Human and Goddess

Posted on February 26, 2013 by dc135125

John Lyly’s Endymion was a love play. Endymion was in love with Cynthia, the Moon Goddess. In the original myth, it was Cynthia that pursued Endymion. In Lyly’s version, the reverse occurs. However, there were obstacles in the way, including Tellus, who does not believe Endymion, and Cynthia, who holds unlimited power because she was a goddess. Tellus puts Endymion to sleep because he rejects her love and Endymion’s chances with Cynthia were over before it even started because Cynthia had power and knew that Endymion did not belong to her, however heartfelt Endymion was during the course of the play.

This play was written to Queen Elizabeth. However, Elizabeth was the role of the Moon Goddess in this play, while Endymion was one of her lovers, Tellus the loyal guard who believed Endymion was lying. Elizabeth died without a husband, so Endymion (the lover role) does not have Elizabeth’s love. Tellus was the guard who loves Endymion, yet he does not believe him. Love is blind, even if Endymion confesses everything, since everything was lost by the end.

Posted in Endymion, Love relationships, Power struggles | 1 Comment

Tragedy to Comedy

Posted on February 25, 2013 by bk145564

After reading Kyd’s play, The Spanish Tragedy, and switching over to Lily’s comedy play, Endymion, there is quite a drastic change. It is obvious that this play was in fact written for Queen Elizabeth with her representation shown through Cynthia. It is interesting to notice the different style of the plays when they are made to be performed to different audiences. The plays themselves take on a mask and become much like the actors, fulfilling a certain role to please others.

Endymion takes on very different, mystical characters. It is extremely unrealistic in showing both godly and human characters conversing and taking notice of each other in the same world, but realistic in the emotions felt by the characters. Like most plays around this time, emotions were acted out rashly. However, unlike The Spanish Tragedy, there seemed to be more thought before the characters acted out purely for love. Eumenides proved this in his choice of Endymion over Semele. Furthermore, Cynthia had to act reasonable and realized being with Endymion would not be realistic. Instead of killing and seeking revenge on pure emotion, this play showed more logical sense while still being completely unreal.

Compared to a play taking a point of view and trying to promote a social idea, Endymion’s main purpose was to please Queen Elizabeth. The importance of friendship was shown but this play lacked a sense of social structure in the way that The Spanish Tragedy promoted. Showing her as Cynthia put her above mortals, not by choice but because it was her duty. It is ironic however that in both plays the women hold all of the power, and man’s fate seems to be directly tied to them.

Posted in Endymion | 2 Comments

Endymion: Devotion to Cynthia and Queen Elizabeth

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Sabrina Esclavon

In Endymion, John Lyly refreshingly transforms a play based on the classical myth, into a comedy.  In class, we spent a good portion of time discussing who Lyly was writing this for, and where it was performed.  The conclusion was that this play was performed before Queen Elizabeth, and the main role of Cynthia the Goddess of the Moon was used to represent her.  This brings into perspective why Lyly would choose to alter the original plot of Endymion.  In the original myth, the Moon Goddess is the one who fawns over and chases after Endymion.  In Lyly’s version, it is Endymion, a man, who devotes himself to the Moon Goddess Cynthia.  Act 1 opens with Endymion confessing his love of Cynthia to his best friend Eumenides.  There are many instances before Endymion’s notorious lengthy sleep in which he professes his love for Cynthia.

I believe this was an important and well thought out move on Lyly’s part when writing the play.  If Cynthia is meant to represent Queen Elizabeth, then the implication is that Endymion, who can be interchanged with Queen Elizabeth’s subjects, sincerely adores her.  I also think that it is worth pointing out that the relationship between Cynthia and Endymion is largely platonic (aside from the kiss that breaks him from his sleep).  Endymion shows no signs of lusting after Cynthia; he purely worships her.  This solidifies the symbolism of the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and her subjects.  The reason Lyly would write a play to this effect for Queen Elizabeth is because she was in her later years, and this play would serve as a playful and meaningful method of honoring the Queen.

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Dedication in Endymion

Posted on February 25, 2013 by wendy c

One particular aspect of Lyly’s Endymion that left an impression on me was this form of dedication present between characters. In the beginning of the play, we are informed of Endymion long dedication of love and infatuation with Cynthia, goddess of the moon. However, we are also introduced to Eumenides’ dedication to Endymion. Although, to some, it may not be as impressive as Endymion’s committed love for Cynthia, even after twenty years, Eumenides was committed to find the remedy that would allow Endymion to awake from his slumber.  Furthermore, Eumenides also voluntary sacrificed his love for Semele for Endymion as we saw in his struggle between friendship and love during his conversation with Geron at his fountain.  Without this sacrifice, Eumenides would not have been able to find the only remedy that would awake Endymion and convince Cynthia to kiss Endymion.

However, with the sacrifices affiliated with dedication, it also comes with its own respective rewards. With the awake of Endymion, Eumenides is rewarded by Cynthia, a budding relationship between himself and Semele. Although Endymion is ultimately unable to be in a relationship with Cynthia, Endymion was still awakened and saved by Cynthia herself. Lyly’s demonstration of dedication in Endymion is met with rewards. This could also represent an symbolic representation of Lyly’s dedication to Queen Elizabeth through the previous discussion of Cynthia being an allegorical representation of Queen Elizabeth.

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Endymion: A fitting tribute to a Queen.

Posted on February 25, 2013 by peter d'antonio

While I’m quite sure that Lyly’s contemporary audiences recognized the not-quite-so-subtle homage to Queen Elizabeth I from the get-go (who could mistake the fawned over Cynthia, a woman of unsurpassed beauty and excellence, for anyone else?), but for those of us today not catching on quite as quickly, Lyly’s conclusion proved without a reservation that the plot of the play was written foremost to flatter the Queen. Now this isn’t such a terrible thing,  such an aim hardly inhibited Lyly’s stylistic choices as a playwright and that is arguably where he succeeds most, but it does necessarily affect his characterization, and it’s worth taking a look at.

For the majority of the play, Cynthia remains a figure of unattainable proportions, her appearances are few and her lines numbered, yet thanks to Endymion her presence is palpably felt even in her absence and her greatness simply understood. Taking Cynthia as a substitute for the Queen, it makes sense since Elizabeth’s power came not from her constant showing of authority, but the implicit understanding  of its existence. Until the final Act, Cynthia maintains this somewhat removed nature, however by the final scene Lyly entirely shifts her role from a passive force to an active one.

No longer able to simply stand over watch, Cynthia assumes the role of judge, jury, healer, mediator, and all-around resolver, bringing to a close the various strands of the play in a way that only an omnipotent figure could really hope to do. In fact, it makes you wonder why none of this could have been accomplished sooner (given the decades that passed with Endymion’s slumber). But placing such quibbles aside, Lyly built up the play adulating a mythical woman almost without reason only to close by justifying such praise when she finally takes action; and while I’m none too familiar with the reign of Elizabeth I, I’m content to say that this is a fitting way to pay tribute to any figurehead under ‘threat’ of seemingly unsubstantiated praise.

Posted in Endymion | 1 Comment

Endymion Scene 5.1.10-152

Posted on February 25, 2013 by shazia.ahmed

http://youtu.be/7WboeWJm0vc

As a group we wanted to take advantage of putting a modern twist on the play. Endymion and Eumenides are best friends and Eumenides makes sacrifices for Endymion’s own happiness. As a group we noticed that it is like a wolf pack relationship. Wolves travel together and protect each other, it is a very strong bond. This is the reason for the wolf masks, however there needed to be some distinction between Endymion and Eumenides. At first the plan was to wear the same color clothing to represent a bond, however after realizing that both characters are quite different in the way they think and act we choose black and brown to create the difference between the two men. For Cynthia’s clothes and color choices, after research a moon goddess wears all white to literally represent the moon.

The setting for the scene was at madison park. The scene shows the Endymion is asleep under a tree and after Cynthia kisses him she needs to hide behind him. The park had many trees and benches for Endymion to lay on and it gave us enough room to move around and film freely. Also the park can be seen as a form of wilderness, an area in which wolfs would more or less roam around.

The scene study was definitely a fun and creative assignment but required a great amount of research and work to put a modern twist to the play. Some problems that we can across as a group was reading with a mask on. The mask however was necessary for the interpretation of they play we took as a group. Another problem we came across was having to film in the freezing cold weather. We researched and agreed on the type of setting we wanted but did not take into account how cold it might have been on the day we needed to shoot. The final problem is being able to film with the other people in the park. We had to do many takes because of the noise around us or people walking too close to the camera.

Some must haves for filming would be to plan out who would do the filming. We have three people in the group and three roles to take on but to be better prepared we needed to plan out who could help us actually shoot the whole scene. Also if anyone has an Ipad, it is a great way to film if you don’t have a camera. Our main worry was the sound quality however we were able to capture our voices perfectly with the Ipad despite the amount of sound around us. Overall the recommendations are minor things we overlooked which planning ahead would have taken care of.

Finally a few suggestions would be: rehearse and prepare! Rehearsing at the destination you chose as a group can prepare you on the level of sound and the amount of distractions you can expect. Prepare early in advance so you can avoid any minor mistakes and can have a successful filming session.

-Angelic Rivera, Briana Kaufmann, Shazia Ahmed

Posted in Endymion | 1 Comment

The Fine Line Between Justice and Revenge

Posted on February 12, 2013 by tomasza

In Thomas Kyd’s The Spanish Tragedy, revenge is constantly visible on stage, both as a motif and a character. Kyd attempts to draw the line between justice and revenge in the various subplots that he introduces throughout the play. Revenge is simply the act of getting back at someone for wronging you whereas justice introduces the moral reasoning behind this act. Are all of the characters justified in their pursuit of vengeance? Are some more justified than others?

From the beginning of the play, Andrea seeks revenge against Balthazar, even in death. The audience never sees the actual fight between the two but discovers what happened through various accounts of the event. However, with deception being another prominent theme in this play, it is difficult to trust anyone’s word. It is never made clear if Andrea was in fact unjustly killed by Balthazar making it difficult to determine whether or not seeking revenge against him is justified.

After Horatio is murdered in his own garden, Hieronimo goes out of his way to make sure his pursuit of vengeance against Lorenzo is justified. He even distrusts a letter written in Bel-imperia’s blood and seeks more confirmation. Only after contemplating suicide and learning that the law will not help him does he decide to take matters into his own hands. Through the dialogue and action in the play, Kyd makes it a point that Hieronimo is justified in killing Lorenzo.

In the end it is evident that revenge is God’s job and people who decide to take it upon themselves must pay the ultimate price in doing so.

 

Posted in Revenge, The Spanish Tragedy | 4 Comments

The Spanish Tragedy: Lessons of Machiavelli

Posted on February 12, 2013 by peterb

The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd encompasses many themes and motifs. One particular theme that stands out to me are the influential Machiavellian lessons. Niccolo Machiavelli was an influential Italian philosopher who’s work The Prince lists many political lessons that should be studied by state leaders. In The Spanish Tragedy these lessons are applied and used by the characters.

The one character who embodies Machiavelli’s lessons is Lorenzo. In class we discussed Lorenzo’s similarities to Iago from Othello. We considered these type of characters to be Machiavellian Villains. Generally a Machiavellian Villain is one who uses coercion and persuasion to manipulate others. They also would rather be feared than loved by their subjects. Lorenzo embodies these qualities. He is extremely calculated and almost always gets his way in the play. He is deceitful and  kills of those in his way. He uses his advanced verbal skills to manipulate everyone to further advance his closed minded aims.

When Balthazar declares his love for Bel Imperia, Lorenzo is extremely disinterested and seemingly just would like to arrange the marriage. His clear display of a lack of morals shows how he is just really interested in the ransom and not his sister’s possible new suitor. He was extremely quick to call out Pedringano for his role in Bel Imperia and Don Andrea’s relationship. Instead of reprimanding him he turns him into an asset to further his goals. By threatening to use force with Pedringano he creates a fear factor. Pedringano’s fear of Lorenzo forces him to go along with his plan. He then quickly betrays Pedringano with no hesitation and consideration.

Presently we view Machiavelli’s work as a positive masterpiece. But in the Elizabethan era the people actually felt the results of the writings. They experienced the coercion and fear. The audience would have been quick to identify Lorenzo as the Machiavellian enemy.

Posted in Power struggles, The Spanish Tragedy | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Power and Independence in The Spanish Tragedy

Posted on February 12, 2013 by shazia.ahmed

Although the play cover a range of themes such as revenge and justice, one theme that sticks out to me is that of independence. Although it is quite obvious that Bel Imperia is afraid to lose her freedom if she dedicated herself to Balthazar or even one man in general, I see fear in Lorenzo as well when it comes to securing his independence. Before moving on further to analyze how fear comes from the loss of independence I would like to mention that my definition of independence circulates around the word power, simply for this play. Each character has a pride in the character they carry.

Starting with the obvious character, Bel Imperia openly admits her fear in act three and scene ten. When Lorenzo tries to make Balthazar her new knight in shining armor for trying to protect her she merely replies that she has a fear of losing the independence she has. Even when she meets up with Horatio, she would set the date, time and place as if she ran the relationship. In a way it is as if she does not like to be a woman traded to another man, but would like to keep her power from being able to make her own choices and decisions. She has succeeded in doing so for some time, for example the way she would not marry although it was a concern for the King.

Moving away from the stated actor, Lorenzo also has a great deal of fear. His power comes from the way we characterize him. From class discussions he is seen as manipulative and self interested. He only takes part in activities that would benefit him. He helps the Duke of Portugal, Balthazar but instead kill Horatio. In act two scene one he offers to protect Pedringano in exchange for him giving up his sister’s secrets. All the helps he offers is not with a good heart ot a good intentions. It is a means of control over the people around him. He uses Pedringano as a puppet when he needs information; when Bel Imperia’s servant does not work with him, Lorenzo threatens him with the promise of protection.

The need for power leads to the need to always feel independent from the people around you. This can have a good or bad outcome. In Bel Imperia’s case she did not want to be a trade off from one kingdom to the next, she enjoyed her power because at the time it was limited and with marriage would become even more limited. In Lorenzo’s case the need for power and independence works in an evil way that harms the people around him.

Posted in Power struggles, The Spanish Tragedy | 2 Comments

The Spanish Tragedy: The value of life

Posted on February 11, 2013 by melissacarbuccia

One thing that really stuck out to me while reading this play was the value of life, or the lack thereof. Death seems to be such a common occurrence that it becomes the “quick fix” to many of the issues the characters face. Almost makes it seem like the characters in this play don’t fully understand how permanent and extreme death is. We can observe this through several characters actions. It all starts when Lorenzo finds out that Bel-Imperia rejects Balthazar because she’s in love with Horatio. His first and immediate thought is that he simply must be disposed of. This then leads to Lorenzo telling Pedringano to kill Serberine because of mere suspicion (mind you, no questioning or further investigation was done in order to confirm this). Pedringano performs this duty without a doubt in mind, and this leads to Pedringano’s death sentence.

We observe a death trend after Horatio’s death, including the suicide of three characters. Hieronimo kills himself after he gets his son’s revenge, Isabella goes mad and kills herself after Horatio’s death, and Bel-Imperia commits suicide after she murders Balthazar. There’s very little value of life in this book, possibly due to the culture of war at this time and also because death isn’t a concept that’s fully understood. These people obviously know HOW to kill, but haven’t grasped the concept and permanence of death; no longer existing. They’re desensitized to death from the constant killings that occur as a way to “right a wrong” or punish those who have committed crimes.

 

Posted in Life vs. Death, The Spanish Tragedy, Uncategorized | 3 Comments