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Dramatic Space and a Willingness to Let the Spectators Get Involved in the Play in Various Ways

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Dramatic Space and a Willingness to Let the Spectators Get Involved in the Play in Various Ways Space in Early Modern English Drama Allan Folkestad Space in Early Modern English Drama The Literary Dramaturgy of Space in the Comedies of John Lyly Doctoral Dissertation at the University of Agder University of Agder Faculty of Humanities and Pedagogy 2012 Abstract The present dissertation investigates the literary dramaturgy of space in the comedies of John Lyly (1564-1606), i.e. the ways in which various textual elements contribute to the establishment of both local settings and wider worlds within the plays. Previous readings of Lyly’s literary dramaturgy have tended to focus on the relationship between the stylistic device of the antithesis and the structure of the dramatic worlds, whereas I argue that deeper insight into the literary dramaturgical techniques of Lyly can be achieved by deploying the conceptual framework of semiotics of drama. Rather than comparing Lyly’s dramaturgy to that of Shakespeare, the dissertation adopts a historical perspective where Lyly’s dramatic oeuvre is examined on the background of the dramaturgy of a selection of middle and early sixteenth-century plays. In the final chapter, however, the perspective changes where Lyly’s only urban play, Mother Bombie, is compared to Shakepeare’s Comedy of Errors. Using lists of all the spatialising utterances in a play as my main analytic tool and then sorting these utterances according to certain parameters reveals that whwn compared to the somewhat mechanical declamatory quality of the spatialising utterances of earlier plays, Lyly’s literary dramaturgy of space unfolds more organically from the dialogue and is better integrated with aspects of characterisation. Moreover, to a higher degree than earlier playwrights Lyly allows minor characters to contribute significantly to the spatial dramaturgy of a play in their speeches. The dramatic worlds of Lyly nevertheless retain aspects of spatial dramaturgy that have not significantly developed from those exhibited by the plays of the previous generation; there are varying degrees of spatial integration and when compared to Shakespeare characters rarely reflect on the possible state of affairs in their worlds, in other words: they are not establishing what in semiotics of drama has been termed ‘possible worlds’ In the discussions of both the earlier plays and of Lyly’s comedies the theatrical dimension and the interplay between text and performance are central. Although comprehensive, alternative, reconstructions of performances are not introduced in this dissertation, I discuss several scenes where other performance solutions are possible than those usually identified by Lyly scholars. Acknowledgements This project began with the grant of a three-year Dr. Art scholarship from the Norwegian Research Council and although taking a lot longer than three years, it would never have become a reality without this initial grant. Over the years a number of people from different institutions at home and abroad have contributed to making this thesis possible. Participation in the Dr. Art seminar at the University of Oslo gave valuable insight into the techniques of thesis-writing and I wish to thank my former supervisor Associate Professor Jon Orten at Østfold University College for his encouragement in this early phase of the project. Professor Michael Pincombe at the University of Newcastle gave direction to the project by suggesting the Interludes as materials for comparison. At the University of York, Professor Jacques Berthoud’s critical readings and sound advice moved the project forward during my stay there as visiting scholar. However, the most significant critical contribution to the development of the dissertation is that of Professor Roy Eriksen at the University of Agder. I thank him for his continued interest and for making it possible for me, and others, to experience the culture of Renaissance Italy by means of his Ph.D seminars there. Finally, I wish to thank my wife for her patience and unfailing support throughout the long process of writing and editing the dissertation. Doctoral Dissertations at the University of Agder nr 53 ISBN: 978-82-7117-716-4 ISSN: 1504-9272 © Allan Folkestad, 2012 Printed by the Printing Office, University of Agder Kristiansand Contents 1.1. Introduction ............................................................................................. 1 1.2. The Problem .............................................................................................. 3 When discussing John Lyly as a playwright in the second volume of the Works (1902), E. Warwick Bond concludes that ............................................................ 3 1.3. The Paradigm of the Antithesis ................................................................... 5 Chapter II: Dramaturgy of space in the period of the Interludes............................ 21 2.1. Introduction ............................................................................................. 21 2.2. Playing in the Tudor Halls ......................................................................... 23 2.3. ‘Open’ dramatic worlds and space-controlling characters ............................ 27 2.4. Mimetic and diegetic space in the Interludes .............................................. 34 2.5. The spatial dramaturgy of Damon and Pythias ........................................... 38 Chapter III: ‘Princes’ .......................................................................................... 44 3.1 Introduction .............................................................................................. 44 3. 2. Campaspe: textual history and summary .................................................. 46 3.3. Lyly’s Theatre .......................................................................................... 48 3. 4. Sources .................................................................................................. 55 3.4.1. Setting .............................................................................................. 55 3.4.2. Alexander .......................................................................................... 56 3. 5. Modern critical positions .......................................................................... 61 3.6.1. Philosophers ...................................................................................... 65 3.6.2. Lovers ............................................................................................... 73 3.6.3. Soldiers ............................................................................................. 79 3. 7. Performance ........................................................................................... 82 3. 8. Midas: textual history and summary ......................................................... 86 3. 9. Sources and background .......................................................................... 87 3. 10. Modern critical positions ........................................................................ 91 3. 11. Royal reflections and statements ............................................................ 93 3.11.2. Repentance ...................................................................................... 97 3.11.3 In the woods.................................................................................... 101 3.11.4. At the Oracle ................................................................................... 103 3. 12. Staging Midas ...................................................................................... 106 3. 13. The spatial integration of main-plot and sub-plot in Campaspe and Midas 111 3. 14. Conclusion ........................................................................................... 114 Chapter IV: ‘ Lovers’; the space of panegyrics in Sappho and Phao and Endymion ........................................................................................................................ 117 4.1. Introduction ............................................................................................ 117 4. 2. Sappho and Phao: textual history and summary ....................................... 119 4. 3. Sources and background ....................................................................... 121 4. 4. Modern critical positions ........................................................................ 124 4. 5. Characters and space ............................................................................. 126 4.5.1. Phao ................................................................................................ 126 4.5.2. Sappho ............................................................................................. 135 4.5.3 Venus ................................................................................................ 139 4. 6. Spatial integration of comic relief scenes ................................................. 146 4. 7. Performance ......................................................................................... 147 4.7.1 Bedchamber ...................................................................................... 148 4.7.2. Cave ................................................................................................ 149 4.7.3. Forge ............................................................................................... 151 4.7.5 Ferry, fields and park ......................................................................... 151 4. 8. Conclusions ...........................................................................................
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