The Life and Work of William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare is author to myriad plays, poems, and sonnets. He was born in the English town of Stratford-upon-Avon, in 1564, and eventually became a playwright. Julius Caesar was written and performed in 1599, and Macbeth in 1606. Both plays were performed in the Globe Theater, which replaced The Theater as London’s premier playhouse, in 1599. Because of the time during which Shakespeare lived, not much more about his personal life has been recorded than the dates of which each of his major works was published and performed at the theater, if applicable. For this reason, much of what is known about Shakespeare is either speculated or fabricated. The inspiration for most of Shakespeare’s major works, however, is something that directly correlates to the real happenings of his time. In his plays Macbeth and Julius Caesar, Shakespeare’s inspiration clearly derives from Holinshed’s Chronicles, his clients’ influence, and most notably, the time during which Shakespeare lived.
Shakespeare had been saving much of his money up through 1599, when he began investing it in real estate and, most notably, a stake in the new Globe Theater. In Shakespeare’s time, written tragedies were considered some of the greatest works of all time, and Shakespeare wished to become on the greats. Thus Shakespeare switched genres from writing histories and comedies, to writing tragedies. In December of 1598, Shakespeare became “alluded to as ‘gentleman’ in town records” (Campbell, 972). The funds that Shakespeare had been accumulating attribute him this title, giving all him all the more reason to begin writing tragedies. He wrote Julius Caesar in 1599 and modeled his characters off that of the true life people that once existed. Shakespeare’s treatment of love throughout each of the two plays is clearly illustrated. In the period during which The Shrew was written—the late 16th or early 17th century—it was common for many marriages not to be based solely on love, but rather the amount of money that was to be made from such a union. The Shrew illustrates how money easily became of great concern to the upper class families of Shakespeare’s time. Fathers has a social duty to marry off their daughters to wealthy gentlemen, thereby assuring their daughters an affluent and comfortable lifestyle. The father usually negotiates the terms of a potential marriage without the daughter present. This is seen in both of the plays at hand; Juliet’s father negotiates with Paris, Kate’s father with Petruchio, and Bianca’s father with Lucentio and Gremio. “Content you, gentlemen. I will compound this strife/ ‘Tis deeds must win the prize, and he of both/ That can assure my daughter greatest dower/ Shall have my Bianca’s love,” proclaims Baptista, speaking to Gremio and Tranio (The Taming of the Shrew, II, i, 361-365). He says that whoever can produce the greatest dowry for his daughter Bianca, shall have her hand in marriage. This illustrates the characters’ shallowness and the fact that marriages are often based somewhat, if not wholly, on monetary conditions.
Although Juliet’s father arranges for his daughter’s marriage to Paris, a rich citizen of the town, Juliet refuses to cooperate with this tradition of marriage under false pretenses. Juliet falls in love with Romeo, not Paris, despite the fact that Romeo was poor, and had no way of guaranteeing a secure financial future. Although socially deviant from the norms of the time, Juliet refused to marry anyone for their money. This contrasts with Petruchio’s views on marriage, as seen in The Shrew. “I come to wive it wealthily in Padua/ If wealthily, then happily in Padua…” (TTotS, I, ii, 76-77). Petruchio expresses his motives for coming to Padua in the first place- to marry a rich woman for her money. The theme of marrying for money is best exemplified by Petruchio, and the theme of marrying as a result of true love is demonstrated by the marriage between Romeo and Juliet. Without regard to financial standing, Romeo and Juliet experience love at first sight, and they marry out of their mutual feelings for each another.
Shakespeare first construes love as a confusing expression, later transforming it into comic relief. After conferring with Baptista about the amount of money his daughter’s dowry was to be, Petruchio informs Kate of the marriage plans, and less than a week later the two are wed. After marrying Kate, Petruchio proceeds to implement his ‘Taming’ plan. Through his various games and games, Petruchio provides excellent comic relief for the audience. His determination to subdue the ill-tempered Kate and make her love him are what make this Shakespearean work a comedy. Kate grows to love Petruchio as time goes on though, contrary to Romeo and Juliet in which the two lovers fall passionately in love at first sight. Romeo proclaims: “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight!/ For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, I, v, 53-54). What Romeo and Juliet feel for each other is true love from the very beginning, not the gradual attraction that Kate and Petruchio experience. It is clear that love is treated differently through the characters, as love is treated as comic relief in The Shrew and as true love, the complete devotion of both partners, in Romeo and Juliet.
The treatment of love in the plot of each of these plays also varies substantially. With love ultimately portrayed from a comical standpoint in The Shrew, Petruchio quite literally “tames” Kate and establishes his dominance in the relationship. As Kate says “Forward, I pray, since we have come so far/ And be it moon, or sun, or what you please/ And if you please to call it a rush candle/ Henceforth I vow it shall be so for me,” she reaffirms her willingness to agree to do anything Petruchio says (TTotS, IV, v, 14-17). In Romeo and Juliet however, both Romeo and Juliet love each other to the greatest extent possible. Neither spouse holds superiority over the other, and both end up committing suicide because they believe the other is dead. Love, therefore, takes control of its victims in this plot. “And Romeo dead; and Juliet, dead before” (R+J, V, iii, 196). These two dying for each other essentially depicts the foundation of true love. While the love between Romeo and Juliet is felt instantly by both characters, the same does not hold true for Kate and Petruchio, whose relationship develops into a patriarchal entity.
Other posts on Julius Caesar:
Information about Shakespeare's Caesar
Julius Caesar, Act III (3) Issues
Julius Caesar, More Act III Issues
Caesar Discussion
The Life and Work of William Shakespeare
Information about Shakespeare's Caesar
Aristotle’s Inspiration on the Work of Shakespeare
William Shakespeare: An Annotated Bibliography
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