Shakespeare Q/A: Lesson 2

What was the Elizabethan Shoreditch like?

"Crime, vice, and theater lived side by side" in Shoreditch

How many people lived in London in 1588?

Approximately 250,000

Hoghton tower had a huge lending library containing what sorts of books? Who had access to this lending library, and how was he connected to the Hoghtons?

Catholic propaganda and many ancient classics; Shakespeare annotated some books; John Cotton

What 1593 event would Shakespeare later describe as "a great reckoning in a little room" (As You Like It 3.3.11-12)? What story did witnesses tell of events, and what was suspicious about it?

Christopher Marlowe's death; safe house. Marlowe was attacked and killed, supposedly because of an argument over a bill. Shakespeare believed otherwise because the owner of the safe house was associated with the three people who attacked Marlowe.

What playwright led the theatrical revolution in this period, and what was he like?

Christopher Marlowe; "flamboyant, blasphemous, and flirted with treason" by publicly embracing Catholicism and counterfeiting.

What star played Tamburlaine? What actors were listed on a plot summary from 1590 in that actor's possession?

Edward Alleyn; actors who would later appear in some of Shakespeare's plays.

Why was war a popular subject of Shakespeare's History plays?

England at war

What were some names of bars and inns in Shakespeare's Bishopsgate?

Flower Pot, Green Dragon, Wrestlers, the Angel and the Black Bull.

What did the English call the Dutch entry point of Vlissingen? What sort of people hung out there, and which two individuals in particular?

Flushing; important port city known for crime and slave trade. Marlowe and Thomas Kyd frequently stayed there.

Why does this episode begin in Lancashire, not Shakespeare's home county of Warwickshire?

It is believed that Shakespeare once worked there.

When Shakespeare's ticket sales outstripped Marlowe's, what critic made fun of his Henry VI quote: "Tiger's heart wrapped in a woman's hide"? How does his satire identify Shakespeare as the author of that play?

Robert Greene made fun of Shakespeare, calling him an "upstart crow." He refers to "Shake-scene" which is one of the earliest references to Shakespeare as a writer.

What about the Queen's Men's repertoire suggests that Shakespeare might have acted with them?

Shakespeare knew their plays "inside and out" and "stole" some of their plots for his plays including Richard III and King Lear, and their plays may have inspired the plot of Hamlet as well.

How do we know what Shakespeare's Parish church was?

Shakespeare's neighborhood, which would have had a church nearby that people in the neighborhood would have attended.

Who came to the Guild Hall in Stratford in 1587? What plays did they perform, and what were they like?

The Queen's Men; The Troublesome Reign of King John, anti-Catholic

In November 1588, of which invading force was it said, "God blew and they were scattered"? Which leader was believed exhorted the troops, "I have the heart and valor of a king"?

The Spanish Armada; Elizabeth I Queen of England.

Two printers were executed in 1593 for what crime?

Their crime was sedition -- conduct or speech inciting people to rebel against the authority of a state or monarch.

When was Shakespeare's first neighborhood of Bishopsgate photographed? What catastrophe did it survive?

Victorian Era; Great Fire of 1666.

What kind material did Shakespeare use to appeal to his audience in his earliest plays such as Titus Andronicus, Two Gentlemen of Verona, and Henry VI?

comedy, violence, and history.

Why do we think Shakespeare was acting with these actors?

company belonged to Ferdinando Stanley. Shakespeare's first play, Titus Andronicus, was performed for him.

Which famous ability of Shakespeare's mind might have come from political events of 1593, when he learned to be "careful...Each trifle under truest bars to thrust" (Sonnet 48)?

could see both sides of every issue; seen in play Richard III

How would Shakespeare have gotten from Warwickshire to Lancashire?

crossed a creek

What crime, besides blasphemy ("John was Christ's bedfellow"), did one of these individuals allegedly commit in Vlissingen?

made counterfeit coins

As a touring propaganda tool, what was the Queen's Men's job?

prepare England for war with Spain.

To whom might Sir Bernard Hoghton have called William Shakeshafte, and why?

referring to William Shakespeare; possible that Shakespeare used this fake name to hide the fact that he was living with a Catholic.

What did James Burbage build in 1576? What was one reason he built it in the working class neighborhood?

theater for all types of people; to entice William Shakespeare and prevent him from returning to the Queen's Men

Why did Shakespeare return to Stratford in 1585?

to baptize his twin children: Hamnet and Judith.

The actor Kit Beeston also ties Shakespeare to the Hoghtons. Ferdinando Stanley of Knowsley, a patron of Shakespeare, lived nearby. What nearby troupe of players might Shakespeare have acted with?

troupe of players that belonged to the Hesketh family.

Who were Knell and Towne, and how might their actions before they got to Stratford have affected Shakespeare?

two members of the Queen's Men who had gotten into an argument prior to going to Stratford; Towne killed Knell and created room for Shakespeare to join