Julius Caesar Act 1.1.1-60

Julius Caesar is one of those figures from Roman history that probably everyone has heard about, either generally or from Shakespeare’s play itself. Shakespeare’s audience might well have thought of him in association with the Tower of London which, according to traditional thinking, was built on the site of a fort built by Julius Caesar during the Roman occupation of Britain. So far as Shakespeare’s overall thematic concerns go, the tragedy falls into an ongoing pattern in his work–ideas concerning social and political order, how should a ruler rule, how should the body politic react when faced with an absolutist ruler, is assassination acceptable, how do you depose a ruler, and so forth.

The opening sub-scene of Act 1 (1-60) could be regarded as rather striking when compared, for example, with 1.1 of, say Richard II which is full of ceremony centered on the king himself. In contrast, Julius Caesar (like Romeo and Juliet, 1.1) begins at the opposite end of the social scale or spectrum. The stage is populated by “certain commoners” chief among whom are a carpenter and a cobbler representing two of the trades most basic to existence (as their speeches reveal, though not without some some punning and quibbling–see the Cobbler referring to himself as a “mender of soles” [14]). The obvious question to ask is a simple “why?” The answer is equally simple–Shakespeare is always at pains in his plays to demonstrate that social disorder affects every stratum of society, whether that disorder is caused by those at the top, middle or bottom. Here the “commoners” are out on the streets “to see Caesar and to rejoice in his triumph” (31); that in itself might not seem to point to disorder, but for those with a sense of history it is inherently so, for Caesar’s “triumph” leads to him being offered the absolute rule of the Roman empire together with all that absolute power entails. The two tribunes (Marullus and Flavius) are in the scene to indicate how and why the commoners are “wrong,” namely that Caesar’s triumph is because he has defeated a fellow-Roman, not a common enemy of Rome itself: “And do you now strew flowers in his way / That comes in triumph over Pompey’s blood?” (50-51). In other words, Caesar is essentially the victor of a civil war or struggle (never a good thing in the minds of Elizabethans who could easily recall such matters as England’s Wars of the Roses).  Moreover, ironically, these same commoners had in the past cheered Pompey and his triumphs; in short, the commoners represent the fickleness of the masses easily swayed by whomever happens to be in power currently. As every schoolchild (in England at least) knows the commoners are summed up in the line “You blocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things! (35) since every teacher (in England at least) thinks of his or her pupils in such terms!!!

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Romeo and Juliet Act 1.3

By now any audience, familiar with the plot or not, must be beginning to wonder when (or even if) it is going to see Juliet. A crucial ingredient in any playwriting is to raise expectation and delay it as long as possible without frustrating that expectation, and then, of course, fulfilling the expectation. Shakespeare, arguably, achieves just the right mix here. But what is really remarkable in fulfilling the expectation is that Shakespeare gives us so little of Juliet. In fact, 1.3 is dominated by the Nurse, a wonderfully comic creation (who would have been played probably by one of the older male actors, while Juliet would have been played by one of the juvenile/boy actors). She is garrulous, full of bawdy innuendo, and some commonsense. The fact that she talks so freely is perhaps also an indication of a rather affectionate place she occupies in the Capulet household. Lady Capulet (in fact referred to as “wife”) doesn’t appear to have the same “liberal” attitude towards Juliet and marriage as her husband. She urges Juliet to “think of marriage now,” and points out that many girls of Juliet’s age are already married and some even mothers (71). In contrast to her mother and the Nurse (as well as the excessive Romeo we have seen already), Juliet is terse; she is given only four speeches, the longest of which is only three lines. Additionally, most of the little she says is rather two-edged in meaning: “It is an honour I dream not of” (66). “I’ll look to like, if looking liking move” (97). Romeo would certainly not have responded thus in such circumstances, and that, surely, is the point–a contrast that will be magnified in ensuing scenes.

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Romeo and Juliet Act 1.2.37-103

The second half of 1.2 reveals just how blatant Shakespeare could be when to came to plotting the action of his plays. Capulet just happens to give the list of guests to a servant who just happens to be illiterate and who just happens to encounter Benvolio and Romeo (who can, of course, read). Why does the servant encounter Benvolio and Romeo–so that they can discover that the “fair Rosaline” is going to the feast, which in turn means they will have to gate-crash the event because of Romeo’s current interest in her. The sensible Benvolio thinks it will be an opportunity to demonstrate to Romeo that he is just a rather silly romantic and that there are better fish in the sea: “Go thither, and with unattainted eye / Compare her face with some that I shall show, / And I will make thee think thy swan a crow.” Naturally, such a challenge only elicits an excessive response from Romeo who swears that the “devout religion of mine eye” will keep him constant in his love for Rosaline. As mentioned before, we never see Rosaline which helps keep Romeo’s “love” for her in the realm of the mythical; moreover (and especially since Shakespeare’s audience already knew this story well), this whole business telegraphs the expectation that a meeting between Romeo and Juliet will occur, and she will indeed prove a “swan” and Rosaline will instantly turn into a “crow.”

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Romeo and Juliet Act 1.2.1-37

It is perhaps worth noting that the act/scene divisions are little more than a convention. Already it is clear that Shakespeare proceeds by means of a series of “sub-scenes” that could, theoretically, be numbered individually (in classical French theatre, e.g. Racine, Molière, etc., the scene “changes” simply by a character entering or exiting). On Shakespeare’s stage, with no set-piece scenery and few props to move, the action would be continuous and very fluid.  Indeed, the opening of 1.2 really serves as a compare-and-contrast juxtaposition with what we saw at the “end” of scene 1. Paris’s interview with Capulet is restrained and formal, the language plainer, more straightforward. Moreover, Paris, as Juliet’s suitor, is doing the conventional, honorable thing by talking with Juliet’s father about his intentions (a long-lived convention).  Rather unconventionally (though not entirely so) is Capulet’s response: “My will to her consent is but a part. / An she agree, within the scope of choice /  Lies my consent and fair according voice” (17-19). Capulet is also reluctant because of Juliet’s age (she is 14), though, by Elizabethan standards, that would not be an unusual age for marriage (a large social history topic than can be covered here). The sub-scene ends with Capulet’s information about the feast he is about to hold that evening. To this Paris is invited and, says Capulet, he might see someone else among the crowd! To further the plot, Capulet sends off a Servant with a list of guests he is to invite.

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Romeo and Juliet Act 1.1.154-236

The remainder of 1.1 is taken up by the duologue between Benvolio and Romeo and fulfills the audience’s expectations raised by the earlier comments about Romeo and his behavior. Just a glance at the page itself reveals an interesting distinction between Benvolio and Romeo. Benvolio’s speeches are short one or two line speeches, while many of Romeo’s are long and reflect the sort of romantic excess in which he is indulging. Typical of his language (and much else) is his speech at line 169, beginning “Alas that love,” itself an excellent signal of the content to follow. It contains no less that five “O”s, together with such oxymorons as “brawling love” and “loving hate.” One should perhaps recall now that this is our first impression of Romeo, and first impressions are often the most valuable, and in this we are helped by Benvolio’s response of laughter at 181. And lest we also forget, Romeo’s poetic mooning is not for Juliet but for Rosaline who “hath sworn that she will still live chaste” (215) and is completely indifferent to Romeo. Moreover, as if to underscore the point, Rosaline never appears in the play.

[Don't forget to have a look at The Shakespeare Diaries]

Jude Law as Hamlet

Jude Law will play Hamlet next year at Wyndham’s Theatre, London. Kenneth Branagh will be in a Chekhov play at the same theatre, and Derek Jacobi (as Malvolio) in “Twelfth Night.”

The Bard hopes to start more regular posts on “Romeo and Juliet ” in the near future, but in the meantime hopes you’ll have a look at The Shakespeare Diaries.

Ian McKellan, Patrick Stewart, and Dr Who

Ian McKellan’s Lear opens in Brooklyn on 6th September, while Patrick Stewart (as Claudius) will be in a 2008 Royal Shakespeare Company production of Hamlet with Dr Who (aka David Tennant) as Hamlet. No mention of how the tardis or darleks will feature in the latter production–but who knows??