William Shakespeare was born in Stratford, England in 1564. His father was a businessman and a town official. Superior, Shakespeare started off a lot higher than the other kids in town. Shakespeare's six years of study in grammar school gave him an early exposure to the basic skills and richer knowledge of writing. In addition, he also learned Latin and Greek, which created the basis for Shakespeare's future creation. condition. It is a pity that Shakespeare did not graduate smoothly. When he was 13 years old, his father went bankrupt and his family was in trouble. He had to drop out of school to find a job to support the family.
In the nine-year history from his drop out in 1577 to his departure to London in 1586, there is no clear record of Shakespeare's occupation, except that he married a peasant's daughter who was 8 years older than him at the age of 18. A blank space makes the world have all kinds of guesses.
The era of Shakespeare began in London. In 1586, like all young people who yearn for wealth, dreams and opportunities, Shakespeare went to London alone. At first, he worked as a groom and handyman in the theater, and later entered the troupe to play small roles. In that era, because of officials' beliefs and other issues, the actors at that time were not a glamorous profession. The emerging industry of drama was very unpopular, and people's evaluation of full-time actors was not good, but it also benefited from this. The unpopularity of the industry has given Shakespeare a lot less competition.
In 1588, Shakespeare opened his screenwriting road. In England at that time, the public liked to watch bloody, violent and pornographic programs. Shakespeare also arranged low-level humor and bloody dramas to cater to the public, but this did not prevent him from writing later. beautiful poems.
Around 1590, the 26-year-old Shakespeare completed his first work. At that time, many playwrights sold their works to theatre companies. Shakespeare broke the rules and set up a theatre company to perform theatrical performances. Shakespeare, under the protection and sponsorship of Bole Henry Leo Shesley, began in 1594, and Shakespeare created a large number of classic works. The plays were performed in various places and were very popular. Expansion, but continued theatrical work.
Shakespeare used his nib to paint one sad and ridiculous drama life after another, and Shakespeare's talent brought him a lot of wealth and fame.
In 1614, Shakespeare officially closed his pen and returned to his hometown of Stratford to live in seclusion. Two years later, Shakespeare died at the age of 52. This great writer who changed the history of drama ended his extraordinary life.
The creation of Shakespeare
Shakespeare's plays represent the highest achievement of European literature during the Renaissance. He is known as the giant of giants, "the soul of the age", and is one of the few greatest writers in the history of world literature. From the perspective of description content, his plays show the broad picture and cultural features of European social life in the Renaissance period incisively and vividly; from the perspective of political function, he reflects many important political events in British society tortuously, especially around the succession of the throne. From the perspective of the spirit of the times, he promoted the ideal of humanism, eulogized the beauty of human nature, advocated reason, order, benevolence and generosity, and also reflected and criticized the shortcomings in the practice of humanism; Judging from the above, his drama plots are novel and interesting, and the drama language is also colorful and vivid; from the perspective of creative type, he has made great achievements in drama genres such as historical dramas, dramas, and tragedies.
(1) Early creation
Shakespeare 's early works were mainly performed between 1590 and 1601, and he mainly created narrative poems, historical dramas and comedies. It was at the end of Queen Elizabeth's reign at the time, and the monarchy was solid. In 1588, Britain defeated the Spanish Armada, which was then known as the hegemon of the sea, and became the "Empire on which the Sun Never Sets", so the national consciousness and patriotic enthusiasm of the people at that time were unprecedentedly high.
In Shakespeare's early creation, due to his full confidence in the humanist ideals and beliefs in the real society, the themes and contents of his works are positive, bright in style, full of optimism and cheerfulness, laying a solid foundation for Shakespeare's humanistic thought and dramatic art style. Base.
Shakespeare's epic poems are rich in imagination, gorgeous in rhetoric and smooth in rhythm. In his poems, he praises great friendship and steadfast love, and believes that ideal love and friendship are the unity of truth, goodness and beauty. He regards love as a natural law and an unstoppable force. His epic poems break the traditional concept of elegant love. The tradition mainly describes a strange, complicated and painful love, which all reflect his humanistic view of love.
During this period, Shakespeare wrote ten historical dramas with the theme of British history, namely: the first quartet "Henry VI" (I, Middle, and II) and "Richard III" and the second quartet "Reason". Charles II, Henry IV (top and bottom), Henry V, King John, Henry VIII. Historical dramas are selected and adapted from British history books, with the succession of the throne as the core, and comprehensively reflect the social history of Britain at that time. The historical drama mainly takes the seven monarchs of the Plantagenet Dynasty, the Lancaster Dynasty, the York Dynasty and the Tudor Dynasty as the play titles and tells the story of the growth of England. In the historical drama, he proceeded from the law of order and condemned the disorderly scramble for the throne. Shakespeare interweaves the grand narratives of court strategies and battlefield killings with the small narratives of daily life at the bottom of society. The main line and auxiliary lines are combined. The scenes described in the play are very broad, and the characters are vivid and vivid, with the diversity and richness of the epic. sex.
Most of Shakespeare's comedies focus on love, friendship and marriage. His main works include "The Wrong Comedy", "The Taming of the Shrew", "The Two Gentlemen of Winona", "The Futility of Love", "A Midsummer Night's Dream", "The Merchant of Venice" and "Windsor". The Merry Wives, Much Ado About Nothing, As You Like It, and Twelfth Night. Shakespeare's comedy is bright in tone, rich and vivid in plot, gorgeous in language, wit, humor, and rich in lyricism. Shakespeare believed that love is the concentrated expression of beautiful human nature. Sincere and selfless love can inspire great power, remove all obstacles, and express the good wishes of lovers to be married. The recognition of sincere love and selfless friendship and the fierce condemnation of human greed and greed in the play express Shakespeare's affirmation and enjoyment of beauty and the humanistic thought of wishing for the happiness of the people.
Shakespeare's first period of creation is mainly characterized by optimism, pursuit of happy life, and opposition to asceticism.
(2) Mid-term creation
Shakespeare 's mid-term works were mainly staged between 1601 and 1607, when the old and new kings of England alternated. Because Elizabeth had no children to inherit the throne, various forces at home and abroad were wrestling with each other and were eager to move. Social contradictions intensified and the situation was turbulent. Shakespeare felt the flaws of humanism in the contrast between ideal humanism and dark reality. He no longer had positive illusions, but turned pessimistic and created a large number of tragic works.
This period was the tragic period of Shakespeare's writing and the most glorious period of his life. The concept of "black tragedy": melancholy, grief, gloom, without a trace of "bright tail". He wrote seven tragedies, such as "Hamlet," and four comedies. His greatest achievements are tragedies, of which "Hamlet", "Othello", "Macbeth" and "King Lear" are the most famous.
Shakespeare's tragedy begins with an existing subject, a story from a long time ago or an exotic story, and he laments the darkness and ugliness of the human world as the principles of benevolence, sincerity, and rational justice advocated by humanism at the time were trampled on. He sighed, lamented that in this country, the king is not the king, and the minister is not the minister; in the family, the father is not the father, the son is not the son, the husband and wife are against each other, the brothers can kill each other, and the whole society is morally sinking. Therefore, in the play, Shakespeare strongly attacked the rampant selfishness and self-interest, and also created a group of positive characters with humanistic ideals to oppose it.
The works of this period do not glorify but reveal the contradictions and ugliness of reality; no longer focus on humanist tragedy, no longer rely on external misunderstandings and coincidences to construct dramatic conflicts and portray characters, but instead focus on sharp contradictions Shape the characters and express the contradictions and struggles within the characters. Shakespeare's humanistic ideal of love is powerless in the face of the new egoistic evil forces. In his works, Shakespeare expressed his reverence and support for the legitimate kingship and warned the careerists who coveted power by describing the behavior of the expansion of ambition that led to the degeneration of human nature and the attempt to overstep the kingship and finally lead to destruction.
Shakespeare also innovated at this stage of creation. Taking Hamlet as an example, it is mainly reflected in three aspects: character tragedy, social tragedy and survival tragedy:
character tragedy. Goethe commented: "A great cause rests on an incompetent man, a beautiful, pure, noble and moral man who has no strong energy to make it a hero." Bradley said: "A high degree of sensitivity will There is indecision, and contradictory action begets a paradoxical withdrawal." Hamlet, vowing revenge for his father, died by poisoning his own sword because he was indecisive at a critical moment; Othello took his own wife's life remorse. In the experiences of these protagonists, although each of them showed the courage and firmness of the protagonists, the free will of human nature is doomed to their character flaws and human tragedy. During the Renaissance, people turned their attention from the metaphysical world of belief to the secular life. The importance of action was greater than that of contemplation. The contradiction between thought and action encountered in practice constituted one of the focuses of people's attention.
social tragedy. Hegel said: "Hamlet doubted not what should be done, but how to do it well." Hamlet was not etched in his heart because of personal family hatred, but because of his awareness of the crisis of the times and his understanding of the times Conscious commitment to mission. His hesitation is not natural, but the unique psychology of intellectuals in the transitional era, a necessary requirement of history and a tragedy that cannot be realized for the time being.
Survival tragedy. To live or to perish is a question worth considering. From the disappointment of reality to the doubt and disappointment of human nature, from the common court tragedy to the doubt of the value of life. The emptiness caused by doubt makes him despise all human beings, including himself and Ophelia, and his profound grasp of the social status quo and human nature makes him sober and nihilistic, but without comprehension, reflection and awareness of the situation, there will be no real life. strength.
The tone of Shakespeare's second period works from light to dark, from light optimism to heavy repression, mainly writing severe criticism of the evil forces in society.
(3) Late stage of creation
Shakespeare's later works were mainly completed between 1608 and 1612, when the James I dynasty was more corrupt and social contradictions were more acute. The works mainly resolve contradictions by accidental coincidence, reconciliation, forgiveness, fraternity and moral influence become the basic themes, and the creative style is also romantic and illusory.
During this period, Shakespeare had seen all the vicissitudes of life, and with the growth of age, the mental age gradually became old, which produced a kind of retreat. He restored his belief in humanism, and still optimistically believed that through the improvement of morality , mankind still has a bright future. But because this belief lacks a realistic social foundation, and evil in society is difficult to eradicate, these legendary dramas always take place in a fantasy and magical environment, where the protagonist experiences pain and then happiness. Performances often rely on accidental factors to resolve conflicts, and through supernatural powers such as magic, the two sides understand and reconcile with each other to achieve a perfect ending.
There are four legendary plays that represent the later stage of creation: "Prince of Tyre and Pelixus", "Cymbeline", "Winter's Tale" and "The Tempest".
The author's creative features in this period are very prominent in "The Tempest". In the play, the solution to the evil force is not to destroy it, but to restrain and control it and forgive the evil. The protagonist, Prospero, is portrayed as a mythical figure, usurped by conspirators, fighting only for revenge, washing his name, and finally forgiving his enemies, representing an abstraction impossible in real life Benefit.
The artistic achievements of Shakespeare's legendary plays are very high, and foreign critics praised The Tempest as the author's "poetic ambition". In this sense, Shakespeare also made a great contribution to the creation of the legendary play.
Shakespeare's third period of creation is characterized by reconciling the contradictions of reality and turning to the dream world. What drives the plot is not the complex and intense struggle of real-life contradictions, but a series of illusory adventures. The final resolution of the conflict is not the logical consequence of the character's actions, but the effect of some supernatural force. The tone of the show is illusory detachment, and the writer's writing in this period is clearly backwards.
There was a trend in the drama world at that time to create bizarre legendary plays to suit the taste of the court, and Shakespeare was also influenced by this trend to create legendary plays. The intensification of social contradictions, the resistance of peasants, the tyranny of the rulers, the blessing of public opinion and the characteristics of the legendary drama itself are the reasons for the obvious retrogression of the author's creation in this period.
3. The influence of Shakespeare's plays on Chinese literature The failure of the
Revolution of 1911 made people realize that in order to overthrow the autocratic monarchy of the Qing Dynasty, it is necessary not only to overthrow the feudal social system, but also to criticize and deny feudal ideology and consciousness from an ideological and cultural perspective. Shakespeare's plays, because of its rich humanistic thoughts and the need of Chinese society to resist feudal autocracy and to spread the spirit of democracy and freedom in the West, first spread to China and became the most frequently performed plays abroad.
The dissemination of Shakespeare's early plays in China has gone through a process from simple to rich, from excerpts to full versions, from a single performance form to a variety of performance forms. The early dissemination of Shakespeare's plays in China not only had the significance and influence of spreading Chinese and Western culture and promoting modern Chinese drama, but also promoted the reform of traditional Chinese drama.
Since its infancy, Chinese modern drama has been deeply influenced by Shakespeare's dramatic art. This kind of influence can be divided into explicit influence and deep influence. It is mainly reflected in the reading, translation, research and transmission of Shakespeare's works. However, in addition to the deep connections of Shakespeare's dramatic characters, richness, vividness, poetic language and romantic style, which are familiar to Chinese academic circles, what is more important is that the unique basic aesthetic style of Shakespeare's tragedies has formed a great influence on modern Chinese dramas. Subtle influence.
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