Kernan Chapter 1: Art and Theater in the Service of the Leviathan State
- As "divine right monarchs" came to believe their authority came directly from God, how was European religion reorganized, and what happened to the tax system?
- Which Italian work, translated into English, recorded the "right ways of acting, dressing, and thinking. . . in the potent presences of kings"?
- In these European courts, according to Kernan, what was the purpose of art, philosophy, poetry, and theater?
- Which was valued more, tragedy and epic, or comedy? Why?
- What was "decorum" or "the high style"?
- What did Schmidgall call "the courtly aesthetic"?
- What was a "prodigy house"?
- After James became king, how much of the royal budget was spent on "cultural patronage"? What kinds of things did that entail?
- After he became Prince of Wales in 1610, how much did Prince Henry spend on his household?
- Who might have recommended Shakespeare's company to become the King's Men, and why? Why might James have been persuaded by them?
- As a groom, where would Shakespeare have ranked in the King's household?
- Who were the ranked equivalents of the Master of the Revels?
- Where were the Revels headquarters, and what else happened there?
- For what purpose, according to the Privy counsel, were Globe performances "cheefelie licensed and tollerated"?
- How long did the theatrical season last in James's time? Why did it end when it did?
- When Inigo Jones designed a1605 seating plan for a play performed at Oxford in the King's presence, what were some objections to it?
- How much seating room did each person have at court performances?
- How did the typical Jonsonian masque bigin? How did it end? Which characters spoke,and which did not?
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