Hamlet Context Flashcards
1
Q
Spying and repression
A
3 of Shakespeare’s fellow playwrights had been in trouble with the authorities for their works (Kyd - tortured, Marlowe - mysteriously murdered, and Johnson - imprisoned and branded).
2
Q
Succession
A
3
Q
Reneissance Humanism
A
4
Q
Senecan Revenge Tragedy
A
A type of tragedy characterised by merciless bloody deaths, and embodied in Hamlet predominantly by Laertes, thought also reflected in Fortinbras.
5
Q
Women
A
- Chastity was the only way to control reproduction, so most women married young and spent many years pregnant, child-caring and looking after the home.
- Few were educated, and they all had little to say in the ruling of the country (although this is a complex issue as Elizabeth was a strong queen with no husband or children).
- Shakespeare generally wrote strong female characters into his plays (Lady Macbeth, Cleopatra, ect), but Ophelia is not one of these.
6
Q
Aristotle and Tragedy
A
7
Q
Religion
A
8
Q
A
