"In relation to other factors, how far was Henry's desire for divorce the main cause of the Reformation in England in the 1530's?"

"In relation to other factors, how far was Henry's desire for divorce the main cause of the Reformation in England in the 1530's?" During the 16th Century, we see the beginnings of what turned out to be perhaps the greatest shift in religious doctrine from Catholicism to Protestantism England has ever experienced; The Reformation. Henry VIII's break from Rome in the 1530's certainly helped cause this. Nevertheless great historical debate has raged for many years over the reasoning behind severing the link with the Papacy. The most popular argument is that it was Henry's strong desire for divorce from Catherine of Aragon -- in an attempt to re-marry to ensure the succession with a male heir -- that bought about the break, where as others dispute this, campaigning for the case that it was mass social discontent with the existing church that was the cause. Some have even taken the stance that the exclusive reason for the break was based on Henry VIII's greed; his further want for greater power, control and wealth, while others suggesting that he was taken advantage of by ambitious members of the Church and the Inner Circle. Soon after his accession in 1509 Henry married Catherine of Aragon, nevertheless this was not a straightforward marriage, it required Papal dispensation based on the fact that Catherine had previously been married to Henry's brother Arthur, who had died

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Contrast an Elizabethan and a modern audience's understanding of Hamlet's views".

Danièle Evans 29.12.01 'Hamlet thou hast cleft my heart in twain' "Most productions present Gertrude and Ophelia as sympathetic victims of Hamlet's cruelty. As your starting point, refer to either the closet or the nunnery scene, and, paying close attention to the language, show how it reveals the interaction between Hamlet and the women characters here and throughout the play. Contrast an Elizabethan and a modern audience's understanding of Hamlet's views". As the main female characters in the play, Ophelia and Gertrude are subjected to the worst of Hamlet's madness. 'Hamlet' depicts the popular Elizabethan viewpoint and treatment of women which is palpably clear from Hamlet's contemptuous and disrespectful behaviour. This is especially obvious in both the nunnery and the closet scenes, primarily from the language and exchanges between the characters. The 'nunnery' scene, mainly focusing on the exchange between Hamlet and Ophelia, is structurally similar to the later 'closet scene' of Act 3 Scene 4. 'Soft you now', says Hamlet as he catches a glimpse of his former love, 'The fair Ophelia', a comment which is instinctively tender. Notably, it also echoes his description of Ophelia at her grave, in Act 5 Scene 1, where he openly declares his love for her, admitting that 'forty thousand brothers/Could not with all their quantity of love/Make up my sum'. It is also at

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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In both plays love is insanity, taking over the rational and lucid mind by delusion and self-destruction, which can only be cured when the insane are stripped of what they love the most and honesty, not deceit, take precedence.

Plot Outline Thesis: In both plays love is insanity, taking over the rational and lucid mind by delusion and self-destruction, which can only be cured when the insane are stripped of what they love the most and honesty, not deceit, take precedence. Point 1: The realization of the truth opens the eyes of the characters and finally allows them to see, and not be blinded. Shakespeare uses sight as a tool to cure the characters from their insanity. Proof: King Lear is insane at the beginning of the play and not near the end like one might think. It takes a series of rejections and scrutiny from his daughters for King Lear to understand that they made a fool of him for his land and riches, and that their devotion of love was a hoax. Only later when King Lear realizes this does he become sane. The love in idleness flower in A Midsummers Night Dream has a number of effects on the characters that have it used upon them. It makes all the characters a little insane or at the very least not their normal selves. Firstly it impairs both Lysander and Demetrious to love Helena and not Hermia, and also the insanity of Titantia, the Queen of Fairies, who has fallen in love with Bottom, an ass. Point 2: both plays use location to establish the mood and the location also goes hand in hand with the state that the characters are in. Proof: In A Midsummers Night dream the lovers Hermia

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Romeo and Juliet: Character Study of Romeo

Romeo and Juliet: Character Study of Romeo We are introduced to Romeo at the beginning of the play in a conversation between Montague and Benvolio. Even from this early stage, it is apparent to us that Romeo is a romantic, having been seen "an hour before the worshipped sun" had risen, walking beneath "the grove of sycamore" in a sickened state, sighing deeply with "tears augmenting the fresh morning's dew." We also learn from this brief discussion that he has been hiding himself away in his room, shutting up his windows and locking out the daylight, in an attempt to create an "artificial night." When Romeo finally does appear, he comes across as a sad, melancholic, apathetic youth and declares that he's in love with a girl who doesn't return his affections, saying he is 'out of her favour where I am I love.' He talks to Benvolio about how he feels inside, but talks in rhyming couplets which make his words seem like a well rehearsed speech rather than a true expression of emotional torture and anguish. This artificiality of his speech makes it seem forced rather than from the heart and conveys the idea that he is more in love with the concept of love itself, rather than actually experiencing the feeling of love. Also, throughout that scene he uses oxymoron (e.g. "brawling love," and "loving hate") which conveys a rather melodramatic quality in his personality. When he

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Compare and contrast the two love stories ("Peleus and Thetis"; "Ariadne and Theseus") in Catullus' Poem 64.

Compare and contrast the two love stories ("Peleus and Thetis"; "Ariadne and Theseus") in Catullus' Poem 64. Catullus' Poem 64 recounts the blissful marriage of Peleus and Thetis, the narration of which is interrupted by the recounting of another myth. This 'tale-within-a-tale' is the ekphrasis of a tapestry depicting Theseus' abandonment of Ariadne and telling of the ruinous consequences of this act for Theseus. It is this story of betrayed love that is woven into the coverlet of the matrimonial bed of Peleus and Thetis. Although it portends no such betrayal by either Peleus or Thetis, this vivid narrative tapestry dominates the poem and gives mythic idiom to a theme with which Catullus seems to have had much concern throughout his poetry of Lesbia.1 The lament of Ariadne is undoubtedly the centrepiece of the poem, and perhaps "puts into a woman's mouth the grief expressed elsewhere [in the poetry of] Catullus at his own abandonment by Lesbia."2 Theseus' lackadaisical absent-mindedness (made worse by the curse of Ariadne) causes his father's erroneous suicide, and may be indicative of the fecklessness of Lesbia.3 Perhaps then, the Peleus and Thetis narrative is merely a frame for the story of Ariadne.4 Yet, the extravagant wedding of Peleus and Thetis can be seen to represent an apex in the age of heroes - when the gods mingled with mankind. The disturbing

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Antony and Cleopatra Question: Explore Shakespeare's presentation of Domitius Enobarbus

Antony and Cleopatra Question: Explore Shakespeare's presentation of Domitius Enobarbus. Traditionally Shakespeare's use of the role of a chorus is seen to have been used as an insight for the audience into the prophesy of future events and what to expect throughout the play, usually by a secondary character. In 'Antony and Cleopatra', Shakespeare expands the role of the chorus within his presentation of Enobarbus. Enobarbus does not merely illustrate what consequences Antony and Cleopatra's actions will have, but plays a significant and vital character whose actions earn the admiration of the audience. Amid Antony's entourage is Enobarbus. Enobarbus is a high ranking officer who within the play is one of Antony's closest aficionados. Among the audience Enobarbus is seen as the thematic and moral centre of the play. Through the admired Enobarbus the power of love and loyalty are seen to overshadow the logical reason and common sense of the mind. For example his emotional break down and reaction to his betrayal and desertion of Antony and of Antony's munificent response creates a sense of desolation behind his death. "I am alone the villain of the earth, My better service when my turpitude Thou dost so crown with gold!" At times, Enobarbus is very much a chorus figure observing the behaviour of those around him. His interpretation of certain situations brings

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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For never was a story of such woe than that of Juliet and her Romeo - What is it that make s the play so "woeful" or tragic? Discuss this by closely referring to characters and events in the play

For never was a story of such woe than that of Juliet and her Romeo What is it that make s the play so "woeful" or tragic? Discuss this by closely referring to characters adn events in the play 'For never was a story of more woe Than this of Juliet and her Romeo' Romeo and Juliet is a tragic tale of two lovers whose lasting appeal can be attributed to the play's unforgettable characters, its gripping plot, its universal themes and its lyrical poetry. The play closely follows Shakespeare's 'Formula for Tragedy', where there is a Great man or woman with a tragic flaw in personality, which is accompanied with ill-fate and an ultimate flaw from greatness. This eventually equates to a tragedy in the play. In Romeo and Juliet, tragic flaws within the characters and the ill fate of the lovers makes the play a tragedy. Romeo and Juliet is the tragic tale of two young lovers whose love couldn't survive their turbulent world. A tragedy is a dramatic representation of human conflict conventionally ending with the defeat or death of the major characters. Shakespeare's "formula" for tragedy comprises of a great man or woman with a tragic flaw in their personality. Fate intervenes in the events and this combination leads to a fall from greatness. Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet closely follows this formula where characters and their ill-fate plays a critical role in leading up

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Discuss the treatment of love in As You Like It, illustrating your argument with detailed reference to the text

Module Title: Shakespeare Module Number: E103/2 Module Tutor: Linda Ruhemann Assignment Title: As You Like It Discuss the treatment of love in As You Like It, illustrating your argument with detailed reference to the text In the romantic comedy As You Like It, Shakespeare explores many aspects of love from lustful, bawdy love to non-sexual same sex love. In this play Shakespeare has given a tradition romantic story with a 'happy-ever-after' ending for all the main characters, which was common to this era in romantic plays. Love in this play is treated as a multi-faceted emotion that does not express life in black and white. Shakespeare allows the emotion of love to be illustrated as the all-encompassing emotion it is known to be, including all the emotions that are expressed because of love. One of the first realisations of love witnessed in As You Like It is between Rosalind and Celia. When Duke Frederick banishes his niece, Rosalind from the Court, his daughter Celia is determined to also follow: CELIA: ...... Rosalind lacks then the love Which teacheth thee that thou and I am one. The love between Rosalind and Celia is a close devotional love that is non-physical. Celia sees herself and Rosalind as one when Rosalind is banished and therefore believes herself banished also. Her love for Rosalind is deeper than her love for her father whom she willingly

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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To What Perspective are The Witches responsible for Macbeth's Attitudes and Behaviour

Greed and Ambition, Until Which Point can we consider them something good? By Juan Pablo Cáceres Vásquez Shakespeare's developed many stories into excellent dramatization for the Elizabethan stage. He knew how to entertain and absorb the audience with dynamic plots and the clever use of imagery, and versatile characters. Macbeth is an action packed, psychological thriller1 that has not lost impact in nearly four hundred years. All of Shakespeare's plays have a stylistic device that makes them unique and specials. The use of alliteration2, similes3, metaphor, etc., makes each play unique and magnificent. Foreshadowing is one of the most present and important literary devices in the play, this can be observed when the witches set the tone in act I, scene 1 with a storm and the predictions that Macbeth's life will become so confused he will find it difficult to differentiate between right and wrong, "Fair is foul, and foul is fare:"4. I can also say that the opening of the play with thunder and lighting when the witches entered, sets the mood of the play, the reader and mainly the audience can predict how the rest of the play is going to be. How? You can ask to yourself how is the play is going to be? Comedy? Tragedy? Another stylistic feature of Shakespeare's plays is the use of Blank Verse, which resembles the natural rhythm of spoken English. Macbeth is not the

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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What do you find interesting about Shakespeare's presentation of deception in 'Much Ado About Nothing'?

Q. What do you find interesting about Shakespeare's presentation of deception in 'Much Ado About Nothing'? Shakespeare uses a wide range of effective devices in his presentation of deception through the course of "Much Ado About Nothing". These include strong elements of plot construction and characterisation, as well as effective imagery through various sound and visual techniques. The plot of "Much Ado About Nothing" is an intricate network of scandalous schemes and friendly trickeries. Deception is a rampant theme in the play - each of the major characters is involved in at least one deception - and Shakespeare uses this theme to advance character development through the play, as well as provide comic distraction from the more serious tone present towards the dénouement. Within the matrix of deception ploys in the play, there is also an underlying theme of self-deception, involving some of the most significant characters. Furthermore, all through the play, there is a subtle undercurrent of error. People are often misled by appearances; they make mistakes about others and themselves and can be quite wrong in their judgements of situations. Such failures in understanding are used by Shakespeare to consolidate the setting for plotting and trickery. Also, this theme of misconception is cunningly mirrored by the title of the play: in the context of the play, 'nothing' can be

  • Word count: 3254
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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