3. Lesson 2

The Reading Module

Read the text: The renaissance

The word “renaissance” means “rebirth” in French and was used to denote a phase in the cultural development of Europe between 14^th and 17^th centuries.

The writers and learned men of Renaissance turned against feudalism and roused in man a wish to know more about the true nature of things in the world. They were called humanists. Man was placed in the center of life.

The first English humanist of the Renaissance was the humanist Thomas More.

The work by which Thomas More is best remembered to-day is “Utopia” (which in Greek means nowhere) which was written in Latin in the year 1516. It has been translated into all European languages. The word “utopia” has become a byword and is used in Modern English to denote an unattainable ideal, usually in social and political affairs.

The greatest playwrights of the time were men of Academic learning, the so-called “University Wits”. Among the University wits were John Lyly, Thomas Kyd, Christopher Marlowe and others. Each of them contributed something to the development of the drama into the forms in which Shakespeare was to take in.

Christopher Marlowe is famous for his four tragedies: “Tamburlaine the Great”, “Doctor Faustus”, “The Jew of Malta” And “Edward II”. Marlowe approached history from a Renaissance point of view. His tragedies show strong men, no enemy can overcome them expect death. They are great personalities who challenge men and gods with their strength.

Marlow’s plays taught people to understand a tragedy which was not performed just to show horror and crime on the stage, but to reveal the suffering of men. Marlowe introduced blank verse in his tragedies. In imagination, richness of expression, originality and general poetic and dramatic power he is inferior to Shakespeare alone in 16^th century.

In English literature the great poet and dramatist William Shakespeare was a genius formed by the epoch of Renaissance. He is often called by his people “Our National Bard”, “The Immortal Poet of nature” and “The great unknown”, as very little can be told about his life with certainly no biography of Shakespeare was published during his life time, but he created a variety of plays and characters. He was a prolific writer, he wrote 37 plays, 154 sonnets and two narrative poems. Shakespeare’s plays belong to different dramatic genres. They are histories(chronicle plays) – “King Henry IV” (1592), “The tragedy of King Richard III” (1593), “Titus Andronies” (1544), “The tragedy of King John” (1594), “The life of king Henry V” (1599). These plays are full of tragic events and bloodshed, but they have a happy end.

Comedies: “Love’s Labour’s Lost (1590),” “The Comedy of Errors”(1595), “Verona”(1592), “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”(1594)”The Merchant of Venice”(1595), “The Taming of the Shrew”(1596, “Much Ado about Nothing”(1599), “The Merry Wives of Windsor”(1599), ” As you like it”(1600), ‘ The Twelfth Night”(1600). The comedies are written with the bright spirit of Renaissance. The heroes are the creators of their own fate, that is to say they rely on their cleverness to achieve happiness. Tragedies present the social injustice and suffering of man. Society could achieve progress and happiness only through struggle. Shakespeare’s characters are personalities of great depth and unusual will, they act in a concrete social and political world. His first tragedy is “Romeo and Juliet” (1594) later followed by “Hamlet” (1600-1601) and “Othello” (1603), “King Year” (1605), “Macbeth” (1608), “Antony and Cleopatra” (1607).

The last period of literary production includes fascinating and fantastic plays, full of allegories, which are called romantic dramas: “Cymberline”(1610), “The Winter’s Tale”(1610)”, “The Tempest”(1611),”Henry VIII”(1613). There are no great problems and strong conflicts in these tragic comedies (romantic dramas), one feels man can conquer nature.

Many scholars have studied Shakespeare. These are the central themes Shakespeare dealt with in his plays:

1) The idea of freedom. This is felt in his tragedies and historical plays.

2) Humanism. The love for mankind is seen in every play.

3) Freedom for the individual.

4) The idea of patriotism.

5) National unity under one strong king. The last two themes are stressed in “King Lear”.

6) Social relations among people.

7) The masses as a political force.

8) The themes of love and friendship which are developed in his sonnets as well as in his plays.

9) The struggle against cruel medieval blood-feuds (in “Romeo and Juliet”)

Shakespeare achieved great skill in speech individualization of his characters through the choice of words, and the use of folklore. There are some phrases that have become part of the everyday language of Englishmen.

They have some sayings:

1. All’s well that ends well.

2. All that glisters is not gold.

3. A sea of troubles.

4. Brevity is the soul of wit.

5. To be or not to be, that is the question.

6. Conscience doth make cowards of us all.

7. Love’s labour’s(is) lost.

8. Much ado about nothing.

9. There is no darkness but ignorance.

10. ….. best men are moulded out of faults.

Shakespeare’s ideas of love, freedom, humanism, and national unity are still very popular. Shakespeare is far from us only in time. His plays are staged by all the world’s theatres and in our country, Ukraine, as well.

After text activity