The essay ““Introductory” Chapter About Tragedies” by Wolfgang Clemen concerns Shakespeare’s usage of imagery in his tragedies. In particular, Clemen tracks the gradual development of more complex imagery throughout Shakespeare’s works. Near the beginning of the essay, Clemen says that Shakespeare’s early work often used imagery used in the way of punning. The ambiguity in these early works had little purpose beyond providing witty repartee, but his later use of ambiguity later became more sophisticated. In these later plays, the hidden meaning of words was not inserted into the dialogue merely for entertainment, but rather to include hidden meaning in the dialogue which the characters do not understand, but which the audience does (52). Though Clemen later returns to this idea of the development of Shakespeare’s wordplay, he leaves this idea aside for a time to discuss specific types of metaphors used in the tragedies. Clemen …show more content…
In the tragedies, “man and nature stand in continuous relationship” (54). In this section, Clemen returns to analyzing the development of Shakespeare’s use of imagery and metaphor. He compares a passage from Henry VI, which says that the sea “refused to drown me”, to a similar passage from Othello which says: “Tempests themselves, high seas and howling winds” (55). The primary difference that Clemen notices in these two passages is that the ocean in Henry VI—an earlier play--is much more clearly given human-like characteristics of sympathy, whereas in Othello, there is a degree of personification, but the human characteristics are not as clear. The metaphor has become more abstract, thus showing the more sophisticated characteristics of Shakespeare’s later work. The essay concludes on this note, that Shakespeare’s work evolved in such a way that he was merely able to suggest associations and meanings more easily than his earlier
That Shakespeare made a wrong Choice of his Subject, since he was resolved to torture it into a Comedy, appears by the low Contrivance, absurd Intrique, and improbable Incidents he was obliged to introduce in order to bring about three or four Weddings instead of the one good Beheading, which was the Consequence naturally expected. [Lennox, I: 27, quoted in Vickers, 4: 112.]
Schlegel, August Wilhelm. Criticism on Shakespeare s Tragedies . A Course of Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature. London: AMS Press, Inc., 1965.
Proser, Matthew N. The Heroic Image in Five Shakespearean Tragedies. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1965.
The enduring longevity of Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ owes its legacy to the universal themes of the human condition transcending through multiple epochs. The text set during the Elizabethan era is highly influenced by Senecan and Greek Tragedy. Elements of the classic Senecan Tragedy including obsessions with crimes, mention of the supernatural, torture, mutilation and incestuous acts. Pathos, Ethos and Logos elements of Greek Tragedy, in which are traced in Hamlet’s, character during his soliloquies in particular his fourth soliloquy. Hamlet allows the audience to feel a sense of compassion as he puts on an antic disposition. “Sea of trouble” the metaphor and reference to the sea indicated the enormity of his problems, gaining sympathy.
... and ambiguity. Shakespeare uses the ironies found in the play so that we will remember his play's limits. It cannot produce an ideal, nor can we as an audience.
...elm. Criticism on Shakespeare s Tragedies . A Course of Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature. London: AMS Press, Inc., 1965.
It may appear that anything could be twisted into a typological pattern. Such interpretations appear to suffer from the structuralist faults of skating too lightly over actual texts, ignoring details that cannot be forced into a preconceived mold, and robbing narratives of their concrete shapes through abstraction. I would stress that there is more to Shakespeare than typology, but I would also insist that typology is often an important part of his drama. To make this claim plausible, however, requires more detailed attention to the text of his plays. In what follows, I will call attention to the textual and dramatic details that justify a typological reading of Hamlet.
Mehl, Dieter. Shakespeare's Tragedies: An Introduction. Cambridge, New York, New Rochelle, Melbourne, Sydney: Cambridge U, 1986.
William Shakespeare, the author of many various forms of writing, was born in Stratford upon Avon, in 1564. He wrote plays and sonnets alike, and occasionally combined the two. “Romeo and Juliet” was an example of this as many sonnets are used in it so as to display their love. This play was perhaps the shortest one that he ever wrote, and it is a tragedy that still warms the hearts of people today. It is, no doubt, amongst the most well known plays by him, and is greatly enjoyed by children and adults alike. In this essay, I will identify the various techniques used in this work of art, explicitly focusing on dramatic irony and foreshadowing.
In the written text, Shakespeare emphasis's the hidden reality through the use of dramatic techniques of imagery and symbolism. There is a constant use of light and dark imagery which is used by the protagonist , MAC...
Shakespeare’s works are some of the finest examples of Tragedy and Comedy from the English cannon of literature. The reason that his works are so poignant and reflective is his use of both emotions in order to progress the other. In his interpretation of Troilus and Cressida the traditional story of tragic love and loss are peppered with irony and satire in order to address topical issues of Gender roles, Government action/inaction, and hero worship through juxtaposition and humor.
Jones, Eldred. "Othello- An Interpretation" Critical Essays on Shakespeare's Othello. Ed. Anthony G. Barthelemy Pub. Macmillan New York, NY 1994.
In Shakespeare’s play, "The Tempest," an underlying theme of barbarism versus civilization appears. Shakespeare creates characters that exemplify symbols of nature or nurture. The symbolism of the characters is derived from their actions. These actions show Shakespeare’s view of the uncivilized and the civilized, as well as help the reader develop his own opinion of each side.
Shakespeare, William, G. Blakemore Evans, and J. J. M. Tobin. The Riverside Shakespeare. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997. Print.
“Teaching Shakespeare to undergraduates can be difficult under the best of circumstances. The densely figurative language can be very difficult to sift through for students unfamiliar with anything but naturalistic speech. When this is further compounded by the student’s resistance to reading anything longer than several paragraphs, I