Notes on the Blank Verse of Christopher Marlowe
"Marloe was stabd with a dagger, and dyed swearing"
A MORE friendly critic, Mr. A. C. Swinburne, observes of this poet
that "the father of English tragedy and the creator of English blank
verse was therefore also the teacher and the guide of Shakespeare." In
this sentence there are two misleading assumptions and two misleading
conclusions. Kyd has as good a title to the first honour as Marlowe;
Surrey has a better title to the second; and Shakespeare was not
taught or guided by one of his predecessors or contemporaries alone.
The less questionable judgment is, that Marlowe exercised a strong
influence over later drama, though not himself as great a dramatist as
Kyd; that he introduced several new tones into blank verse, and
commenced the dissociative process which drew it farther and farther
away from the rhythms of rhymed verse; and that when Shakespeare
borrowed from him, which was pretty often at the beginning,
Shakespeare either made something inferior or something different. 1
The comparative study of English versification at various periods is a
large tract of unwritten history. To make a study of blank verse
alone, would be to elicit some curious conclusions. It would show, I
believe, that blank verse within Shakespeare's lifetime was more
highly developed, that it became the vehicle of more varied and more
intense art-emotions than it has ever conveyed since; and that after
the erection of the Chinese Wall of Milton, blank verse has suffered
not only arrest but retrogression. That the blank verse of Tennyson,
for example, a consummate master of this form in certain applications,
is cruder (not "rougher" or less perfect in technique) than that of
half a dozen contemporaries of Shakespeare; cruder, because less
capable of expressing complicated, subtle, and surprising emotions. 2
Every writer who has written any blank verse worth saving has produced
particular tones which his verse and no other's is capable of
rendering; and we should keep this in mind when we talk about
"influences" and "indebtedness." Shakespeare is "universal" (if you
like) because he has more of these tones than anyone else; but they
are all out of the one man; one man cannot be more than one man; there
might have been six Shakespeares at once without conflicting
frontiers; and to say that Shakespeare expressed nearly all human
emotions, implying that he left very little for anyone else, is a
radical misunderstanding of art and the artist-a misunderstanding
which, even when explicitly rejected, may lead to our neglecting the
effort of attention necessary to discover the specific properties of
the verse of Shakespeare's contemporaries.
Romeo and Juliet is one of Shakespeare's tragic plays. It is about two star crossed lovers who commit suicide when their feuding families prevent them from being together. The play has many characters, each with his/her own role in keeping the plot line. Some characters do not have a great amount of lines, but have the plot revolving around them. Such a character is Friar Laurence. At first glance, one may overlook this character and dismiss him as only a minor player in the story of Romeo and Juliet. Upon closer examination, it becomes obvious that the Friar plays a crucial role in the development of the play. Throughout the play he attempts to guide young Romeo and Juliet through their struggles, and unwittingly causes their deaths.
Upon reading the poem "Saint Judas" by James Wright, the reader quickly realizes that the poem deals with Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus' twelve apostles. The author describes Judas as "going out to kill himself,"(line 1) when he sees a man being beaten by "a pack of hoodlums"(2). Judas quickly runs to help the man, forgetting "how [his] day began"(4). He leaves his rope behind and, ignoring the soldiers around him, runs to help. Finally, he remembers the circumstances that surround his suicidal intentions and realizes that he is "banished from heaven"(9) and "without hope"(13) He runs to the man anyway and holds him "for nothing in [his] arms"(14)
On Chaucer’s Placement and Description of the Manciple and the Reeve in the General Prologue
At the end of the thirteenth century and moving into the fourteenth, a cultural revolution was unfolding in Italy. This would sweep away the old medieval order and usher in a new age of creativity and enlightenment. This period, known as the Italian Renaissance, had started in the city of Florence and would soon spread to other regions of the Italian peninsula such as Venice and Rome. It was a rebirth of the Italian culture, brought on by a renewed interest in the classical cultures of ancient Rome and Greece. It brought many of the world's greatest artists to prominence, such as Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo. In addition to the surge of new and highly skilled visual art, there was also a good deal of literature being produced, such as The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli and, of course, The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio.
When we are taken on the pilgrimage to Canterbury by Chaucer in the story “The Canterbury Tales” we are introduced to all classes of characters from every corner of life. The use of satire is used throughout the story and I believe it helps, it shows the stereotypical difference in class at his time of day. While keeping nothing from harm in “The Canterbury Tales” Chaucer takes a huge chance by mocking even the church. But did all the use of raunchy humor and everyday language really help him or did it make the story too much to read?
Le’ Morte d’ Arthur is a medieval romaunce by Sir Thomas Malory about King Arthur, Camelot and the Knights of the Round Table, violence plays a very crucial part in the story. Many different kinds of violence occur in this set of stories, some of which are very ordered and fine, like jousting, and also disordered violence like war. The worst type of violence though is when people use violence to get vengeance, which is a major theme, because many of these knights are mad at others. While many of the knights in the book are concerned with getting revenge, these actions and the search for vengeance are often futile and almost always end badly.
“We are one in all and all in one. There are no men but only the great indivisible WE, One, indivisible and forever.” (1.8) In this society no man is free to be themselves. Everyone is confined to be collective and and the
In a relationship, Love is a feeling that humans share with a special person. Some bonds could be mutual, while others are dissociated. During the Medieval period, love affairs were dominated by one gender, men, and the women had little or no control over decisions. Before a gentleman married a lady, the gentleman first boasted about her beauty, championed the cause of the lady, and did whatever the lady requested. The era was influenced by knights, and dictated by honor and chivalry that each knight had to display to their king and queen. As a gentleman, a knight had to be just at all times, especially toward ladies. At this time, there was a king named Arthur. King Arthur had a flourishing kingdom that abruptly ended. Later on, many authors recounted the story of the reign of King Arthur. Sir Thomas Malory published Le Morte d’Arthur, and Geoffrey Chaucer published The Wife of Bath’s Tale. Although both of these books recount the reign of King Arthur, the stories are very diverse and unique in their own way. Both stories demonstrate for a relationship to be successful, both partners must be submissive, must be brave, and must be willing to learn from mistakes.
with is that no man is a great man- the only great man encountered in
“We are one in all and all in one. There are no men but only the great WE, one, indivisible, and forever.”
man is not truly one; but truly two”(125). This quote shows that all men possess inside them the
The hero of Christopher Marlowe’s Tamburlaine the Great did not lead the life of any ordinary Scythian shepherd. Throughout the course of the drama, the once lowly Tamburlaine is bent on a path of unstoppable conquest, upheld as much by intense personal charisma and power of speech as by the strength of his sword. He exemplifies this eloquence throughout his many speeches in the play, not least of which is his “Thirst of Reign” address to the defeated usurper of the Persian crown. Tamburlaine’s speech is delivered with the intention of justifying, to Cosroe and all others present, the righteousness of his own ambitions, and inviting them to share in the same. He achieves this end by skillfully employing in his speech Aristotle’s three canonized methods of persuasion: logos, pathos, and ethos.
In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, Marlow can be seen as the hero of the story despite his alternating morals and the fact that Marlow ultimately does nothing to improve the situation in Africa. Throughout the whole narrative Marlow finds himself thrust into many shocking situations yet chooses the path of an observant bystander, giving his own opinion at the time, but no lasting action or motivation is conceived. On top of this fact Marlow’s morals are anything but set in stone; they waver innumerable times over the course of the plot. Yet Marlow is more often than not seen as the prominent hero of the plot. How is this possible? This is because readers aren’t looking for perfection in a character, but depth, and Marlow achieves this level of depth through his epiphanies and the changes that take place in his perception of the world. These revelations in turn challenge the reader to reevaluate themselves.
In the passage from Act 1, Scene 2 through the use of language and dramatic effect Shakespeare explores and expands the character of Hamlet, also enforcing themes such as gender and desire.
Letters to My Son are letters written by Lord Chesterfield to his son whereby he praises and criticizes him. Chesterfield uses a number of literary devices in his letter such as metaphors, imageries, anastrophe, tonal shift and many others. In addition, Chesterfield uses rhetorical devices such as logos and name calling so that his son can heed to his advices. Chesterfield uses different tones, and language devices to make pass his intended information to his son. He changes his tone, and uses different language styles to be able to convince his son to follow the values, and advices in the letter written to him. In the end, through his language skills and tonal values, he is able to convey his message to his son which is meant to elevate him above all, and become an independent person. Chesterfield is suggestive and condescending in his language, and tone in the letter but his views are very clearly articulated.