2019-2020年高中英语Unit2KingLear-section1-2.doc

2019-2020年高中英语Unit2KingLear-section1-2Part Two: Teaching ResourcesSection 1: Discourse studiesType of writing and a shortened version of King Lear (part 1)A play: King Lear (Part 1)A shortened version of King Lear (part 1)LEAR: I have decided to retire and hand over the heavy load of responsibility to you three. GONERIL: I love you more than life itself.LEAR: Now Regan, it is your turn. What have you got to say to me?REGAN: My greatest happiness is in loving you.LEAR: What have you to say to delight an old man and earn the best part of his kingdom?CORDELIA: Nothing, my father.LEAR: Nothing? CIRDEKUA: Nothing.LEAR: Youll get nothing for nothing. I pray you, speak.CORDELIA: I love you as it is right and proper for a daughter to love her father, neither less nor more.LEAR: Try harder, Cordelia, or you may lose your share of the kingdom.CORDELIA: You see, when I marry, it will be my duty to give half my love to my husband.LEAR: You truly mean what you say?CORDELIA: Yes, Your Majesty.LEAR: So young and so hard-hearted.CORDELIA: So young and so truthful, my Lord.LEAR: You are no longer my daughter but a stranger to my heart.KENT: But sir LEAR: And as I have no third-born daughter, I will spend my days with you two - a month with one and then a month with the other. KENT: But sir, I beg you LEAR: Do not contradict me. It is done.KENT: I believe you are being influenced by false flattery. LEAR: Kent, if you value your life, say no more.KENT: You do wrong to cause friction between yourself and your daughter. LEAR: Get out of my sight. Section 2: Background information for Unit 2 King Lear1. King Lear the play by William ShakespeareSummary of the plot or storyThe story of King Lear, an aging monarch who is headstrong old man who is blind to his weaknesses, decides to divide his kingdom amongst his three daughters, according to which one recites the best declaration of love. Goneril and Regan who are the selfish daughters of Lear who pretend to love him but later treat him cruelly. Cordelia who is the loyal and unselfish daughter of Lear. He disowns her after confusing her honesty with insolence. Edgar is Gloucesters loyal son and heir and Edmund is Gloucesters evil bastard son. At first the family appear to be loving and caring but this could not be further from the truth. As the characters unfold we find greed, betrayal, lust for power, and cruelty. In other words, they are anything but normal and caring. The end of the play ends in death everywhere. Regan dies after being poisoned by Goneril. Goneril stabs herself to death. Edgar reveals his true identity to his father, but the old man dies. Mortally wounded, Edmund bees remorseful and countermands his order to hang Cordelia. But it is too late, and Cordelia dies. Lear, now a broken man, falls upon Cordelia and also dies. Information provided about the playWilliam Shakespeare never published any of his plays and therefore none of the original manuscripts have survived. Eighteen unauthorised versions of his plays were, however, published during his lifetime in quarto editions by unscrupulous publishers (there were no copyright laws protecting Shakespeare and his works during the Elizabethan era). A collection of his works did not appear until 1623 (a full seven years after Shakespeares death on April 23, 1616) when two of his fellow actors, John Hemminges and Henry Condell, posthumously recorded his work and published 36 of Williams plays in the First Folio. Some dates are therefore approximate other dates are substantiated by historical events, records of performances and the dates plays appeared in print.Date first performedFirst recorded performance of King Lear was on 1606 December 26. In the Elizabethan era there was a huge demand for new entertainment and King Lear would have been produced immediately following the pletion of the play.Date first printedIt is believed that King Lear was first printed in 1608. As William Shakespeare clearly did not want his work published details of the play would have therefore been noted, and often pirated without his consent, following a performance.The settings for King LearThe setting is EnglandThe theme of King LearThe play is categorised as a TragedyNumber of words in King LearThe number of words in the script, according to the plete Public Domain Text is 27,806 Most important characters in King LearThe most important characters are:King Lear of England, Goneril, Regan and Cordelia amous Quotes / QuotationsThe most famous quotes from King Lear is probably How sharper than a serpents tooth. Details of this famous quote follow with others , plete with information regarding the Act and the Scene, allowing a quick reference to the section of the play that these quotation can be found in. Please click here for the full text of the script of the play.How sharper than a serpents tooth it is to have a thankless child! (Act I, Scene IV). My loves more richer than my tongue. - (Act I, Scene I).Nothing will e of nothing. - (Act I, Scene I).Have more than thou showest, speak less than thou knowest, lend less than thou owest. - (Act I, Scene IV).The worst is not, So long as we can say, This is the worst. . - (Act IV, Scene I).istory of King LearKing Lear was based on an aged monarch who was abused by his children. The origins are a folk tale that appeared first in written form in the 12th century and was based on spoken stories that originated much further back into the Middle Ages. illiam Shakespeares Main SourceShakespeare probably found the story in The True Chronicle History of King Leir and His Daughters (anonymous, 1594), Raphael Holinsheds The Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland and Arcadia (1590) by Sir Philip Sidneynspiration from King LearThe play has inspired other works including versions of films starring a variety of actors including Laurence Olivier, Ian Holm and Patrick Magee. The film, A Thousand Acres, was based on King Lear and starred Jessica Lange and Michelle Pfeiffer 2. Chinese operaChinese opera is a popular form of drama in China. In general, it dates back to the Tang dynasty with Emperor Xuanzong (712-755), who founded the Pear Garden (梨园), the first known opera troupe in China. The troupe mostly performed for the emperors personal pleasure. To this day operatic professionals are still referred to as Disciples of the Pear Garden (梨园子弟). In the Yuan dynasty (1279-1368), forms like the Zaju (杂剧, variety plays), which acts based on rhyming schemes plus the innovation of having specialized roles like Dan (旦, female), Sheng (生, male) and Chou (丑, Clown) were introduced into the opera. The dominant form of the Ming and early Qing dynasties was Kunqu, which came from the Wu cultural area, and evolved a longer form of play called chuanqi. Chinese operas continue to exist in 368 different forms now, the best known of which is Beijing opera, which assumed its present form in the mid-19th century and was extremely popular in the Qing dynasty (1644-1911). In Beijing Opera, traditional Chinese string and percussion instruments provide a strong rhythmic acpaniment to the acting. The acting is based on allusion: gestures, footwork, and other body movements express such actions as riding a horse, rowing a boat, or opening a door. Spoken dialogue is divided into recitative and Beijing colloquial speech, the former employed by serious characters and the latter by young females and clowns. Character roles are strictly defined. Elaborate make-up designs portray which character is acting. The traditional repertoire of Beijing Opera includes more than 1,000 works, mostly taken from historical novels about political and military struggles.