Machiavelli’s theory as described in The Prince has been a great influence on the theories of acquiring political power. Because Machiavelli’s name is connected with deceit and immorality,...Show moreMachiavelli’s theory as described in The Prince has been a great influence on the theories of acquiring political power. Because Machiavelli’s name is connected with deceit and immorality, especially in early modern England, many Elizabethan playwrights engaged with his doctrine to excite their audiences. This thesis argues that Marlowe engages with Machiavelli in two distinct manners. On the one hand there is the simplified, misinterpreted Machiavellian. These characters may appear to follow Machiavelli’s doctrine. However, because their actions go against Machiavelli’s doctrine, they are not able to achieve their goals. On the other hand there are the true Machiavellian characters, who are able to show the power of the individual by following Machiavellian doctrine. These characters can overcome their troubles and achieve actual political power. An analysis of The Jew of Malta and Tamburlaine the Great makes this distinction clear. Although Barabas is introduced as a Machiavellian by Machevill himself, his actions continuously go against his doctrine. The secondary, Christian character Ferneze does use his tactical planning skills to turn unpredictable situations to his advantage. Tamburlaine uses these same Machiavellian tactics on an epic skill. Although Tamburlaine’s cruelty is extreme, Machiavelli would approve as they are essential to his reputation and conquest. In Doctor Faustus, although often overlooked in this discussion, Marlowe depicts the importance of focus and knowledge in the acquirement of political power. Lucifer and Mephistopheles use Machiavelli’s doctrine to victory. In Doctor Faustus, Machiavellianism truly is the devil’s doctrine.Show less
In her highly influential book Gender Trouble, as well as in other publications such as “Performative Acts and Gender Constitution” and “Imitation and Gender Insubordination,” Judith Butler argues...Show moreIn her highly influential book Gender Trouble, as well as in other publications such as “Performative Acts and Gender Constitution” and “Imitation and Gender Insubordination,” Judith Butler argues for the performative nature of gender and especially the performativity of heterosexual masculinity. She discusses gender as a theatrical performance and claims that gender is, in essence, an imitation of a non-existent original. She argues that gender is collectively produced by society in a way similar to how plays are produced for the stage. The performance of cross-dressing can be especially disruptive of the illusion that gender identity is built around a stable core, and often highlight the every-day performance that is masculinity. Although most Shakespeare plays do not explicitly discuss cross-dressing practices, female roles in Shakespeare’s England were performed by young boys. Some of the plays do discuss the theme overtly, especially those that feature double cross-dressing. In the plays As You Like It, The Merchant of Venice, Twelfth Night, Cymbeline, and The Two Gentlemen of Verona, female characters disguise themselves as men for an array of reasons. The boys in these plays literally perform two genders as a role – both the (traditional) female and male gender role are performed on the stage. Through this, the boundaries of gender are blurred and its performativity highlighted. Scholars such as Michael Shapiro and Stephen Orgel have researched gender in Shakespeare’s plays extensively. In their respective books, Gender in Play on the Shakespearean Stage and Impersonations: The performance of gender in Shakespeare’s England, they discuss what effect the presence of the boy actors has on the plays and how Shakespeare deliberately alluded to their presence. Through jests, comments and allusions, Shakespeare’s plays explore the act of cross-dressing, homoeroticism and question gender boundaries. Shakespeare’s (double) cross-dressed characters highlight the performativity of gender, especially masculinity, in a way similar to what Butler discusses in her works on gender performativity. Casey Charles, in his essay “Gender Trouble in Twelfth Night”, applies Butler’s ideas to several scenes in the play. He argues that “Judith Butler's critique … provides a useful model for understanding” how Shakespeare’s plays disrupt traditional ideas on gender and sexuality. His application of Butler to Twelfth Night in turn provides a model for the analysis of other plays in this thesis. In this thesis, I will first discuss Butler’s ideas on performative gender. Secondly, I will analyse how gender is portrayed as a performative act in three plays: The Merchant of Venice, Twelfth Night and As You Like It. Thirdly, I will discuss how the casting boys or (young) men in original productions of these plays impacts the meaning of the disguises, as well as that of the plays as a whole. After investigating the original texts and productions, I will also analyse modern productions of the three plays by Shakespeare’s Globe company, and show how they deal with the notions of boy actors, performative gender and cross-dressing, as well as Shakespeare’s original comments and allusions. I will argue that within the three plays, comments, humour, and reflexive allusions highlight the presence of the boy actor. Through these, the plays also portray gender – especially masculinity – as a performative act that is similar to the acts that Butler describes in her work. Since most modern productions opt for women to play the cross-dressed characters in the play, many of the intended allusions are lost. Therefore, it is essential for the preservation of both the originally intended plays as well as the timeless messages on gender they carry that all-male productions remain.Show less
This thesis describes the history and development of Jewish immigrant theater in New York, focusing on a Yiddish translation of Shakespeare's play "Othello". Comparing this version of Othello to...Show moreThis thesis describes the history and development of Jewish immigrant theater in New York, focusing on a Yiddish translation of Shakespeare's play "Othello". Comparing this version of Othello to other Yiddish translations of Shakespeare's plays, this thesis offers a description of the problems that Jews in America encountered during the process of integration into American society.Show less
Tom Lanoye's play Koningin Lear is an adaptation of Shakespeare's King Lear. Not only is it a radical modernization of the plot, it is also a translation from English to Dutch. In adapting and...Show moreTom Lanoye's play Koningin Lear is an adaptation of Shakespeare's King Lear. Not only is it a radical modernization of the plot, it is also a translation from English to Dutch. In adapting and translating King Lear, Lanoye uses for his play Koningin Lear elements from the original combined with new elements, resulting in hybridity. This hybridity is a dual hybridity since there is hybridity in both the play as a translation and as an adaptation.Show less
This BA thesis explores the nature of individual human agency in the second season of the television series The Wire. Drawing on Althusserian or Gramscian thought, involving the question of...Show moreThis BA thesis explores the nature of individual human agency in the second season of the television series The Wire. Drawing on Althusserian or Gramscian thought, involving the question of ideology and its limiting effects on human agency, I have argued that the nature of human agency in The Wire is problematic. The characters, especially in the second season, are bound by an ideological discourse. Chapter two has shown that the characters are involved in an ideological discourse of their own and that determines the extent of their individual agency. In addition, and in dialogue with the ideologies that bind the characters, there is the (creators of the) series’ own ideological response to this, both in terms of the plotting and on a more formal level (discussed in chapters three and four respectively).Show less
Edmund Burke's views already were conservative at the time of the American Revolution and he continued with this line of thought during the French Revolution. Thomas Paine also remained consistent...Show moreEdmund Burke's views already were conservative at the time of the American Revolution and he continued with this line of thought during the French Revolution. Thomas Paine also remained consistent with his revolutionary thoughts, but his views were not as widespread as the American victory and the swiftness of the revolutionary reforms made in 1789 suggest. Meanwhile, Burke’s conservative desires were certainly not obsolete and his views saw surprising support, and not, as one might expect, just from nobility trying to keep their privileges.Show less
This thesis has aimed to shed light on the correspondences between religious and social changes in early modern England on the one hand and changes in the early modern will on the other. Some...Show moreThis thesis has aimed to shed light on the correspondences between religious and social changes in early modern England on the one hand and changes in the early modern will on the other. Some researchers have questioned how much value the wording of wills has as evidence for the development of religious and social matters in early modern England. However, in this thesis I have argued that the correspondence between religious and social changes is in fact not questionable at all. To understand the will in early modern England, we need to know about the social and religious function that the last will had in early modern society and the role the Church played in the process of will-making. Did the church have a hand in the content of the will, or is it just the testator talking? The influence of the church on will-making diminished and people started looking for more independence and secrecy for their wills. Not only the content changed because of this, but also the circumstances in which the wills were made. In this study I was particularly interested in the differences between medieval and early modern wills. Because of the overlapping features, the differences between the two eras can tell us all the more about changes in social and religious life. In addition to this, the Protestant rejection of Purgatory is a crucial starting point for studying changes in the early modern will, as the end of payments for the good of the soul was beneficial for relatives. In the medieval period, there was a tension between the Church’s wishes for donations on the one side and family expectations on the other. Throughout the early modern period, by contrast, bequests for family were the testator’s main duty. As the will became less important as a religious document, it became more important as a reflection of family relations. The will changed from an ‘afterlife insurance’ for the testator to more of a life insurance for the living, and more similar to the will as we know it today: a secular document that provides for the family that is left behind.Show less
