DRAMA AO2
Unlocking the deeper meanings in Shakespeare requires both knowledge of
different contexts and an ability to connect the text with the world around it. To
fully explore how to find these deeper meanings we will look at two of
Shakespeare’s tragedies: Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth. To demonstrate how the
assessment objectives work together, we will use these two plays for all of the
assessment objectives: AO1, AO2, AO3 and AO4.
Assessment Objective 2 requires you to understand, and then explore not one,
but the many contexts and meanings found in Shakespeare’s works. You are also
required to look beyond the surface meaning of the text to show a deeper
awareness of ideas and attitudes. Understanding these contexts helps us
understand both the surface meaning (AO1) and develop our deeper awareness of
attitudes and ideas, needed for AO2.
The understanding of characters, relationships, situations and themes needed to
succeed in looking beyond surface meaning and demonstrating deeper
awareness goes further than the knowledge of the text found in AO1.
Assessment Objective 2 is essentially all about the question ‘Why?’ To find the
answers, we need to look at two main areas of context: the context of production
and the context of reception. We shall begin by looking at the context of
production and what we expect from a Shakespearean tragedy.
Macbeth is a typical Shakespearean tragedy. Our knowledge of the text tells us
that Macbeth and, in many ways, Lady Macbeth are tragic heroes. They both have
the fatal flaw of ambition. They reach dizzying heights of power which is ripped
from them by the manipulation of the witches and a series of strange,
supernatural events.
However, our knowledge of Romeo and Juliet shows it does not conform with
these common features. Neither Romeo nor Juliet are noblepersons – they are the
children. They gain no power or wealth. If anything they lose power during the
play. There are external pressures which lead to their downfall but they are not
really created by fate, or evil spirits, or even a manipulative character.
Romeo and Juliet’s downfalls come about through love, circumstance, and
youthful, passionate inexperience. So Romeo and Juliet does conform in all but
one way with the common features of Shakespearean comedy. We have young
lovers separated by their parents’ ‘ancient grudge’. They are separated and
reunited. They are masked when they meet and their identities are ‘known too
late’. The nurse and Friar Lawrence are both examples of clever servants. The plot
is fairly complex and there are a lot of comic scenes in the rising action.
Therefore, Romeo and Juliet is a comedy even though it hasn’t got a happy
ending.
This is the context of production. We understand Shakespeare deliberately
produced the play using what most people who go to plays would understand to
be features of comedy.
But why would Shakespeare use comic features for his tragedy? Here we need to
think about the context of reception.
Shakespeare wrote more comedies than histories or tragedies, and he wrote three
comedies in the same year as Romeo and Juliet. The fact that his comic structures
are usually used to create a happy ending filled with love and reconciliation makes
the audience feel like Juliet will wake up and stop Romeo drinking the poison. The
fact that she wakes up after this moment would have been emotional and
shocking to a Shakespearean audience. By understanding this context of
reception, we understand the context of production.
When thinking about the audience, and this is crucial to Assessment Objective 4
(creating a sensitive and informed response), it is important to remember who the
audience is.
You are one audience: you are modern, you study the subject and therefore look
at it critically, you are looking at the play with ‘work’ eyes and not with ‘relaxing
trip to the theatre’ eyes.
However, as you are not the only audience, understanding different audiences will
help your response to Assessment Objective 2.
The original audience would have been at the theatre for pleasure, understood
every joke and political reference, and been cheering and booing.
A very patriarchal audience would probably not publicly appreciate Juliet’s
rebellion as much as a less patriarchal one.
Similarly, a very feminist audience might not appreciate Romeo and Juliet at all,
as it mainly conforms to traditional male and female stereotypes.
Another context to consider is masculinity and femininity. Shakespeare loved to
play with gender and identity.
Lady Macbeth is an excellent example of how Shakespeare manipulates gender
and identity. Here we will need to apply our Assessment Objective 3 (language,
form and structure) knowledge.
The part of Lady Macbeth is given equal status in the structure up until Act 2
Scene 3. She has an equal share of the dialogue and is presented on equal terms
with the male characters.
The audience’s first encounter with Lady Macbeth in Act 1 Scene 5 instantly
presents her with traditionally male characteristics, with levels of ambition and
violence equal to or even greater than Macbeth. Her concern that Macbeth is ‘too
full o’ the milk of human kindness’ implies that she considers Macbeth is too
feminine, and he lacks the brutality to do what he ‘must do’. Shakespeare’s choice
to have ‘milk’ as the substance of the ‘human kindness’ Lady Macbeth spurns has
connotations of motherhood, a sacredly female role.
Act 1 Scene 5
Lady Macbeth
…….Glamis thou art, and Cawdor; and shalt be
What thou art promised: yet do I fear thy nature;
It is too full o' the milk of human kindness
To catch the nearest way:
Lady Macbeth refers to milk and motherhood again later in the scene, but this
time in relation to herself. She demands the spirits ‘unsex’ her, and fill her full of
‘direst cruelty’, the opposite of the ‘milk of human kindness’ which her husband
possesses. She asks that they ‘Stop up’ her reproductive system and prevent the
menstrual ‘visitings of nature’ and the milk from her ‘woman’s breasts’ is to
become ‘gall’ or poison.
It’s worth considering how masculine Lady Macbeth really is, as she never
demands to be male, just free from the restrictions of being female.
As soon as Macbeth assumes the ‘man’s role’ and commits the murder, all her
masculinity vanishes, and to some extent so does she. Her fainting can be seen as
a very ladylike response and completely alien to the earlier bloodthirsty Lady
Macbeth. Ironically, Macbeth becomes so fuelled by the masculinity and ambition
she desired in him, that he has no time to even mourn her death.
Act 1 Scene 5
Lady Macbeth
The raven himself is hoarse
That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan
Under my battlements. Come, you spirits
That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,
And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full
Of direst cruelty! make thick my blood;
Stop up the access and passage to remorse,
That no compunctious visitings of nature
Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between
The effect and it! Come to my woman's breasts,
And take my milk for gall, you murdering ministers,
Wherever in your sightless substances
You wait on nature's mischief! Come, thick night,
And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell,
That my keen knife see not the wound it makes,
Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark,
To cry 'Hold, hold!'
We have looked at how understanding different contexts helps us to open up and
understand the text (AO1) more deeply (AO2). It also helps us to explore
Shakespeare’s use of language and structure (AO3), helping us to inform a
sensitive and personal response (AO4).
