Shakespearean History and Tragedy

According to Lily Campbell, what is the difference between tragedy and history plays?

• Tragedy focuses on ethics, while history plays focus on politics

• Tragedy celebrates past greatness, while history plays commiserate over past suffering

• Tragedy questions God's providence, while history plays do not

• Tragedy teaches obedience to the king, while history plays teach allegiance

Which play is an example of a Shakespearean History Play?

• Macbeth

• Hamlet

• Richard III

• Romeo and Juliet

What effect did changes in vagrancy laws have on actors?

• They had to organize themselves into companies named after royal patrons

• They had to perform at purpose-built playhouses

• They had to tour around the country

• They had to specialize in different types of roles

Who played the women's roles in the acting companies?

• The shareholders

• The hired players

• The musicians

• The boys

What is a defining characteristic of Shakespearean tragedies?

• They end happily

• They are about recent kings

• They are mostly written in prose

• They end unhappily

What conflicts are set up in Shakespearean tragedies?

• Fate and free will

• Individual desire and public good

• Reversal and recognition

• All of the above

What is hamartia?

• A type of fool in Shakespeare's plays

• A mixture of seriousness and merriment

• The idea of mostly good characters missing the mark

• The language used in Shakespeare's tragedies

What did Samuel Johnson say about Shakespeare's work?

• It is defined by an interchange of seriousness and merriment

• It is defined by the use of revenge as a theme

• It is defined by the use of dehumanized characters

• It is defined by the use of recent kings as protagonists

What is the main difference between Shakespearean revenge tragedies and other revenge tragedies?

• The revenger becomes more evil the more evil he does

• The revenger questions his actions and considers alternatives

• The revenger becomes dehumanized

• The revenger seeks revenge for recent events

What was the title of Shakespeare's first tragedy?

• Titus Andronicus

• Macbeth

• Hamlet

• Romeo and Juliet