Hamlet Contents
- Social / political context
- Religious / philosophical context
- The Theatre
- Act I
- Act II
- Act III
- Act IV
- Act V
The situation in Shakespeare's day
Protestant resurgence
With the protestant Elizabeth I on the throne, services were again held in English and a new Book of Common Prayer (i.e. prayers to be used uniformly throughout the Church of England) was introduced in 1559.
Elizabeth reigned until 1603, when she was succeeded by her protestant relative, James, King of Scotland
The influence of church on Shakespeare
Throughout his life, therefore, Shakespeare heard the words of the Bible in English and listened to the scholarly and poetical language of the Book of Common Prayer, both of which had a considerable influence on his own written style.
The book of prayers and church services first put together by Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury in the time of King Edward VI (1547-53) for common (ie. general) use in English churches.
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