book Two New Sciences, in which he describes the motion
of objects and systems without consideration of the forces that cause the motion. In 1642, at the
age of 77, Galileo died at his home.
Galileo’s Legacy
In 1981, Pope John Paul II formed a pontifical commission to study the Ptolemaic-Copernican
controversy of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The result of the commission’s findings
was the Pope’s full exoneration of Galileo, acknowledging that mistakes had been made by the
ecclesiastical authorities of 1633. The Dialogue remained on the papal index of forbidden books
until 1835.
Early Astronomers
“Science is all the rage nowadays, you know,” says Ludovico to Galileo in Brecht’s The Life of
Galileo. These words might have been uttered long ago: the year 2009 marked the 400th anniversary
of Galileo’s use of a telescope to ponder the sky. Given how central Galileo’s observations are now,
it’s hard to imagine a world in which popular thinking was otherwise. But for many, many years
heliocentrism (the astronomical model in which the earth and planets revolve around the sun) was
not the mode of thought. Geocentrism (placing the earth at the center of the universe) dominated
daily life until 1543, when Copernicus published the text De revolutionibus orbium coelestium.
Copernicus’ challenge had the potential to cause upheaval at the most minute levels of daily life. But
it wasn’t until Galileo confirmed Copernicus’ observations that the order of thinking was disturbed.
How did these great scientific minds arrive at the conclusions that they did? Here is some
background on other early astronomical explorers:
PTOLEMY: (90-168 A.D.) Egyptian astronomer and mathematician. Ptolemy created the elaborate
mechanism by which he calculated the movements of the stars, planets and moon around the earth.
Ptolemy’s central belief was that the Earth was the center of the Universe. Even starting with this
incorrect theory, he was able to combine what he saw of the stars’ movements with mathematics,
especially geometry, to predict the movements of the planets. He said that the planets moved in
perfect circles, attached to perfect spheres, that all rotated around the Earth. This view remained in
use for another 1400 years.
ARISTOTLE: (384-322 B.C.) Well known as one of the founding figures of Western philosophy,
Aristotle is also sometimes called “the grandfather of science.” His writings cover a wide range of
subjects, including physics and metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, government,
ethics, and biology. He was one of the first to study plants, animals, and people in a scientific way.
He believed in experimenting whenever possible, using logical ways of thinking.
Aristotle believed in a geocentric universe where the planets and stars were perfect spheres
but Earth itself was not. He hypothesized that all heavenly bodies are attached to 56 concentric,
crystalline spheres that rotate around the earth. Aristotle conjectured that the movements of the
planets and stars must be circular because that would enable them to go on forever. He envisioned the
moon to be placed in the innermost sphere, capable of touching the realm of earth and incapable of
shining its own light.
Because Aristotle was so respected, his theories were upheld for a very long time.
Early Astronomers cont.
NICOLAUS COPERNICUS: (1473-1543) The first person to formulate a heliocentric cosmology.
Copernicus was a classical scholar whose areas of study included math, astronomy, physics, and
art. He spoke four languages, served as a diplomat, governor, and military leader – and briefly as a
Catholic priest.
Ptolemy’s geocentric view of the universe prevailed at the time that Copernicus speculated
otherwise. This view was also endorsed by the powerful Catholic Church; it upheld the scriptural
teachings about God and the order of the universe. Through mathematical examination, Copernicus
came to believe that the sun is the center of the universe and the planets, earth included, revolve
around it. He also hypothesized that the earth rotates on its axis. Copernicus’ studies were not
published during his lifetime; his book De revolutionibus (“On the Revolutions of the Heavenly
Bodies”) was published as Copernicus was on his deathbed in 1543. But excerpts of his manuscript
were circulated in scholarly circles and his writing was studied in secret. The Church didn’t object
to his revolutionary hypothesis -- as long as it was represented as just a theory, not as undisputed
fact. Pope Leo X was intrigued by his theories and expressed an interest in hearing them advanced.
TYCHO BRAHE: (1546-1601) Danish astronomer and alchemist. In the late 1570s, Tycho
accepted King Frederick II’s offer of funding an observatory. On an island near Copenhagen,
he built “Uraniburg,” which became the best observatory in Europe. Tycho designed, built and
calibrated new astronomical instruments which were used in nightly observation sessions. In
1599, he settled in Prague as the Imperial Mathematician at the court of Emperor Rudolph II. His
assistant Johannes Kepler (see below) helped him to calculate planetary orbits. Because of Tycho’s
accurate observations and Kepler’s elliptical astronomy, these tables were much more accurate
than any previous tables.
Tycho’s contributions to astronomy were enormous. He revolutionized astronomical
instrumentation and, in doing so, changed observational practice. Through observation, he detailed
orbital anomalies that were never noticed before. His theory on the order of the universe combined
other prevalent theories: the Earth remained as the center of the universe (upholding the ideas of
Aristotelian physics); the Moon and Sun revolved about the Earth; Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter,
and Saturn revolved about the Sun. This Tychonic world system became popular early in the 17th
century among those who felt forced to reject the Ptolemaic model of the planets but who could
not accept Copernicus’ views.
Early Astronomers cont.
JOHANNES KEPLER: (1571-1630) A German mathematician, astronomer, and astrologer. Kepler is
best known for devising laws of planetary motion (“celestial mechanics”) which later provided one
of the foundations for Sir Isaac Newton’s theory of universal gravitation. Kepler’s laws are based on
Tycho Brahe’s observations and are summed up as:
1) The orbit of a planet about the Sun is an ellipse with the Sun’s center of mass at one focus.
2) A line joining a planet and the Sun sweeps out equal areas in equal intervals of time.
3) The squares of the periods of the planets are proportional to the cubes of their semi-major
axes.
Kepler presented a heliocentric view where the planets move in elliptical paths. Using these laws,
Kepler was the first astronomer to successfully predict the transit of Venus, which dramatically
changed the accuracy of celestial observations and predictions.
Although he was Lutheran, Kepler was frequently persecuted by Catholics and relocated
several times because of pressure from the Church. Kepler did not bow to the pressure of conversion
and was a religious man who credited God for each discovery that he made.
Early Milestones in Astronomy: A Timeline
• c. 270 BC: Aristacrhus of Samos estimates the distance and size of the Sun and
proposes that the Earth revolves around it.
• c. 250 BC: Eratosthenes estimates size of the Earth.
• c. 135 BC: Hipparchus discovers precession of the equinoxes and estimates the
distance to the Moon.
• c. 140: Ptolemy writes “He Mathematike Syntaxis” (known 1000 years later as
“Almagest”), proposing his world system.
• 1543: Nicolaus Copernicus publishes his theory of the solar system.
• 1582: The calendar is reformed by Pope Gregory XIII.
• 1609: Dutch lens grinder Hans Lipperhey combines two lenses to create the first
telescope.
• 1609: Galileo builds the first astronomical telescope and becomes the first to observe
craters on the Moon, satellites around Jupiter, and Venus going through phases like the
Moon .
• 1610 (approx): Sunspots and their rotation with the Sun discovered independently
by Galileo, Johann Fabricius and Christopher Scheiner. All used the recently-invented
telescope.
• 1610-1619: Using Tycho’s observations, Johannes Kepler formulates his first two laws of
planetary motion.
• 1668: Isaac Newton builds the first successful reflecting telescope; two years later, he
presents an improved model to the Royal Society.
• 1686: Isaac Newton publishes “Philosophie Naturalis Principia Mathematica,” outlining
laws of mechanics and gravity.
THE INQUISITION
THE INQUISITION
Beginning in the 12 century, the Catholic Church created a mechanism to eradicate religious heresy:
the Inquisition. Activities centered on a tribunal that came to be marked by a severity of questioning
and punishment. Confessions were often forced, the accused were stripped of their rights and suffered
physical torture. Though most often associated with the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, The
Inquisition existed as a body until the late 18 century.
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The Background
The enormity of the Catholic Church required practitioners to establish a hierarchical structure with
a central bureaucracy. In the early years of the church, there were several competing sects that called
themselves Christian. But after the Emperor Constantine I (280?-337 CE) made Christianity the state
religion of the Roman Empire and the local administrative structures were pulled together into one
hierarchy centered in Rome, doctrinal arguments were settled by Church Councils. Those whose
beliefs or practices deviated from the views held by the councils became the objects of efforts to bring
them into the fold. Resistance often led to persecution – social, political, and physical.
The Practice
In the Middle Ages a permanent structure came into being to deal with the problem. In 1231, Pope
Gregory IX published a decree calling for life imprisonment with salutary penance for heretics who
confessed and repented. Capital punishment was issued for heretics who persisted in their beliefs.
Pope Gregory gave to the Dominican Order of monks the responsibility of investigating accusations
of heresy. Many inquisitors were members of other orders or of the secular clergy; the secular
authorities carried out the executions. By the end of the decade, the Inquisition had become an
institution in all Papal lands.
In each region, the Inquisition had a bureaucracy. The judge, or inquisitor, could bring suit against
anyone. Sometimes inquisitors interrogated entire populations. The accused was given a summary of
the charges and had to take an oath to tell the truth, testified against himself/herself and did not have
the right to face and question the accuser. The inquisitor questioned the accused in the presence of
at least two witnesses – and without a lawyer. Being a family member did not exempt people from
the “duty” of testifying against the accused. The findings of the Inquisition were read before a large
audience. Sentences could not be appealed.
Although there was no tradition of torture in Christian canon law, it became the dominant means of
obtaining a confession from an accused person. The horrors of cruel torture methods and the injuries
and deaths suffered are the impressions and images that have lasted through the centuries. Those
THE INQUISITION cont.
found guilty suffered additional humiliations and tortures after the verdict. Punishments included
confiscation of the accused’s property, pilgrimages, wearing the cross of infamy, imprisonment
and death. Executions took place by burning at the stake. In some serious cases when the accused
had died before proceedings could be instituted, his or her remains could be exhumed and burned.
Abuses by local Inquisitions led to reform and regulation by Rome. In the 14th century
intervention by secular authorities became common. At the end of the 15th century, under
Spanish monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabel I of Castile, the Spanish inquisition became
independent of Rome. The Spanish Inquisition -- with its notorious autos-da-fé -- represents a
dark chapter in history. In northern Europe, the Inquisition was more lenient: in England it was
never instituted, and in the Scandinavian countries, it had hardly any impact.
In 1542, Pope Paul III established the Congregation of the Holy Office (now called the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith). This institution was put in charge of supervising the
local inquisitions, to maintain and defend the integrity of the faith, and to examine and proscribe
errors and false doctrines. The Holy Office also has an international group of consultants,
experienced scholars of theology and canon law, who advise it on specific questions.
The Roman Inquisition
When most people think of “The Inquisition,” it is of the physical and psychological cruelty and
destructive punishments practiced by the Spanish inquisitors. The Inquisition conducted in Italy
was gentler and more lenient in comparison. It was developed by the Holy See of the Catholic
Church during the second half of the 16th century. Crimes investigated by Italian inquisitors
included heresy, blasphemy, witchcraft and sorcery, immoral behavior, and the practice of
Judaism. Italian historian Andrea Del Col estimates that out of 62,000 cases judged by Inquisition
in Italy after 1542, around 2% (ca. 1250) ended with death sentence.
In 1616, the Holy Office gave its assessment of the theories that the Sun is immobile and at
the center of the universe and that the Earth moves around it. The consultants comprising the
committee deemed these ideas to be “foolish and absurd in philosophy,” “formally heretical” and
“at least erroneous in faith” in theology. This judgment prompted the placing of Copernicus’ De
Revolutionibus on the Church’s Index of Forbidden Books. It was this same body in 1633 that
tried Galileo, condemned him for a “grave suspicion of heresy” and banned all of his works.
About this play and its authors
The L.A. Theatre Works recording of The Life of Galileo is an adaptation by British playwright/
director/actor David Hare of the original play written by Bertolt Brecht in the 1930s and 1940s.
Hare’s version premiered at the National Theatre in London in 2006, nearly 70 years after
Brecht’s first attempt to depict the persecution of Galileo by the Catholic Church. Martin Jarvis,
who directed LATW’s production, then adapted Hare’s version.
Bertolt Brecht and David Hare: two of the greatest political theater artists of the 20th century.
Both men were playwrights, directors, and participants in theater collectives. They created work
reflecting the political climate in which they worked. They also both devised means of producing
theater that reflected their own personal politics. But the two men worked in very different
ways. Brecht – the more overtly political of the two artists – was a German Marxist whose
politics infused not just his writing for theater but also his means of presenting and producing
on stage. Brecht’s plays have been accused of intellectual heavy-handedness and dogmatism.
The “dialectical theatre” (often also called epic theatre) embraced by Brecht and his Berliner
Ensemble comrades used the revolutionary new movement and acting theories. The utilization
of episodic narrative, direct address to the audience (breaking the “fourth wall), music and
movement that jarred rather than soothed, and repeated iconic gesture resulted in the “v-effect”
that aimed to make an audience constantly aware of the performance’s existence as performance,
not fantasy. Brecht’s plays take on the subject of the economics of war (Mother Courage and Her
Children), gender, capitalism, sex (The Good Person of Szechwan and The Threepenny Opera),
and other thought-provoking topics. The author’s politics are inescapable – and arguably are the
reason as well as the fabric for the very existence of many of his plays.
David Hare, on the other hand, transmits the political message through subtext and character.
The plots of the plays involve many of the issues taken on by Brecht. Plays such as Plenty (about
the post-WWII disillusionment in England), Racing Demon (about the Church of England) and
The Absence of War (about the British Labour Party) espouse political dialogues made more
palatable by following the traditional dramaturgical structure of “well-made” plays. Hare’s recent
work includes Via Dolorosa (a monologue in which he starred at the National Theatre) about
the conflict between Israel and Palestine, chronicling Hare’s 1997 trip to the Middle East; Stuff
Happens, a response to the Iraq War; and The Power of Yes, about the world’s current financial
crisis. Hare has been, for the last 2 decades, primarily produced by established institutions.
Brecht wrote The Life of Galileo while in exile from the Nazi regime in Germany. Begun
in 1937, he wrote as fascism was spreading in Europe. Communists and socialists faced
imprisonment, torture and death for upholding a vision of society that was at odds with the
prevailing nationalist ideas. Particularly resonant for him were the subjects of how power
About this play and its authors cont.
structures affect the distribution of information when individuals attempt to tell the truth and the
consequences of standing up to the dominant regime. At its most basic level, Galileo is about the
conflict between religion and science. In Galileo’s world, the Church does not allow room for
interpretations other than its own. But the evolution of scientific observation demanded, during
Galileo’s time, refutation of the Church’s teachings in order to substantiate the new observations
being made. In this way, Brecht’s play also functions as a powerful political metaphor. Galileo’s
dilemma -- to uphold the truth and risk his life, or to recant his ideas -- was one being faced by
revolutionaries and anti-fascists across the continent. Galileo was not staged until 1943, in the neutral
country of Switzerland.
Six years later, Brecht rewrote the play. By that time, he had moved to America and was living
amongst other European exiles in Hollywood who attempted to work in the movie and entertainment
industry. Brecht was preparing a production of Galileo with the British actor/director Charles
Laughton. While they worked on the script, the bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Of
the new version of the play, Brecht wrote “The atomic age made its debut at Hiroshima in the middle
of our work. Overnight the biography of the founder of the new system of physics read differently.”
In the later version of the play, the scientist’s obligation to society becomes a central focus. When
critic Eric Bentley noted that the play “departs from the facts of history” but presents “the forces of
history,” he may have been thinking of how the play’s focus changed when Brecht revised it. The
forces of history weighed heavily on Brecht as both a man and an artist. In the 1930s, he followed
the news of Stalin’s show trials during the Great Purge of Moscow; in the 1930s and 40s, he had
lived through the arrests and deportations of his friends at the hands of the Nazis. In 1947, Brecht
gave evidence in front of HUAC (the House Un-American Activities Committee). He answered
the question about whether he was now or had ever been a member of the Communist Party with a
“no” -- to the disbelief of many who knew him. The next day, Brecht left the States, just prior to the
Galileo opening in New York. Howard Davies, who directed the premiere of Hare’s adaptation, noted
of Brecht’s HUAC activity: “He had actually done a sort of Galileo on them in order to get himself
out and save his skin.” Hare has called Galileo “one of the greatest dramas of intellectual betrayal
ever written.”
When Hare’s adaptation first premiered in 2006, many critics noted the continued relevance of
Galileo’s story. Brecht’s play is noted for its ongoing relevance as political metaphor but critics have
particularly pointed to its depiction of the struggle for scientific truth. Comments have been made
about the current debates over the morality of human genetic research and cloning. Nicholas Hytner
(former artistic director of the National Theatre in London) identified the key theme of Galileo as “the
clash of reason and unreason – secular truth and religious faith,” which he also felt was the key theme
of our age. When introducing his own adaptation, David Hare wrote that “Brecht’s principal aim
is to tell the story of a man who comes to realize he has been ethically unequipped to deal with the
consequences of his own genius. But Brecht’s own genius is to turn the tragedy outwards and ask how
things might have been otherwise.” Asking otherwise is exactly what Galileo undertook. As audience
members and citizens of earth, we have the opportunity and responsibility to do the same.
Resources
Books
Galileo, A Life by James Reston, Jr. Harper Collins, 1994.
Galileo’s Daughter by Dava Sobel Penguin Books, 1999.
Famous Experiments and How to Repeat Them by Brent Filson. Silver Burdett Press, 1986.
Galileo’s Mistake: A New Look at the Epic Confrontation Between Galileo and the Church
by Wade Rowland. Arcade Publishing, 2003.
Galileo in Rome: The Rise and Fall of a Troublesome Genius by William R. Shea and
Mariano Artigas. Oxford University Press, 2004.
The Italian Inquisition by Christopher F. Black. Yale University Press, 2010.
The Many Lives of Galileo: Brecht, theatre and translation’s political unconscious by
Dougal McNeill. Peter Lang, 2005.
Einstein’s Dreams by Alan Lightman. Warner Books, 1994.
Web Resources
A hypertext source of information on the life and work of Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) and
the science of his time. Includes a biography, letters from his daughter, and a tour of his
home. From Rice University.http://galileo.rice.edu/chron/galileo.html
An article written by the Director of Research for the Catholic League can be found at:
http://www.catholicleague.org/research/galileo.html
An amusing article by Brian Palmer in Slate magazine about why we don’t use Galileo’s last
name: http://www.slate.com/id/2225718/
Discovery of the Solar System
http://www.phy6.org/stargaze/Ssolsys.htm
This site from NASA follows the development of ideas about the solar system from Ptolemy
to Copernicus to Galileo.
Resources cont.
In 2008, BBC News reported a story about Pope Benedict XIV’s praise for Galileo’s astronomical
observations: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7794668.stm
An interesting editorial about the Catholic Church’s relationship to scientific theory was published
by the Catholic Sentinel in March 2011: http://www.catholicsentinel.org/Main.asp?SectionID=3&S
ubSectionID=38&ArticleID=14411
The PBS website has curriculum pertaining to science in the Italian Renaissance in its lessons
“Science Italian Style: Renaissance Machines:” http://www.pbs.org/safarchive/4_class/45_pguides/
pguide_503/4553_renaissance.html
Video
A 1974 film version of Bertolt Brecht’s play GALILEO is available via NetFlix and other sources.
It stars Topol as Galileo and features a cast of British actors, including Sir John Gielgud, Patrick
Magee, Edward Fox and Tom Conti.
“Galileo’s Battle for the Heavens:” A film made by PBS’ popular Nova series in 2002. This
documentary features historical texts and dramatic reenactments. It is narrated by Liev Schreiber
and based on Dava Sobel’s best-selling book GALILEO’S DAUGHTER. A timeline of his life,
articles on his place in science and his telescope, his mistakes on predicting the tides, a teachers’
guide, and interactives on his experiments with falling objects, projectiles, inclined planes, and
pendulums.
“Genius: Galileo:” This biographical documentary was made by PBS in 2000.
“Secret Files of the Inquisition:” A PBS documentary made in 2007 that features previously
unreleased documents from the Vatican.