literary context and terminologies Flashcards
elements of tragedy according to Aristotle
follows a character’s downfall from a high position of respect and power, usually ending in death. This downfall is caused by the protagonist’s hamartia.
what is a hamartia.
Hamartia means that the protagonist is responsible for his own downfall
(made an error of judgement result in tragic consequences)
The Machiavel Character
-nobleman from Italy get anywhere with no moral restraints
A Machiavel is a type of villainous character that was common in Elizabethan and Jacobean plays. The character was named after the Florentine writer: Machiavelli, author of the Prince giving monarchs recommendations to lie to their people in order to retain power.
prose vs verse
Blank verse is unrhymed poetry written in a meter known as iambic pentameter. In Shakespeare’s time, a verse was considered to be of higher status and moral worth than prose so carried a greater significance.
the rhyming couplet of Brabantio that closes the scene
In Jacobean tragedy, references to the subversion of the “natural” order are used to warn the audience that there is trouble ahead
Iago’s name origin
Finally, to further appease the audience’s view of England’s power, Iago’s name was carefully chosen. Spain was England’s greatest enemy due to the competitive nature of colonisation. The English feared invasion by the Spanish yet continued to independently trade with northern Africa, despite Spanish protest. Iago, being a Spanish name, is quite deliberately the play’s villain in order to satisfy the Western Europeans.
tragic hero
Othello, as a protagonist, fulfils Aristotle’s requirements for a tragic hero. He begins the play as a man of noble status who falls from his position of power because of his hamartia. The catharsis and anagnorisis comes when Othello realises the truth about Iago and Desdemona
the overall structure of the play
The Aristotelian Model: The story has a beginning, middle, and end.
Beginning: The marriage of Othello and Desdemona
Middle: Iago’s deception
End: The murder of Desdemona and the discovery of Iago’s lies
foreshadowing of danger through rhyming couplet
Brabantio’s rhyming couplet that closes the scene, suggests the world has been turned upside down… references to the subversion of the “natural order” are used to warn the audience that there is trouble ahead.
suicide seen a a way of avoiding disgrace and preserving one’s honour in Ancient Greeks and Romans
In many Greek and Roman tragedies, the protagonists commit suicide for reasons such as avoiding further suffering, end grief or sacrificing themselves for the greater good.
Shakespeare’s drama
innovative and challenging in exactly the way of the Renaissance. It examines and questions the beliefs, assumptions, and politics upon which Elizabethan society was founded.
Influenced by Seneca
Renaissance dramatists were heavily influenced by Seneca, known for Seneca tragedy, characterised by long narrative accounts of events and long reflective soliloquies, explores revenge and is full of violence.
Romeo and Juliet and Othello
Shakespeare explores the tragic consequences of intense love. In each play the tragic heroine is assertive, but the patriarch expects his daughter to make a socially acceptable marriage.
Duchess of Malfi (revenge tragedy) and Othello
both of them raise questions about the ways in which men dominate and abuse women. (duchess is tormented and murdered when they found out about her secret marriage to a servant)
the morality play
- is a medieval allegorical theatrical form
-contains good, virtuous characters and vice characters (communicates dangers and temptation)
