Shakespeare's World: The Tragedies

This analysis of primary documents allows readers to understand Shakespeare's tragedies within the context of historical issues of Renaissance England. Comprising dozens of primary source documents, this book explores Early Modern historical issues reflected in four of Shakespeare's tragedies most commonly taught in secondary schools and universities around the world: Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, Hamlet, and Macbeth. Primary source documents relating to Romeo and Juliet deal with subjects such as dueling, breast-feeding, and the Black Plague. Background discussion of Julius Caesar addresses the influence of Roman culture on Renaissance England; the nature of monarchy; and warfare in Renaissance England, including the defeat of the Spanish Armada. The backdrop for Hamlet includes the nature of spirits; heaven, hell, and purgatory; the history of revenge tragedy beginning with ancient Greece; and debates over the theater in Shakespeare's time. Macbeth brings the reader into the reign of King James and examines ongoing debates over the dangers of witchcraft; the crime of the century, the Gunpowder Plot of 1605; and the "Macbeth curse" that has plagued productions of the Scottish Play since its premiere.

Douglas J. King is associate professor of English at Gannon University, where he teaches courses on Shakespeare, drama, and literature and film.

Series Foreword,
Acknowledgments,
Introduction: The Renaissance in England,
A Note on Sources,
Chronology of the English Renaissance,
1 Romeo and Juliet (William Shakespeare, ca. 1597),
Synopsis of Romeo and Juliet,
Historical Background of Romeo and Juliet: The Burgeoning Theater Scene of Elizabethan England,
About William Shakespeare,
Why We Read Romeo and Juliet,
Historical Explorations of Romeo and Juliet,
Documenting Romeo and Juliet,
Marriage in Renaissance England,
Document: John Jewel, Homily on the State of Matrimony, 1571,
Document: Mary Tattle-Well and Joan Hit-Him-Home, The Women's Sharp Revenge, 1640,
Document: Henry Swinburne, Treatise of Spousals, 1686,
Elizabethan/Jacobean Diseases, Medicines, Potions, and Poisons,
Document: John Securis, A Detection and Querimonie of the Daily Enormities and Abuses Committed in Physic, 1566,
Document: John Gerard, Herbal: General History of Plants, 1597,
Document: Samuel Pepys, The Diary of Samuel Pepys, 1664-1665 (published 1825),
Role Models for the Young in Renaissance England,
Document: Vincentio Saviolo, His Practice, in Two Books, 1595,
Document: Sir William Wentworth, Advice to His Son, 1606,
Document: Elizabeth Clinton, The Countess of Lincoln's Nursery, 1622,
Suggested Readings,
2 Julius Caesar (William Shakespeare, ca. 1599),
Synopsis of Julius Caesar,
Historical Background: Ancient Rome and Renaissance England: The Humanist Connection,
Why We Read Julius Caesar,
Historical Explorations of Julius Caesar,
Documenting Julius Caesar,
Julius Caesar as Seen by Renaissance Britons,
Document: "The Deification of Caesar," Ovid, Metamorphoses (ca. ad 8),
Document: Plutarch, Parallel Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans. Trans. John Dryden (ca. ad 75),
Document: John Higgins, The Mirror for Magistrates, 1559,
The Nature of Monarchy in Renaissance England,
Document: Thomas Elyot, The Book Named the Governor, 1531,
Document: George Buchanan, De Jure Regni apud Scotos: A Dialogue Concerning the Rights of the Crown in Scotland, 1579,
Document: James VI and I, The True Law of Free Monarchies, 1603,
Warfare in Renaissance England,
Document: Elizabeth I, Speech to the Troops at Tilbury, 1588,
Document: Anonymous, The Defeat of the Spanish Armada, 1588,
Document: Lewes Roberts, Warfare Epitomized in a Century, of Military Observations: Confirming by Ancient Principles the Modern Practice of Arms, 1640,
Suggested Readings,
3 Hamlet (William Shakespeare, ca. 1600),
Synopsis of Hamlet,
Historical Background: Hamlet and the Revenge Tragedy Tradition,
Why We Read Hamlet,
Historical Explorations of Hamlet,
Documenting Hamlet,
English Renaissance Religion: Protestants, Catholics, Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory,
Document: Elizabeth I, Homily of Good Works, 1559,
Document: William Allen, Defence of English Catholics, 1584,
Document: An Act for the Better Discovering and Repressing of Popish Recusants, 1606,
The Problem of Melancholia,
Document: Timothy Bright, A Treatise of Melancholy, 1586,
Document: Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, 1621,
The Dangers of the Theater in Renaissance England,
Document: John Northbrooke, A Treatise against Dicing, Dancing, Plays, and Interludes, with Other Idle Pastimes, 1577,
Document: Thomas Heywood, An Apology for Actors, 1612,
Suggested Readings,
4 Macbeth (William Shakespeare, ca. 1606),
Synopsis of Macbeth,
Historical Background: Scotland and England: A Long and Oft-Troubled Relationship,
Why We Read Macbeth,
Historical Explorations of Macbeth,
Documenting Macbeth,
Witches, Demons, and Dark Magic,
Document: Raphael Holinshed, Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland, 1577,
Document: Reginald Scot, The Discovery of Witchcraft, 1584,
Document: James I, Daemonologie, 1597,
"Remember the Porter," Jesuits, and the Gunpowder Plot,
Document: William Allen, A Briefe Historie of the Glorious Martyrdom of the Twelve Reverend Priests: Father Edmund Campion & His Companions, 1583,
Document: Henry Garnet, A Treatise of Equivocation, 1598,
Document: The Trials of Robert Winter, Thomas Winter, Guy Fawkes, John Grant, Ambrose Rookwood, Robert Keyes, Thomas Bates, and Sir Everard Digby, at Westminster for High Treason, Being Conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot, 27 January, 1606, 1606,
Free Will versus Predestination in Renaissance England,
Document: Martin Luther, On the Bondage of the Will, 1520,
Document: Desiderius Erasmus, A Defense of Free Will, 1524,
Suggested Readings,
Index,