EDWARD II IS A TYPICAL PRODUCT OF ENGLISH RENAISSANCE
Renaissance is a French word employing a sense of rebirth of regenerations of a great outburst of activity in all the fields of human thought and action.As A.J. Wyatt and A.S.Collins observe;
"The new slant was in critical in revolt against authority men started to think for themselves, and to question accepted beliefs. Above all, there was in the air a fresh enthusiasm which urged men to enter into every field of experience."
In English Renaissance, the term signifies an enthusiasm, a spirit of adventure and experiment, an ideal, a delight in beauty, imagination, ambition and power. As F.S Boas Says:
"For a distinguishing note on the Renaissance ape .......was an uncontrollable aspiration after the ideal, a scorn of earthly conditions, a soaring passion that sought to scale the infinitude's of power,beauty,thought and love."
16th century or Elizabethan period in English literature is regarded as the period of English Renaissance .There is a high spirit of ambition of power, knowledge, wealth, patriotism, friendship prevalent in the writings of Spenser, Bacon, Sidney, Marlowe,Shakespeare etc.
Sir Thomas More's vision of a perfect society,Spenser's pattern of the highest manhood, Bacon's call to the conquest of all knowledge,wealth and friendship,are all Renaissance spirit.
Judged in this light Marlowe's Edward II is a renaissance play.The two most central characters-the character of Edward II and of Mortimer are the obvious characters of Renaissance spirit. If Edward II aims at achieving the highest ideal of friendship,Mortimer aims at achieving the highest ideal of power and authority.They are portrayed with this spirit and vigour . They are drown perfectly in line with Tamburlaine,Dr. Faustus and Barabas. It is a common element in all Marlowe's plays
Edward II is a king of England. He has all power,authority and wealth. But he is not satisfied with them. It is a historical fact that he distinguishes himself as a seeker of the high ideal of friendship with Gaveston. Gaveston is a French and favourite of the king Edward II. He manages to strengthen his hold on the king's affections by ministering to his artistic and musical tastes,and providing him with entertainment of all kinds. Edward II is so much devoted to Gaveston that he begins to neglect his duties as a king and husband. He also makes Gaveston an Earl,Lord Chamberlain, chief secretary and Lord of Men.This favour of the king to Gaveston makes the nobles ,lords,peers and church hostile to the king. They oppose the king and rise in revolt against him. But the king does not care. He only says;
"Make several kingdoms of the monarchy,
And share it equally amongst you all,
So I may have some nook or corner left,
To frolic my dearest Gaveston."
Clearly, the king's only care and desire is to frolic with his dearest Gaveston.
Queen Isabella also opposes her husband's unnatural association with Gaveston. She treats Gaveston as her rival and feels miserable. As she says;
"Unto the forest, gentle Mortimer,
To live in grief and betrayal discontent,
For now my lord , the king regards we not,
But dotes upon the love of Gaveston."
Clearly, their friendship is impolitic, unnatural and unhealthy. It is suspected to be a homosexual relationship.A.Nicoll deals with"a private story of a homosexual infatuation."
But king does not care for the feelings of his wife and opposition of the nobles and church.He values his friendship with Gaveston as greater than his love for his wife and kingdom. He even says;
"I'll bandy with the barons and the earl,
And either die or live with Gaveston"
As a result of this story a lord of friendship with Gaveston,Edward II loses his queen, kingdom, power and crown and suffers imprisonment and death. He also realizes his fault at the end. As he says;
"O Gaveston, it is for thee that I am wrong'd."
It is now clear that Edward II is a typical renaissance character. He is of strong will and determination. His notion of the ideal of friendship is so high and aspiring that he does not mind the neglect of his duties as a king and a husband,and willingly suffers his tragic misery and death. This is quite like Tamburlaine and Dr. Faustus.
Another typical Renaissance character in this drama is Mortimer. He is a leader in this drama of the nobles and Lords in there conflict with the King ,Edward II and his friend and favourite Gaveston. He is determined in his opposition to the King and his friend Gaveston. He encourages the Lords to be resolute in opposing the King:
"My lords,now let me all he resolute,
And either have our wills,or lose outlive,"
After winning lords to his side,he wins queen Isabella, and promises to restore her to her rightful position.As he tells her;
"We come in arms to wreck it with the sword;
That England's queen's peace may repossess
Her dignities and honours;and withal-
We may remove these flatters from the king
That havoc England's wealth and treasury,"
Thus, he becomes an accomplice of the queen. He kills Gaveston and wages war against the king's imprisonment and murder of the king.After deposing the king and assuming royal power,he boasts of his authority;
"The prince rule,the queen do I command,
And with a lowly Cong to the ground
The proudest lords solute me as I pass;
I seal, I canal, I do what I will."
Clearly,Mortimer is ambitious power like Tamburlaine. He often speaks of himself in the true spirit of Tamburlaine:
tceit and murder. This is why J.C.Maxwell remarks, "the dynamic and ambition element is transferred to the Machiavellian Mortimer."
But this very element in his character makes him a traitor, an illicit lover and a murderer. While receiving punishment of imprisonment and death for all these,he is no longer repentant and perverted. He is still proud and ambitious and says that he is like a traveller who after achieving greatness in his life, goes to discover countries unrenounced.
Needless to add that Edward II and Mortimer are conceived as the typical Renaissance characters. The Renaissance element in Edward II is his ambition of achieving the high ideal of friendship,and in Mortimer the ambition of achieving high power.In achieving their ambitions,they do not care for earthly limitations.They only aim at attaining the unattainable. They attain them even at the risk of suffering tragic misery and death.
Judged in this light Marlowe's Edward II is a renaissance play.The two most central characters-the character of Edward II and of Mortimer are the obvious characters of Renaissance spirit. If Edward II aims at achieving the highest ideal of friendship,Mortimer aims at achieving the highest ideal of power and authority.They are portrayed with this spirit and vigour . They are drown perfectly in line with Tamburlaine,Dr. Faustus and Barabas. It is a common element in all Marlowe's plays
Edward II is a king of England. He has all power,authority and wealth. But he is not satisfied with them. It is a historical fact that he distinguishes himself as a seeker of the high ideal of friendship with Gaveston. Gaveston is a French and favourite of the king Edward II. He manages to strengthen his hold on the king's affections by ministering to his artistic and musical tastes,and providing him with entertainment of all kinds. Edward II is so much devoted to Gaveston that he begins to neglect his duties as a king and husband. He also makes Gaveston an Earl,Lord Chamberlain, chief secretary and Lord of Men.This favour of the king to Gaveston makes the nobles ,lords,peers and church hostile to the king. They oppose the king and rise in revolt against him. But the king does not care. He only says;
"Make several kingdoms of the monarchy,
And share it equally amongst you all,
So I may have some nook or corner left,
To frolic my dearest Gaveston."
Clearly, the king's only care and desire is to frolic with his dearest Gaveston.
Queen Isabella also opposes her husband's unnatural association with Gaveston. She treats Gaveston as her rival and feels miserable. As she says;
"Unto the forest, gentle Mortimer,
To live in grief and betrayal discontent,
For now my lord , the king regards we not,
But dotes upon the love of Gaveston."
Clearly, their friendship is impolitic, unnatural and unhealthy. It is suspected to be a homosexual relationship.A.Nicoll deals with"a private story of a homosexual infatuation."
But king does not care for the feelings of his wife and opposition of the nobles and church.He values his friendship with Gaveston as greater than his love for his wife and kingdom. He even says;
"I'll bandy with the barons and the earl,
And either die or live with Gaveston"
As a result of this story a lord of friendship with Gaveston,Edward II loses his queen, kingdom, power and crown and suffers imprisonment and death. He also realizes his fault at the end. As he says;
"O Gaveston, it is for thee that I am wrong'd."
It is now clear that Edward II is a typical renaissance character. He is of strong will and determination. His notion of the ideal of friendship is so high and aspiring that he does not mind the neglect of his duties as a king and a husband,and willingly suffers his tragic misery and death. This is quite like Tamburlaine and Dr. Faustus.
Another typical Renaissance character in this drama is Mortimer. He is a leader in this drama of the nobles and Lords in there conflict with the King ,Edward II and his friend and favourite Gaveston. He is determined in his opposition to the King and his friend Gaveston. He encourages the Lords to be resolute in opposing the King:
"My lords,now let me all he resolute,
And either have our wills,or lose outlive,"
After winning lords to his side,he wins queen Isabella, and promises to restore her to her rightful position.As he tells her;
"We come in arms to wreck it with the sword;
That England's queen's peace may repossess
Her dignities and honours;and withal-
We may remove these flatters from the king
That havoc England's wealth and treasury,"
Thus, he becomes an accomplice of the queen. He kills Gaveston and wages war against the king's imprisonment and murder of the king.After deposing the king and assuming royal power,he boasts of his authority;
"The prince rule,the queen do I command,
And with a lowly Cong to the ground
The proudest lords solute me as I pass;
I seal, I canal, I do what I will."
Clearly,Mortimer is ambitious power like Tamburlaine. He often speaks of himself in the true spirit of Tamburlaine:
tceit and murder. This is why J.C.Maxwell remarks, "the dynamic and ambition element is transferred to the Machiavellian Mortimer."
But this very element in his character makes him a traitor, an illicit lover and a murderer. While receiving punishment of imprisonment and death for all these,he is no longer repentant and perverted. He is still proud and ambitious and says that he is like a traveller who after achieving greatness in his life, goes to discover countries unrenounced.
Needless to add that Edward II and Mortimer are conceived as the typical Renaissance characters. The Renaissance element in Edward II is his ambition of achieving the high ideal of friendship,and in Mortimer the ambition of achieving high power.In achieving their ambitions,they do not care for earthly limitations.They only aim at attaining the unattainable. They attain them even at the risk of suffering tragic misery and death.
0 comments:
Post a Comment