The following paragraphs will focus on the early period with the start of the silent movies. A period, in which, plays went from stage to screen for the very first time. The analysis will be carried out in the light of three Shakespearean plays: "A Midsummer Night’s Dream", "Romeo and Juliet" and "Macbeth".
William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616) is considered to be the greatest writer and dramatist in English language. Most of his work was produced during 1589 and 1613 but in 1594, Shakespeare's talent was recognized by the public. His early plays were mostly histories and comedies like for example "A Midsummer Night's Dream". It was later on that he started writing tragedies, such as "Hamlet", "Macbeth" and "Henry VI". In his last working phase, that is to say from 1608 to 1613, Shakespeare produced romances and tragicomedies like "The Winter's Tale". After the plague in 1599, his own playing company built the Globe theatre where his plays were also performed. However, the theatre closed its doors in 1642, but was reconstructed and reopened in a modern form in 1997. Ever since it is referred to as Shakespeare's Globe.
The ambition is there in the range and scope of the work, the determination to master all the dramatic kinds, the restless experimentation, the exploitation of the conventions of poetic drama in manner hat never quite loses sight of the need to entertain while constantly stretching the imaginative and intellectual responses of its audiences. The emotional turbulence is there in the frequent depiction of extreme states of mind, both comic and tragic.
Shakespeare lived and wrote during the period of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The queen had a great fondness for theatre, which means that plays were used a tool to please and capture the royal attention. She saw almost every Shakespearean play. The Elizabethan Era was a very peaceful period in which theatre, literature and music were in the foreground and consequently, the Shakespearean plays had and still have an enormous influence in art.
Keeping his success in mind, it is not surprising that Shakespearean plays were performed all over the world and were also produced as films. In the nineteenth century with the start of the silent movie productions, his plays went from stage to screen. One of the first movies was the French version of "Hamlet" in 1907 by Georges Méliès. The film "Shakespeare in love" (1998) was directed by John Madden and is about the early life of William Shakespeare.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- Film and Literature
- An Introduction to silent movies
- Shakespeare in silent movies
- A Midsummer Night's Dream
- Silent Dream (1909 Vitagraph Studios)
- Romeo and Juliet
- Silent Romance (1916 Fox/Metro)
- Macbeth
- Silent tragedy (1916 Triangle-Reliance)
- Conclusion
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This paper aims to explore the adaptation of Shakespeare's plays into silent films. It focuses on the early period of silent cinema, analyzing the visual and narrative strategies employed in adapting Shakespeare's works for the screen.
- The transition of Shakespeare's plays from stage to screen
- The unique challenges and opportunities presented by the silent film medium
- The adaptation of Shakespeare's language and dramatic conventions for a visual medium
- The use of visual storytelling and expressive acting in silent film adaptations
- The lasting influence of Shakespeare's plays on film
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
- Introduction: This chapter provides an overview of Shakespeare's life and works, emphasizing his significant contributions to English literature. It introduces the concept of adapting Shakespeare's plays for the screen, highlighting the early adaptations of Shakespeare's plays into silent films.
- Film and Literature: This chapter examines the differences and similarities between film and stage drama, focusing on the unique challenges and opportunities presented by the silent film medium. It discusses how the visual potential of film, as well as its greater narrative capability, affect the adaptation of Shakespeare's plays.
- A Midsummer Night's Dream: This chapter explores the adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream into the 1909 silent film, Silent Dream. It analyzes the film's use of visual storytelling, expressive acting, and special effects in bringing Shakespeare's fantastical world to life.
- Romeo and Juliet: This chapter delves into the adaptation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet into the 1916 silent film, Silent Romance. It examines the film's interpretation of the classic love story, focusing on its visual depiction of the characters' emotions and the play's central themes of love, hate, and fate.
- Macbeth: This chapter focuses on the adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth into the 1916 silent film, Silent Tragedy. It explores the film's visual representation of the play's themes of ambition, guilt, and the supernatural, highlighting the challenges of translating the play's complex psychological themes into a silent film.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The keywords for this paper are: Shakespeare, silent film, adaptation, visual storytelling, expressive acting, stage drama, film, narrative, mise-en-scène, editing, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth. The paper explores the ways in which Shakespeare's works were adapted for the silent film medium, focusing on the unique challenges and opportunities presented by the silent film format.
- Quote paper
- Magalie Desorbay (Author), 2018, Shakespeare in Silent Film. "A Midsummer Night's Dream", "Romeo and Juliet" and "Macbeth", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1430219