Shall I Compare Thee To A Summer's Day?
by William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate.
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date.
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
Monday, 17 November 2008
Tuesday, 26 August 2008
Monday, 25 August 2008
Wednesday, 26 March 2008
Carpet Weavers, Morocco by Carol Rumens
Carpet-weavers, Morocco by Carol Rumens
The children are at the loom of another world.
Their braids are oiled and black, their dresses bright.
Their assorted heights would make a melodious chime.
They watch their flickering knots like television.
As the garden of Islam grows, the bench will be raised.
Then they will lace the dark-rose veins of the tree-tops.
The carpet will travel in the merchant’s truck.
It will be spread by the servants of the mosque.
Deep and soft, it will give when heaped with prayer.
The children are hard at work in the school of days.
From their fingers the colours of all-that-will-be fly
and freeze into the frame of all-that-was.
Caged Bird by Maya Angelou
Caged Bird by Maya Angelou
A free bird leaps
on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wing
in the orange sun’s rays
and dares to claim the sky.
But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.
The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.
The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.
But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.
The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.
Song To the Men of England by Percy Shelley
Song to the Men of England
by Percy Bysshe Shelley
I
Men of England, wherefore plough
For the lords who lay ye low?
Wherefore weave with toil and care
The rich robes your tyrants wear?
II
Wherefore feed, and clothe, and save, 5
From the cradle to the grave,
Those ungrateful drones who would
Drain your sweat – nay, drink your blood?
III
Wherefore, Bees of England, forge
Many a weapon, chain, and scourge, 10
That these stingless drones may spoil
The forced produce of your toil?
IV
Have ye leisure, comfort, calm,
Shelter, food, love’s gentle balm?
Or what is it ye buy so dear 15
With your pain and with your fear?
V
The seed ye sow, another reaps;
The wealth ye find, another keeps;
The robes ye weave, another wears;
The arms ye forge, another bears. 20
VI
Sow seed, – but let no tyrant reap;
Find wealth, – let no impostor heap;
Weave robes, – let not the idle wear;
Forge arms, – in your defence to bear.
University of Cambridge International Examinations
Poetry Anthology for IGCSE Literature in English (0486)
VII
Shrink to your cellars, holes, and cells; 25
In halls ye deck another dwells.
Why shake the chains ye wrought? Ye see
The steel ye tempered glance on ye.
VIII
With plough and spade, and hoe and loom,
Trace your grave, and build your tomb, 30
And weave your winding-sheet, till fair
England be your sepulchre.
by Percy Bysshe Shelley
I
Men of England, wherefore plough
For the lords who lay ye low?
Wherefore weave with toil and care
The rich robes your tyrants wear?
II
Wherefore feed, and clothe, and save, 5
From the cradle to the grave,
Those ungrateful drones who would
Drain your sweat – nay, drink your blood?
III
Wherefore, Bees of England, forge
Many a weapon, chain, and scourge, 10
That these stingless drones may spoil
The forced produce of your toil?
IV
Have ye leisure, comfort, calm,
Shelter, food, love’s gentle balm?
Or what is it ye buy so dear 15
With your pain and with your fear?
V
The seed ye sow, another reaps;
The wealth ye find, another keeps;
The robes ye weave, another wears;
The arms ye forge, another bears. 20
VI
Sow seed, – but let no tyrant reap;
Find wealth, – let no impostor heap;
Weave robes, – let not the idle wear;
Forge arms, – in your defence to bear.
University of Cambridge International Examinations
Poetry Anthology for IGCSE Literature in English (0486)
VII
Shrink to your cellars, holes, and cells; 25
In halls ye deck another dwells.
Why shake the chains ye wrought? Ye see
The steel ye tempered glance on ye.
VIII
With plough and spade, and hoe and loom,
Trace your grave, and build your tomb, 30
And weave your winding-sheet, till fair
England be your sepulchre.
Monday, 10 March 2008
Shakespearean Tragedy
Shakespeare’s Tragedies*
A tragedy is a story of exceptional calamity leading to the death of a man in high estate. (A.C. Bradley)
I. Shakespeare’s plays usually classified as “tragedies” are:
Titus Andronicus (1592)
Romeo and Juliet (1592)
Julius Caesar (1599)
Hamlet (1600-01)
Othello (1603)
King Lear (1605-06)
Timon of Athens (1605)
Macbeth (1606)
Antony and Cleopatra (1606)
Coriolanus (1608)
II. Shakespeare’s tragedies take us on a journey:
They confront our greatest hopes and fears, our best and worst
of actions.
They probe the extremities of what it means to be human.
They expose the suffering we inflict and the suffering we bear.
The Origins of Tragedy
“Tragedy is the imitation of an action that is serious, and also, as
having magnitude, complete in itself ... with incidents arousing pity
and terror, with which to accomplish its purgation of these emotions.”
Aristotle, Poetics, 6.
Between 600 and 400 BC, poetry and drama flourished in Greece. The chief playwrights of this era were: Aeschylus (525-456 BC), Sophocles (496-406 BC), Aristophanes (c.448-c.380 BC) and Euripides (484-406 BC).
Greek Tragedy
The origins of drama lie in the songs and dances of ancient rites and religious festivals connected to the seasons. Tragedy was born in ancient Athens and has its roots in choral poetry. Dionysius was the nature god who died and was reborn every year. A chorus 50-strong would perform a hymn in his honor, called a dithyramb. According to Aristotle, tragedy grew out of the dithyramb when a solo actor - Thespis - stepped forward and began a dialogue with the dithyramb. The word tragedy means literally “goat-song.” Quite what this means is uncertain, but the goat was perhaps the prize for a song.
The Hero
All of Shakespeare’s tragedies have a tragic hero, or “protagonist” who is put into a situation of conflict which he must resolve. A combination of bad luck and misjudgment lead to the hero’s death. He is often a man of high social standing:
Lear and Macbeth are kings
Hamlet and Othello are princes - Othello is also a military general
Coriolanus and Titus are Roman Generals
Julius Caesar and Antony are rulers of Rome
Timon and Romeo are wealthy citizens (what about Juliet!)
The Nature of Tragedy
Tragedies are tales of harshness and injustice. They chart the downfall of a hero, whose own death leads to the downfall of others, for example in:
Hamlet Ophelia, Laertes, Polonius, Gertrude, Claudius, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern also die
Titus Andronicus 13 characters die
King Lear Cordelia, Goneril, Regan, Gloucester, Cornwall, and Edmund die
Romeo and Juliet Mercutio, Tybalt, Lady Montague, and Paris all die
The Structure of Tragedy
There are four parts to the tragedy (theorists argue the same structure applies to comedy too):
Part one - protasis, the setting up the situation
Part two - epitasis, the complication of the action
Part three - catastasis, the main body of the action
Part four - catastrophe, the ending or unwinding
The Tragic Flaw
All of Shakespeare’s tragic heroes have a flawed nature or blind spot that leads to their downfall:
üfor Hamlet it is procrastination
üfor Macbeth it is ambition
üfor Coriolanus and Othello it is pride
The decisions made by people in positions of power have tremendous consequences.
Catharsis
Catharsis is a medical term meaning “purgation.” By means of purgation, an organism rids itself of noxious substances and so is healed. In his Poetics, Aristotle (384-322 BC) writes that tragedy should succeed in arousing pity and fear in such a way as to accomplish a catharsis (i.e. purgation) of such emotions.
Revenge Tragedy
Thomas Kyd’s Spanish Tragedy (c. 1589) was the first play to be called a Revenge Tragedy. The play appears to have developed an appetite amongst theatre-goers for the form for the genre flourished in Elizabethan and Jacobean theatres.
I. Examples of Revenge Tragedies:
Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd
The Jew of Malta by Christopher Marlowe
The Revenger’s Tragedy - an anonymously published play often attributed to Middleton
Titus Andronicus and Hamlet by Shakespeare
II. Common features of Revenge Tragedies include:
ghosts
a hero’s quest for vengeance
scenes of real or feigned insanity
scenes in graveyards, severed limbs, carnage and mutilation
a corpse-strewn stage
the restoration of order after chaos
Differences between Comedy and Tragedy
In Comedy -
The characters tend to be ordinary people, rather than kings and queens
The emotions and dangers are comparatively mild
The outcome of the action is happy - the plays generally end in marriage
The main thrust of the action is from chaos to resolution
In Tragedy -
The characters are of very high social standing (kings, princes, generals)
The dangers are extreme
The conclusion is sad
The action moves towards a state of chaos
Here is a brief synopsis for Hamlet; King Lear; Macbeth; and Othello:
Hamlet
The young prince Hamlet discovers that his father died by foul play, murdered by his brother to gain the throne. He is visited by the restless ghost of the old King Hamlet, who tells him this and asks his son to avenge his death without harming his mother who has since married the new king. Hamlet wavers. He is presumed mad at court because of his erratic behavior. He traps his uncle into showing his guilt, but then fails to murder him. He is estranged from Ophelia whom he had once loved and she is driven to distraction and then death. Hamlet is sent away and his murder secretly ordered by the King. Though Hamlet evades this and returns to complete his business, he is too late to save anyone from death - not even himself.
King Lear
The old king Lear sets out to divide his kingdom between his three daughters, according to their love for him. Goneril and Regan profess great love for their father, but Lear’s youngest and favorite daughter, Cordelia, says nothing. Enraged, Lear banishes Cordelia and gives away her portion of the kingdom to her sisters. But with nothing left to gain from their father, Goneril and Regan no longer wish to care for him and turn him out to the cold. Meanwhile Edmund, the illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester, contrives an estrangement between his father and his half-brother Edgar and declares his love and allegiance to both Goneril and Regan. Cordelia raises an army in France to fight her sisters’ powers, while Edgar, disguised, acts as shepherd to his broken Father. Both Lear and Gloucester realize too late that they have put their trust and themselves in the wrong care.
Macbeth
Returning victorious from battle, Macbeth meets three witches who prophesy that he will rise to the throne of Scotland, though its heirs will be the descendants of another general, Banquo. Spurred by this prophecy and the encouragement of Lady Macbeth, he murders the sleeping King Duncan and assumes the throne. Having fulfilled the first part of the prophecy, Macbeth then rushes to preempt the rest - setting out to murder Banquo and his son. Meanwhile Duncan’s son Malcolm raises an army in England, with the help of Macduff, about whom Macbeth has been warned. Together they fulfill the prophecy for Macbeth’s overthrow.
Othello
The celebrated general Othello has secretly married Desdemona, the daughter of a Venetian senator. But when he is accused of stealing her, Othello explains himself and is given a new commission by the Senate, to lead the Venetian forces in a battle for Cyprus, against the Turks. Othello lands victorious in Cyprus, where he is joined by Desdemona. Their peace is shattered by Iago, a soldier, who manipulates Othello into believing that his wife is unfaithful and in love with Cassio - Othello’s trusted lieutenant. Possessed by jealousy, Othello murders his wife.
*Text adapted from materials found on the RSC website:
http://www.rsc.org.uk/hamlet/tragedy/tragedies.html
Polonius’ breakdown of genres: “tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastorical-comical, historical-pastoral, tragical-historical, tragical-comical-historical-pastoral, scene individible, or poem unlimited” (Hamlet, II.ii.379-81).
A tragedy is a story of exceptional calamity leading to the death of a man in high estate. (A.C. Bradley)
I. Shakespeare’s plays usually classified as “tragedies” are:
Titus Andronicus (1592)
Romeo and Juliet (1592)
Julius Caesar (1599)
Hamlet (1600-01)
Othello (1603)
King Lear (1605-06)
Timon of Athens (1605)
Macbeth (1606)
Antony and Cleopatra (1606)
Coriolanus (1608)
II. Shakespeare’s tragedies take us on a journey:
They confront our greatest hopes and fears, our best and worst
of actions.
They probe the extremities of what it means to be human.
They expose the suffering we inflict and the suffering we bear.
The Origins of Tragedy
“Tragedy is the imitation of an action that is serious, and also, as
having magnitude, complete in itself ... with incidents arousing pity
and terror, with which to accomplish its purgation of these emotions.”
Aristotle, Poetics, 6.
Between 600 and 400 BC, poetry and drama flourished in Greece. The chief playwrights of this era were: Aeschylus (525-456 BC), Sophocles (496-406 BC), Aristophanes (c.448-c.380 BC) and Euripides (484-406 BC).
Greek Tragedy
The origins of drama lie in the songs and dances of ancient rites and religious festivals connected to the seasons. Tragedy was born in ancient Athens and has its roots in choral poetry. Dionysius was the nature god who died and was reborn every year. A chorus 50-strong would perform a hymn in his honor, called a dithyramb. According to Aristotle, tragedy grew out of the dithyramb when a solo actor - Thespis - stepped forward and began a dialogue with the dithyramb. The word tragedy means literally “goat-song.” Quite what this means is uncertain, but the goat was perhaps the prize for a song.
The Hero
All of Shakespeare’s tragedies have a tragic hero, or “protagonist” who is put into a situation of conflict which he must resolve. A combination of bad luck and misjudgment lead to the hero’s death. He is often a man of high social standing:
Lear and Macbeth are kings
Hamlet and Othello are princes - Othello is also a military general
Coriolanus and Titus are Roman Generals
Julius Caesar and Antony are rulers of Rome
Timon and Romeo are wealthy citizens (what about Juliet!)
The Nature of Tragedy
Tragedies are tales of harshness and injustice. They chart the downfall of a hero, whose own death leads to the downfall of others, for example in:
Hamlet Ophelia, Laertes, Polonius, Gertrude, Claudius, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern also die
Titus Andronicus 13 characters die
King Lear Cordelia, Goneril, Regan, Gloucester, Cornwall, and Edmund die
Romeo and Juliet Mercutio, Tybalt, Lady Montague, and Paris all die
The Structure of Tragedy
There are four parts to the tragedy (theorists argue the same structure applies to comedy too):
Part one - protasis, the setting up the situation
Part two - epitasis, the complication of the action
Part three - catastasis, the main body of the action
Part four - catastrophe, the ending or unwinding
The Tragic Flaw
All of Shakespeare’s tragic heroes have a flawed nature or blind spot that leads to their downfall:
üfor Hamlet it is procrastination
üfor Macbeth it is ambition
üfor Coriolanus and Othello it is pride
The decisions made by people in positions of power have tremendous consequences.
Catharsis
Catharsis is a medical term meaning “purgation.” By means of purgation, an organism rids itself of noxious substances and so is healed. In his Poetics, Aristotle (384-322 BC) writes that tragedy should succeed in arousing pity and fear in such a way as to accomplish a catharsis (i.e. purgation) of such emotions.
Revenge Tragedy
Thomas Kyd’s Spanish Tragedy (c. 1589) was the first play to be called a Revenge Tragedy. The play appears to have developed an appetite amongst theatre-goers for the form for the genre flourished in Elizabethan and Jacobean theatres.
I. Examples of Revenge Tragedies:
Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd
The Jew of Malta by Christopher Marlowe
The Revenger’s Tragedy - an anonymously published play often attributed to Middleton
Titus Andronicus and Hamlet by Shakespeare
II. Common features of Revenge Tragedies include:
ghosts
a hero’s quest for vengeance
scenes of real or feigned insanity
scenes in graveyards, severed limbs, carnage and mutilation
a corpse-strewn stage
the restoration of order after chaos
Differences between Comedy and Tragedy
In Comedy -
The characters tend to be ordinary people, rather than kings and queens
The emotions and dangers are comparatively mild
The outcome of the action is happy - the plays generally end in marriage
The main thrust of the action is from chaos to resolution
In Tragedy -
The characters are of very high social standing (kings, princes, generals)
The dangers are extreme
The conclusion is sad
The action moves towards a state of chaos
Here is a brief synopsis for Hamlet; King Lear; Macbeth; and Othello:
Hamlet
The young prince Hamlet discovers that his father died by foul play, murdered by his brother to gain the throne. He is visited by the restless ghost of the old King Hamlet, who tells him this and asks his son to avenge his death without harming his mother who has since married the new king. Hamlet wavers. He is presumed mad at court because of his erratic behavior. He traps his uncle into showing his guilt, but then fails to murder him. He is estranged from Ophelia whom he had once loved and she is driven to distraction and then death. Hamlet is sent away and his murder secretly ordered by the King. Though Hamlet evades this and returns to complete his business, he is too late to save anyone from death - not even himself.
King Lear
The old king Lear sets out to divide his kingdom between his three daughters, according to their love for him. Goneril and Regan profess great love for their father, but Lear’s youngest and favorite daughter, Cordelia, says nothing. Enraged, Lear banishes Cordelia and gives away her portion of the kingdom to her sisters. But with nothing left to gain from their father, Goneril and Regan no longer wish to care for him and turn him out to the cold. Meanwhile Edmund, the illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester, contrives an estrangement between his father and his half-brother Edgar and declares his love and allegiance to both Goneril and Regan. Cordelia raises an army in France to fight her sisters’ powers, while Edgar, disguised, acts as shepherd to his broken Father. Both Lear and Gloucester realize too late that they have put their trust and themselves in the wrong care.
Macbeth
Returning victorious from battle, Macbeth meets three witches who prophesy that he will rise to the throne of Scotland, though its heirs will be the descendants of another general, Banquo. Spurred by this prophecy and the encouragement of Lady Macbeth, he murders the sleeping King Duncan and assumes the throne. Having fulfilled the first part of the prophecy, Macbeth then rushes to preempt the rest - setting out to murder Banquo and his son. Meanwhile Duncan’s son Malcolm raises an army in England, with the help of Macduff, about whom Macbeth has been warned. Together they fulfill the prophecy for Macbeth’s overthrow.
Othello
The celebrated general Othello has secretly married Desdemona, the daughter of a Venetian senator. But when he is accused of stealing her, Othello explains himself and is given a new commission by the Senate, to lead the Venetian forces in a battle for Cyprus, against the Turks. Othello lands victorious in Cyprus, where he is joined by Desdemona. Their peace is shattered by Iago, a soldier, who manipulates Othello into believing that his wife is unfaithful and in love with Cassio - Othello’s trusted lieutenant. Possessed by jealousy, Othello murders his wife.
*Text adapted from materials found on the RSC website:
http://www.rsc.org.uk/hamlet/tragedy/tragedies.html
Polonius’ breakdown of genres: “tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastorical-comical, historical-pastoral, tragical-historical, tragical-comical-historical-pastoral, scene individible, or poem unlimited” (Hamlet, II.ii.379-81).
Tuesday, 26 February 2008
Poetics by Aristotle
Click on the following links to access Poetics by Aristotle.
Read all the information concerning tragedy(definition and analysis) and tragic hero.
http://www.leeds.ac.uk/classics/resources/poetics/poettran.htm
http://vccslitonline.cc.va.us/tragedy/aristotle.htm
Read all the information concerning tragedy(definition and analysis) and tragic hero.
http://www.leeds.ac.uk/classics/resources/poetics/poettran.htm
http://vccslitonline.cc.va.us/tragedy/aristotle.htm
Shakespeare and the Elizabethan theatre
Click on the following site to get information about Shakespeare and the Elizabethan theatre.
http://www.william-shakespeare.info/elizabethan-theaters.htm
http://www.william-shakespeare.info/elizabethan-theaters.htm
The Globe Theatre
Click on the following link and enjoy the virtual tour.
http://www.shakespeares-globe.org/virtualtour/yard/
Now find out the following information on the same webpage:
What's on this season?
What is the seating price range?
Do all seats cost the same?
Are wheelchairs permitted?
Are people allowed to eat and drink during the performances as they were in Shakespeare´s times?
Are there guided tours everyday?
How can you get to the theatre?
Once you've found the answers to these questions publish them on the blog.
http://www.shakespeares-globe.org/virtualtour/yard/
Now find out the following information on the same webpage:
What's on this season?
What is the seating price range?
Do all seats cost the same?
Are wheelchairs permitted?
Are people allowed to eat and drink during the performances as they were in Shakespeare´s times?
Are there guided tours everyday?
How can you get to the theatre?
Once you've found the answers to these questions publish them on the blog.
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