Soldan High School - Scrip Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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. -.'N A zfi- E T in -ig: -1 Q-fe:-1-'A ' -I-N-- less way forgeting their old friend. We might shudder at such a scene if it were not for Dame Quickly's words with which we agree. She says, Nay, sure, he's not in hell, he's in Arthur's bosom if ever man went to Artl1ur's bosom. And we hope he is. -Florence King. Shakespeare and the Learning of His Time HAKESPEARE livedduring the time of the Renaissanceg ,. the time when people were not only looking back into the days of antiquity and receiving the culture of the ancient . Greeks, but were also turning toward the unknown and the .undiscovered It was a time when the intellectual pre- dominated over the religious and moral. Inventions util- ized all classes of products: free cities arose from the bounds of feudal- ismg commerce flourished. It was a period of great discovery. A new route to India was discovered after many hardships. The Genoese na- vigator, Christopher Columbus, with three small ships crossed the vast Atlantic ocean to a new and beautiful land. Soon Balboa had reached the Pacific ocean. A Renaissance intellect progressed everywhere. But because the Re- naissance was somewhat later in England, England received the bene- fit of all that the re-awakening had accomplished in Europe. For Shakespeare the seeds were already sown and sprouted. The realms of nature were outspread before him in early plays, and out of these he fashioned new creations, calling into being new flowers far exceeding the others in beauty and poetic fancy. In Shakespeare's writing Qwe have no complete and authentic rec- ord of his lifej there is ample evidence that he had access to the choicest literature of his own land and also of other lands through translations at least. Whether at the court of Denmark or in the city of Rome, his knowledge was suflicient for his need. When we do meet with pas- sages which are not perfectly accurate, they are probably either a dram- atist's disregard for facts which do not fit his need or are mistakes which a most learned scholar would make who undertakes to describe scenes he has not actually visited. Latin, Greek and the modern languages were considered necessary for one's education even more in England then than to-day. It is said that Queen Elizabeth knew eight languages. So we do not hesitate to believe that Shakespeare possessed a reasonable portion of Latin at least. Printing by type had begun to make it possible for the best lit- erature to be found in cottages and at court. As this art advanced the ' us

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- - - -fx iii A -J A T '17 - ' - A ' His lack of fear is shown in a very convincing way. When some of the oflicials came to arrest him for the theft, he falls asleep in his hiding place. Could anyone now say that he possessed fear? Perhaps it was his assurance that he could escape punishment that permitted him to be so at ease at such a time. Certainly, he never was in so tight a place but that he could find a way out. At another time when the chief justice came to arrest him, Falstaff handled the situation beautifully. The justice appeared unexpectedly, but that didn't bother the knight. He quickly told the boy to tell the justice that he was deaf, and, owing to this feigned deafness, he acts as though he can hear very little of what the officer says. He catches a word now and then, and immediately goes into a long parley on a subject suggested by that word. The justice tries to inform Falstaff that his recent military achieve- ments were not of sufficient weight to overbalance his past wrong- doings. At mention of the war, the guilty one seems very solicitous about the king, for whom he had fought, and he goes into detail, describ- ing a malady from which the king suffered. The official sees that he can accomplish nothing, so he leaves without broaching the subject of Fal- staff's arrest. When we learn that Falstaff is soon to leadia band of men to battle, one is struck with the absurdity of the ideag yet there is no general on the field prouder of his achievements than is Sir John. After the battle, he takes a great delight in boasting of his heroism and valor, claiming that it was he who killed Hotspur, the enemy of the king. Yet, this is done to amuse his listeners more than to gain praise. He is not ignor- ant of the fact that they all know Prince Hal fatally wounded Percy, and that Falstaff merely stabbed him when he was dying. His con- tempt for glory is shown on the battle field when Falstaff forgets the fighting that is all about him, and pulls out his bottle. To him glory is of little consequence, compared with his beloved sack. When the old king dies and Prince Hal becomes Henry the Fifth, realizing the responsibility and gravity of his oflice, he casts off his old habits and companions. And Falstaff is left to die a lonely, neglected man. The greatest test of our fondness for the old man is our emotion at his death scene. Ordinarily we would not be disturbed in the least to see a man with so many moral deficiencies die. But Falstaff's death Wrenches our hearts. We realize that he was no ordinary man, and we feel the bitterness and loneliness of his death very keenly. When he dies, Dame Quickly, the hostess of the tavern where Falstaff spent most of his time, is the only one who tries to make his last moment pleasant. A few of his friends come after he is dead and express some words meant to be kind, but the words seem harsh to us. Then they go their care- l15 .

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, W 1771? .Q il ' -if-E ie 1:21 fi - ,751 li : ' 2 5 .b number of books printed in foreign languages also increased. No one with an intellect like Shakespearels would have passed over this oppor- tunity for study and profit. Shakespeare's information and exquisite judgment, we know ex- tended to works of highest art, sculpture, painting, and music. His des- criptions of statuary are so admirable for truth and beauty that it is nearly impossible to suppose that they are the gems of a poet's art alone. It is also quite evident that Shakespeare had seen pictures by the great masters. We are told that pictures were a frequent decoration in the homes of the wealthy. See what a grace was seated on this browg Hyperion's curls, the front of jove himselfg An eye like Mars to threaten and command, A station like the herald Mercury New-lighted on a heaven-kissing hillg A combination and a form indeed, Where every god did seem to set his seal To give the world assurance of a man. This is truly a poet's description, but still it has all the power and reality of a finished picture. Only one endowed with a painter's inspir- ation could describe this form as Shakespeare does. The Elizabethan Age was above all the age of song and Shakes- peare appreciated melody. He speaks of it with love and admiration. His sonnets are songs in themselves, and Lymond truly says, Shakes- peare stands alone and has no second even among the nest of singing birds who lived during this high tide of song. Shakespeare's military knowledge ranks far above the usual knowl- edge of a soldier's life as known by the Elizabethan. Although Eng- lish seamen had just defeated the Spanish, and English soldiers were even then aiding the Dutch nation, the English people had little concep- tion of a soldier's duties or of his characteristic habits an-.1 thoughts. Much less did they know of the actual military operations in the Held. But Shakespeare had in some way acquired a very extensive military knowledge. The duties of a sentinel are barely understood by persons outside of the military profession, but its importance was fully recog- nized by Shakespeare when he wrote the opening lines of Hamlet. That he knew also of the discipline, strategy, generalship, and engineer- ing, besides the habitual vices and virtues of the soldiers themselves can be easily seen in his great dramas. Shakespeare's knowledge of medicine, too, is exceedingly extensive. Othello furnishes many line examples in the sayings of Iago. In one instance he says, What wound did ever heal but by degrees? Iago also expresses the belief that, 117