Context

Question 1

All context summarised

Answer 1

• King James I
• The Divine Right Of Kings
• The Great Chain Of Being
• Daemonologie
• Religion and the Seven Deadly Sins
• The Patriarchy

Question 2

King James I

Answer 2

• The first monarch to rule over England, Scotland, and Ireland at the same time
• Scottish born and raised
• Patron of The King’s Men, Shakespeare’s company
• Very religious
• Staunchly against witchcraft and the supernatural

Question 3

The Divine Right Of Kings

Answer 3

• The belief that God’s will is passed down to the people through the royal family
• Disrupting the divine right of kings was seen as an act against God - blasphemy as well as treason.

Question 4

The Great Chain Of Being

Answer 4

• The belief that God created the world with a clear and deliberate social hierarchy which places the rich above the poor and men above women
• Feeds into the divine right of kings
• Evidence of the prevalence of religion in Shakespearean England

Question 5

Daemonologie

Answer 5

• A book written by James I to emphasise his disdain for witchcraft
• Lays out James l’s ideas for how to punish those practising witchcraft
• Consulted by people of the time as an educational book

Question 6

Religion and the Seven Deadly Sins

Answer 6

• Religion was prevalent in Shakespeare’s time, particularly in relation to Christian faiths
• People of all social classes were led by the bible and by their faith. Religion wasn’t a personal choice as much as it is today - it was expected that people would be devoted to God
• The seven deadly sins were considered a rule of law, and committing any of them was considered a sign of the devil

Question 7

The Patriarchy

Answer 7

• Shakespearean society was incredibly patriarchal, informed by the great chain of being and thousands of years of tradition
• Women were expected to be subservient to the men in their lives
• Men saw the women in their lives as their property