Gorboduc

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Gorboduc

• By
• Adam Harrison
• And
• Robbin Gilroy

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The Play itself

• It is a Tragedy written in English Blank Verse
• Modeled after dramatic works of Seneca
• Written by Thomas Norton and Thomas Sackville
• The play was well liked by Queen Elizabeth and
  was viewed by her many times.

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The Play Itself continued

• Written in an attempt to instruct the Queen on
  the dangers of not declaring one heir to her
  throne.
• Conveys a political lesson which leads to a moral
  discovery
• It was performed in the Great Hall at the Inns of
  Court
• The First Performance of Gorboduc was in the Hall
  of the Inner Temple in 1561

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Thomas Sackville

• 1536 1608
• English statesman and poet
• Entered Parliament in 1558
• Created Baron Buckhurst in 1567
• Made Lord Treasurer in 1599 and Lord High Steward
  in 1601
• Created Earl of Dorset in 1604
• Most important poems are the Induction and
  Complaint of the Duke of Buckingham

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Thomas Norton

• Born in London is 1532
• English lawyer, politician and writer
• Educated at Cambridge
• Secretary to the Protector Somerset
• In 1555 he was admitted a student at the Inner
  Temple
• Married Margery Cranmer
• Became M.P. for Berwick
• Went to Rome on legal business in 1579
• Frequently visited the Channel Islands from 1580
  to 1583
• Nicknamed Rackmaster-General
• Died in March 1584 at his house in Bedfordshire

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Blank Verse and Structure

• Unrhymed iambic pentameter
• The standard form for dramatic verse in Italian
  and German
• Gorboduc is generally considered to be the first
  English tragic drama to be written in blank verse
• Set the stage for Marlowe and Shakespeare
• Blank verse makes the play feel more real to life

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Tragedy and Aristotle

• Aristotle would consider Gorboduc to be a well
  written tragedy
• Pity and fear

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Actual Footage from Ferrex/Porrex
battle scene in Gorboduc
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Stuff to Ponder

• What is the moral of this play?
• How many actors would it take to put on this
  play?
• If King Gorboduc had continued with tradition and
  given his kingdom to his eldest son Ferrex do you
  think this whole tragedy could have been avoided
  or would Porrexs greed overpowered his and drove
  his to try to overthrow his brother?