Download Humanities 3 IV. Skepticism and Self-Knowledge

Humanities 3
IV. 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 the
powerful 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 of
a weak and feeble woman, but
I have the heart and stomach
of a king, and of a King of
England too, and think foul
scorn that Parma or Spain, or
any Prince of Europe should
dare to invade the borders of
my realm.”
Final Years
• Elizabeth faced one of her last threats from Robert
Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex (b. 1565), who
earlier had been one of her favorites
• He wins glory fighting the Spanish, but fails when
given 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 his
followers to force an audience with the queen
• He is arrested for treason, convicted and beheaded
on 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 second
husband Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. Descendent of
Mary Tudor, the sister of Henry VIII.
• Ruled Scotland as James VI from 1563-1603, when
he ascended to the throne of Great Britain,
succeeding Elizabeth I.
• James’ parent were Roman Catholics; he was raised
a Protestant.
• With his wife, Anne of Denmark, he fathered three
surviving children, including Charles who succeeded
him 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 of
the absolute authority of monarchs.
• He presents the view in his speech to Parliament
of March 1609.
• The issue is whether the king’s policies and
requests for funds are subject to the approval of
parliament or whether parliament assembles only
to 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 power
of life and death” over their children.
• As the head of the natural body (the nation), the
king has the power of directing all the members of
the body to that use which the judgment of the
head thinks best. (p. 106)
Shakespeare and the Theatre
• Around 1585 Shakespeare leaves Stratford and
joins a company of players as a minor actor and
playwright
• Between 1590 and 1611 he composes as many as
40 plays, as well as 154 sonnets and several other
major poems
• 1599: Globe Theatre, in which Shakespeare is an
investor, opens; Julius Caesar written and
performed
• 1603: James I issues a patent to Shakespeare’s
troupe, who rename themselves the “King’s Men”;
plague kills at least 33,000 in London
The Plays:
1623
Folio
Edition
Place of the Theatre in London
• Plays offer an occasion for the people to
congregate and express their views; they also
shape public opinion. For these reasons they are
dangerous in the eyes of the authorities
• Playwrights are subject to censorship, suppression,
imprisonment and worse, if deemed to be covertly
political
• Shakespeare is careful not to step over the line and
is able to stay on good terms with the monarchy.
He problematizes the understanding of politics
and morality without challenging the status quo.
Shakespeare’s Aims
• Entertainment: plays are pitched simultaneously to
the people (lots of low humor) and noble, educated
audiences (including the sovereign)
• Address the issues of the day: the idea of the
English nation (historical plays); the conflict among
values (e.g. honor and loyalty)
• Most originally, the enactment of psychological
conflict; in S’s greatest works, the play mirrors the
mind of a character struggling to act as the situation
requires (most famously, Hamlet)
Cassius to Brutus (1.2)
And since you know you cannot see yourself
So well as by reflection, I your glass
Will modestly discover to yourself
That 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 anxious
about Elizabeth’s reign. The play dramatizes topical
questions: What allegiance is owed to a ruler? How
far must a ruler go before that allegiance can be
broken? How are honor and loyalty to be balanced?
• S. is able to address these questions through Julius
Caesar because he is not a lawful king; he has
usurped power. The question of what is permissible
in defense of the republic does not arise in England.
Julius Caesar: Main Characters
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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 (including
property owners who lack noble status)
• Throughout the history of the republic conflict
between the classes is a constant
• Crucial is the power of the army and the generals
who command it; for this reason, the army is not
allowed within the borders of the republic
First Triumvirate
• 59 BC Three generals, Caesar, Pompey and
Crassus make private agreement to share the
consulship
• 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); Caesar
crosses 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 of
his former rival Pompey
• He is hailed by some, but other resent the
celebration because triumphs are reserved for
victories over foreign enemies
• February 44: C. named “perpetual dictator”;
offered crown by M. Antony, but C. refuses
• March 15 (the Ides of March): Caesar assassinated
by conspirators
Issues in Julius Caesar
• Caesar has amassed too much personal power and
has taken on the trappings of a king; some want to
make 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 psychology
of Brutus, a noble of unimpeachable character
• Brutus’ choice can be seen as a judgment on the
legitimacy of the act, yet it is an act that will
destroy him. That is the essence of the play as a
tragedy
Caesar above himself
• Flavius: “These growing feathers pluck’d from
Caesar’s wing / Will make him fly an ordinary
pitch, / Who else would soar above the view of
men / And keep us all in servile fearfulness.” (1.1)
• Cassius: “Why, man, he doth bestride the narrow
world / Like a Colossus, and we petty men / Walk
under his huge legs and peep about / To find
ourselves 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; / He
thinks 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)