Ripe Good Scholar

“The swooning lover crashed into Elizabeth’s chamber in his filthy travelling clothes ‘so full of dirt and mire that his very face was full of it’ to confront his fair mistress, barely out of bed, her wrinkles brutally exposed in the morning light and her wig off." - Lisa Hilton, The Renaissance Prince

The swooning lover here is Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex and that wrinkled old woman is Queen Elizabeth I. Unsurprisingly, this incident marked the start of Essex’s downfall. Prior to this time, he was the Queen’s favorite. He benefited greatly from her favor and seemed to know how to keep it. She gave him money and power. He was a tireless flirt.

Success did not become him, however. He became arrogant and just generally unpleasant to be around. Elizabeth was fond of him though, so the other courtiers had to stay silent and wait. Fortunately for them, they didn’t have to wait long because he quickly wasted an opportunity. He should have kept in mind that Elizabeth regularly banished favorites from court for getting married without her permission. He didn’t though and his fall was spectacular. Spoiler alert, he gets executed.

Today, we’ll be discussing the Essex Rebellion and the role Shakespeare played.

Sources:

Elizabeth: Renaissance Prince by Lisa Hilton

Elizabeth’s Bedfellow by Anna Whitelock

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“Two households both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes

A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life;

Whose misadventured piteous overthrows

Do with their death bury their parents’ strife.”

-Prologue, Romeo and Juliet

Nearly everyone is familiar with the tragic tale of Romeo and Juliet, two teens in love separated by their warring families. These two teens are often put up on a pedestal as the perfect representation of love. There’s even a whole movie about it, Shakespeare in Love. But, are they?

They are young teens, who meet, fall in love, get married, and commit suicide in less than a week. On the surface, not exactly what one would aspire to emulate. And yet, here we are. It begs the question, is it possible that they were in love that quickly? The play is without a doubt full of beautiful, poetic language and packed full of emotion, but does it accurately represent love?

These are the questions Eli and I will be grappling with today as we discuss Romeo and Juliet.

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“It has become a commonplace of Shakespearian biography that, from roughly his age of twenty to his age of twenty-eight, we encounter the ‘lost years.’ But no years are ever wholly lost. There may be a gap in chronology, but the pattern of a life may be discerned obliquely and indirectly.” - Peter Ackroyd in Shakespeare the Biography

From the birth of his twins to his arrival on the London theatre scene, we have no record of what Shakespeare was doing. This isn’t from a lack of trying, but if you weren’t getting baptised, married or buried, if you weren’t involved in a court case or a land purchase, and you weren’t a member of the nobility, you basically didn’t exist. If no one was writing about you, there would be no record. On top of that, Elizabethan record keeping wasn’t exactly top notch and there were quite a few fires thrown in there for good measure. 

What does this all mean? Well, it means we will never be able to say for 100% certainty what Shakespeare was doing during these years. We can make educated guesses and speculate, but until a magic document shows up, there’s no irrefutable proof. Not all hypotheses are created equal though, so it is worth examining the most prevalent theories and how likely or unlikely they are. Which is exactly what Eli and I will be doing today. Strap on your deductive reasoning caps and let’s explore Shakespeare’s lost years. 

Primary research sources:

Shakespeare: The Biography by Peter Ackroyd

The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“And therefore, since I cannot prove a lover,

To entertain these fair well-spoken days,

I am determined to prove a villain

And hate the idle pleasures of these days.

Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous,

By drunken prophecies, libels and dreams,

To set my brother Clarence and the king

In deadly hate the one against the other”

• • • Richard III Act I, Scene 1

When I say, Richard III, images of a hunchback villain likely come to mind. One that is cruel and tyrannical to his core. A man obsessed with power and willing to go to almost any length to secure that power. This image is what the Tudors wanted us to believe. It was Henry Tudor, or Henry VII, that defeated Richard and brought a new era of peace to England. That’s not the whole story though. Henry Tudor had a pretty weak claim to the throne, so they had to use propaganda to secure the Tudor dynasty. This meant painting Richard as the villain, and they did that very effectively. The Tudor chroniclers bent the truth of what happened to provide nefarious motives that were not laid out by contemporaries.

It was the Tudor chroniclers that Shakespeare sourced from for his plays, namely Holinshed. This meant that Shakespeare dramatized history and in doing so, created one of the most memorable villains of all time. In terms of events, Shakespeare is largely accurate. He compresses timelines, of course, but overall what happened in Shakespeare happened in reality. Where the play deviates from reality appears to be with Richard’s character, so that is what Eli and I will be exploring today. It’s time to look past the Tudor myth and find out who the real Richard III was.

Key source material: Richard III by Chris Skidmore

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“But screw your courage to the sticking place and we’ll not fail” - Lady MacBeth Act I, Scene 7 of the Scottish Play

Many have heard of MacBeth, the tyrannical title character of one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. Many more are unaware that MacBeth was a real Scottish King. Shakespeare however was completely aware because he relied heavily of Raphael Holinshed’s history of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. Now, whether Holinshed was accurate to history is a whole different story, but Shakespeare borrowed heavily from the works of Holinshed while writing the Scottish Play.

But, just how much did Shakespeare borrow from Holinshed? Was he quote unquote true to the history of MacBeth, or did he pull from a few other places? That is what we will be discussing today and by the end of it, hopefully we will have answered these questions and much, much more. So, don your favorite kilt and let’s head off to Scotland.

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

A little disclaimer about this episode. Dr. Lisa Grogan and I are talking about Portia from Julius Caesar. There is a significant discussion about self-harm and suicide, so if those are subjects that bother you, you may want to skip this episode.

“I have made strong proof of my constancy, giving myself a voluntary wound here, in the thigh; can I bear that with patience and not my husband’s secrets?” Portia in Julius Caesar Act 2, Scene 1

Brutus’ wife, Portia, has a tiny part in Julius Caesar, but there is a lot to unpack there. We are introduced to Portia when she stabs herself in the leg to prove her loyalty to Brutus. Then, she has a clear panic attack when he goes to stab Caesar. Finally, we get the news that she committed suicide after being overwhelmed with anxiety about Brutus’ fate. 

See what I mean? There’s a lot there, so I decided this would be an excellent topic for me to discuss with my dear friend Dr. Grogan and see what treatment options would be available to Portia today. This gets a little heavy, but please join us as we dive into the psyche of Portia.

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“We fairies that do run.../ Following the darkness like a dream/ Now are frolic; not a mouse/ Shall disturb this hallowed house./ I am sent with broom before/ To sweep the dust behind the door” Midsummer Night’s Dream Act 5 Scene 1

Today when we hear the word fairy, a small winged creature probably comes to mind. A little glowing girl fluttering amongst the flowers. This, however, would not be the image that came to mind for most Elizabethan playgoers. They would have been picturing a wide variety of creatures that were all shapes, sizes, and colors. Some were benevolent and some were evil. One thing was for certain though, you did not want to anger a fairy.

Today we will be discussing fairy lore as Shakespeare’s audience would have understood them. There was a long held belief in fairies and so the lore behind them is plentiful. We do our best to sum up what a fairy was to Shakespeare and his audience, but there is so much more to talk about for those who are interested. So, sit back, relax, and come into the English countryside with us to learn all about the fairy folk.

Primary resource: "At the Bottom of the Garden" by Diane Purkiss

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“A nobler man, a braver warrior, lives not this day within the city wall” - Titus Andronicus Act I, Scene 1

Not too many people are familiar with Titus Andronicus, one of Shakespeare’s earliest plays. It is also easily Shakespeare’s goriest play. Most of the main characters die, some after horrible mutilation. A couple even get baked into a pie and fed to their mom. It’s quite a doozy. The copious amount of violence can make it easy to dismiss this particular play. However, that is doing a disservice to Shakespeare and the possible audience. 

You see, Titus is a perfect example of how man’s own faults can lead to his ultimate downfall. The question though is what is that flaw? Is it loyalty? A commitment to the status quo? Or a need to follow the correct protocol? Perhaps it’s a little bit of everything.

Join Eli and I as we discuss Titus and his flaws.

Check out by blog at ripegoodscholar.com

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“We may see the young Shakespeare, therefore, spending thirty or forty hours each week in memorising, construing, parsing and repeating prose and verse in Latin. We may hear him talking the language, to his schoolmaster and to his fellow pupils.” Peter Ackroyd in Shakespeare: A Biography

A common argument of anti-Stratfordians is that Shakespeare was uneducated. He only completed grammar school and never even attended a single day of university. So, it seems impossible that a man with a “grade school” education could grow up to be such a prolific writer. That idea, though, completely disregards the realities of Elizabethan Grammar School.

Yes, Shakespeare only attended school for about four years. However, in those four years he received an education similar to that of a modern day classics undergraduate. The students, by years three and four, were encouraged to speak only Latin at school. That means for 12+ hours a day for 5 ½ days per week for 44 weeks per year, they were speaking Latin. To say Shakespeare was uneducated is simply incorrect. He was not as educated as other writers, but with his grammar school education he was given all of the tools necessary to write his plays.

Today, we will be taking a closer look at what Shakespeare’s education was like and how it contributed to the writer he became. Grab your quill and ink pot and let’s head to school.

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

One of Shakespeare’s earliest and arguably worst plays is probably Henry VI, all three parts. It’s essentially about the start of the wars of the roses. As such, I would not qualify Henry as the star of his own play. This is actually an excellent reflection of his life. He was king from infancy and lacked the strong will necessary to be a medieval ruler, so he was dominated by other nobles and even his own wife. By some accounts he was feeble minded, by others extremely pious.

One thing the historians can agree on however, is that he had some sort of mental breakdown. He went into what we would now call a catatonia for over a year. It has been the source of much debate for centuries. Today, Dr. Lisa and I take on the task and discuss what a possible diagnosis could have been. Sit back, enjoy, and let’s jump into Henry’s head.

Teller of Tales by Kevin MacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4467-teller-of-the-tales

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Minstrel Guild by KevinMacLeod

Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4056-minstrel-guild

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Beginning quote from the unpublished biography of Henry VI by Kerry R. J. Tattersall