University Wits
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University Wits, the name given by Saintsbury is to identify a group of playwrights, among when Marlowe, Greene, Nashe, and Peele are the most prominent. They received their education at Oxford and Cambridge, lived rashly in London and contributed significantly to the development of the national treasure of plays in the 1580s nad 1590s. The 'oxbridge' scholars did remarkably for the development of Elizabethan school of drama. They were more or less acquainted with each other and had fondness for heroic and tragic themes. These University man were usually actors as well as dramatists. Their training began as an actor and then they revised old plays and finally became independent writers. They often worked together either in revising old plays or in creating new ones. They were romantic and Bohemian in their attitude and represented the spirit of the Renaissance.
They had several features in common:
(a) The University Wits had fondness for heroic themes.
(b) Heroic themes needed heroic treatment. Thus there was splendid descriptions, long swelling speeches, violent incident and emotions.
(c) The style was also heroic. The chief aim was to achieve strong and sounding lines, magnificent epithets and powerful declamation.
(d) They had common store of material from which they derived their stories and characters.
(e) The University men liked Bohemian life in the Grup street of their day. Marlowe died in travern brawl from a poniard wound and Greene spent his last in writing penitent story of his bohemian life in his novel Mamillia.
DEVELOPMENT OF TRAGEDY :
These dramatists set the sails for the later tragedy, Kyd in the Spanish Tragedy popularized the vogue of Senecan Tragedy reveling in bloodshed which later on Tourneur and Webster followed with enthusiasm. Marlowe revolutionized the whole concept of Medieval Tragedy. In the Middle Ages, tragedy was the thing of Princess, for Marlowe it was a matter of individual heroes. Marlowe introduced the element of struggle in the tragedy and took it out from the working of fate.
DEVELOPMENT OF COMEDY :
The thenes were tragic in nature and there was genuine lack of humour. Even if there was any, that was coarse and immature. Thus there is no significant contribution in the development of comedies. Almost the only representative of the writers of real comedies is Lily, who in such plays as Campaspe (1584) and Endymion (1592) by Keats gives us the first examples of romantic comedies.
DEVELOPMENT OF HISTORUCAL PLAYS :
The University Wits sets a ground for the historical plays of Shakespeare. Marlowe's Edward-II prepares the way for Richard-III of Shakespeare. Greene's Hisotry Of Alphonsus King Of Aragon and Scottish History Of James-IV are a prelude to the historical plays of Shakespeare.
INTRODUCTION OF POETRY IN DRAMA :
Peele and Lily introduced poetry in dramatic production, Lily used lighter verse well suited for the expression of lighter sentiments. Peele made drama rich and decorative by his poetic wealth. Much of the sweetness of Shakespearean plays had been present in the plays of Peele and it was Marlowe who renovated the blank verse. Ben Johnson said of him, he made the mighty lines fit for the expression of the highest thoughts. Marlowe's poetic powers were admirable and he made his heroes essentially lyrical. Dryden said of Marlowe:
"Next Marlowe, bath in Thespian Springs
Had in him those brave translunary things
That the first poets had."
CONTRIBUTION IN PLOT :
The University Wits made some advancement in plot construction and in blending different threads of their stories into perfect whole. In this respect Greene showed the way to Shakespeare. In Friar Bacon and Friar Bungery there was several threads which have been harmonized in perfect blending. This anticipates Shakespeare's skill in constructing the plot of The Merchant Of Venice and A Midsummer Night's Dream.
CONTRIBUTION IN CHARACTERIZATION :
The Pre-Shakespearean dramatists made significant improvement in the art of characterization. Lily made advances in the presentation of characters fit for Romantic Comedies. His characters were witty and intellectually sharp. Marlowe gave life and reality to characters meant for tragedy. Marlowe'a plays Tamburlaine, Doctor Faustus, The Jew Of Malta all capture our imagination by the intensity of their passion and exuberence of their enthusiasm.
CONTRIBUTION IN THE PORTRAYAL OF PROTAGONIST :
The University Wits, notably Marlowe and Kyd, imparted passion, vehemence and force to drama. In Tamburlaine, the passion extends in the direction of conquest. In Doctor Faustus it takes the form of the secret sources of nature while The Jew Of Malta is noted for insatiable have for wealth. Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy is an organic creation and fully deserves its widespread influence. It holds an unique place in dramatic literature reaching back to Gorboduc (1561) and forward to Shakespeare's early probably even to Hamlet and King Lear.
CONCLUSION :
Thus the University Wits contributed to considerable extent in the development of English drama. They prepared the ground for the further development of a dramatic art. The Elizabethan drama was not a Minerva like creation, springing full grown form the head of one man. It is rather an orderly through rapid development in which many man bore the part and the part was rekindled in the immortal lines of Shakespeare. Indeed the Bard's dramas have the traces of the richness of tradition set by the intellectual Bohemians.
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