Power and Ambition in Shakespeare

Transcription

1 Step Four B2.1 READING Shakespeare.WEB William Shakespeare Power and Ambition in Shakespeare KEY TO THE EXERCICES AND EXIT TEST William Shakespeare Page 6 exercise 1 1 Historians know that Shakespeare was baptised on 26 April Baptisms were usually held three days after the birth of a child, so they calculated 23 April as the day of his birth. 2 Because the Lord Chamberlain was an important person at court and theatre companies needed patrons to give them money to put on their plays. 3 Over 33,000 people died and the spread of the plague caused the theatres to close between 1592 and William started writing sonnets, because the theatres were closed. 4 The 1623 published collection of Shakespeare s plays. 5 Over a thousand words in the English language are recorded in his plays and many phrases have become common expressions. Richard III Page 8 exercise 2 1 A 2 B 3 B 4 A 5 B 6 A 7 A 8 B 9 B 10 B Page 8 exercise 3 1 They are Richard and the young princes. 2-3 Page 14 exercise 1 1 C 2 D 3 B 4 A 5 C 6 D Page 15 exercise 2 1 A ring was slipped on Lady Anne s finger by Richard. 2 Clarence was drowned in a barrel of wine by two men. 3 A letter was sent to the Tower of London by King Edward. 4 The princes were taken to the Tower of London. 5 Buckingham was sent to speak to the cardinal by Richard. 6 A cunning plan was used by Richard to accuse Hastings of treason. Page 15 exercise 3 1 die (It is not a crime.) 2 mad (It is not a synonym of cunning.)

2 k e y t o t h e e x e r c i c e s 3 feared (To fear = to be afraid of something.) 4 comfort (It s a positive word that means ease.) 5 joke (Usually an harmless act, not meant to deceive.) 6 quickly (It means fast and has nothing to do with calm or peacefulness.) 7 agree (It s the opposite of argue.) Page 16 exercise 4 1 in 2 with 3 known 4 was 5 by 6 never 7 though 8 in 9 were 10 of 11 the 12 where Page 16 exercise 5 Page 17 Internet project 1 The film was made in Al Pacino 3 Winona Ryder 1 F 2 F 3 T 4 F 5 T 6 T Page 18 exercise 1 1 E 2 C 3 D 4 B 5 A Page 18 exercise 2 1 He is in his tent at Bosworth Field. 2 Because he s having a nightmare. 3 He sees the ghosts of everyone he has murdered. 4 Open answer. Page 18 exercise 3 1 believe 2 princes 3 king 4 crown 5 alive 6 test 7 nephews Page 24 exercise 1 1 C 2 B 3 D 4 B 5 A 6 D 7 D 8 A 9 C 10 D Page 25 exercise 2 1 civil 2 peace 3 throne 4 physical 5 villain 6 murdered 7 blames 8 wit 9 ill 10 heirs 11 murderer 12 crowned 13 niece 14 gathers 15 curse Page 25 exercise 3 1 Your beauty was the motive. 2 You are too indecisive to be my right-hand man. 3 Tyrell agreed to kill the princes for a large payment. 4 I am not ready to rule. 5 News arrived at the palace saying that Richmond had reached England with a fleet of ships. 6 This marriage is the only way we can escape civil war. 7 Buckingham escaped fearing Richard s oppression. Page 26 exercise 4 1 The Duchess 2 Richmond 3 Hastings 4 The two little princes 5 King Edward 6 Clarence 7 Lady Anne Page 26 exercise 5 Open answer. Page 26 exercise 6 The Influences on Shakespeare s Plays Page 30 exercise 1 1 The politics of the day, Greek and Roman classics, Niccolò Machiavelli. 2 Queen Elizabeth was a theatre lover who strongly supported Shakespeare and his actors. 3 Shakespeare s representation of mythology was deeply influenced by Ovid. 4 Machiavelli influenced Shakespeare through his most famous work, Il Principe, in which he described how a prince could set out to gain absolute power. 5 Richard III, Macbeth, Claudius. 3

3 k e y t o t h e e x e r c i c e s Henry V Page 32 exercise 2 1 Prince Hal 2 twenty-five 3 intelligent 4 money 5 fight 6 tennis balls 7 war Page 32 exercise 3 1 C 2 E 3 A 4 F 5 D 6 B Page 38 exercise 1 1 B 2 B 3 D 4 C 5 D 6 A Page 39 exercise 1 A Verb Noun Adjective explain explanation explainable advise advice advisable prepare preparation preparatory agree agreement agreeable apologise apology apologetic remind reminder reminiscent inspire inspiration inspired B 1 advice 2 agreement 3 preparations 4 reminded 5 apology 6 inspired Page 40 exercise 3 1 France is the place where there was the Salic law. 2 The Dauphin is the person who laughs at Henry s claim to the French throne. 3 The Black Prince is the relative who beat the French at the battle of Crécy. 4 The Boar s Head Tavern was where King Henry s old friends met. 5 These are the tennis balls which the Dauphin sent me. Page 40 exercise 4 1 E, who 2 C, where 3 F, which 4 B, whose 5 D, which 6 A, who Page 41 exercise 5 Page 41 exercise 6 A 1 King Henry was virtuous and intelligent because responsibility had changed him. 2 The French King was worried because he needed to defend his country. 3 The English soldiers were brave because the fighting was violent. 4 Bardolph, Pistol and Nym were afraid because they didn t want to die. B Page 42 exercise 7 1 He sailed from Southampton. 2 They landed at Harfleur. 3 They stayed from 17th August to 7th October. 4 They marched from Fecamp to Amiens, then on to Nesle. 5 They reached Agincourt on 25th October. Page 42 exercise 8 1 set 2 to stay 3 side 4 were 5 in 6 single 7 meant 8 by 9 their 10 for Page 43 exercise 1 1 It s a picture of the battle of Agincourt. 2 Because he s wearing a crown and his coat of arms shows three gold lions (England) and the fleurs-delys (a sign of the English claims to the throne of France). 3 They are protected by an armour, a shield and a helmet. 4 Open answer. Page 43 exercise

4 k e y t o t h e e x e r c i c e s Page 43 exercise 3 1 English 2 foggy 3 fight 4 army 5 death 6 stole 7 asleep 8 weak Page 49 exercise 1 1 Because she knew that soon she would need to speak to the King of England. 2 He agreed with the punishment, because the English soldiers were wrong to steal from French villages. 3 They were confident because they outnumbered the English army 5 to 1. 4 He gave them words of encouragement and called them brothers. 5 He wanted to pretend to be a common soldier and find out what his men really thought of him. 6 Williams challenged Henry to a fight if they should both survive the battle. 7 On the feast of St. Crispin. 8 No, the French lost. 9 The people of London were on the streets shouting the king s name and the Lord Mayor was dressed in his finest clothes. 10 Because it was not the custom of French girls to kiss before they married. Page 49 exercise 2 1 the Governor of Harfleur 2 B a r d o l p h 3 the Dauphin 4 the Bishop of Ely 5 the French king 6 Henry V 7 Williams 8 Katharine Page 49 exercise 3 1 D 2 H 3 G 4 B 5 F 6 A 7 C 8 E Page 50 exercise 4 1 D 2 A 3 D 4 A 5 C 6 B 7 C Page 50 Internet project 1 In Angels and Bermans, the famous London costume house. 3 Montjoy s 4 Ian Mckellen 5 Gerard Depardieu 6 We see him hung in the film and not in the play. Julius Caesar Page 52 exercise 2 1 Emperor 2 secret 3 celebrate 4 March 15 5 insane 6 afraid 7 noble 8 dangerous Page 52 exercise 3 1 carpenter 2 foreign 3 wrong 4 citizens 5 ignore Page 58 exercise 1 1 B 2 A 3 D 4 C 5 B 6 D Page 59 exercise 2 1 becomes, suffer 2 persuades, join 3 stop, help 4 goes, kill 5 is, convince Page 59 exercise BCE 2 79 BCE 3 younger 4 48% 5 Pompey 6 east 7 republic 8 60 Tapescript Marcus Junius Brutus was born in about 85 BCE. His father was killed in 79 by a young general called Gnaeus Pompey and Brutus was adopted by his uncle. Brutus was brought up by Cato the younger and then went to Cyprus, where he helped the townspeople of Salamis who were in need of financial help. He received 48% interest from the loan and returned to Rome a wealthy man. In Rome the political situation was dangerous. Two generals had become very powerful. Pompey controlled 5

5 k e y t o t h e e x e r c i c e s Rome, but Julius Caesar had a great army and was very popular with the people. Brutus sided with Cicero, who wanted to defend the rights of the senate against the generals and, when Caesar and Pompey fought, Pompey was defeated. Brutus asked Caesar s forgiveness and they became friends. Caesar made him Governor of Gaul and sent him on an important mission to the east. Brutus divorced his first wife and married Cato s daughter, Portia. It soon became clear that Caesar wanted to be crowned Emperor and would not make Rome a republic once more and so 60 senators conspired to kill Caesar. Brutus became one of the leaders of the plot. Page 60 exercise 4 Page 60 Internet project 1 In 101 BCE. 2 In 65 BCE. 3 In 58 BCE. 4 The Pharoah executed him to gain Caesar s favour. 5 He declared war on Egypt. 6 In 44 BCE. 1 In Louis Calhern 3 James Mason 4 Marlon Brando 5 Yes, five (and it won an Oscar). Page 61 exercise Page 61 exercise 2 1 Caesar and the conspirators. 2 They are stabbing Casear. 3 In the background, the crowd is watching and screaming. Page 61 exercise 3 1 B 2 C 3 B 4 A 5 D Page 67 exercise 1 1 A 2 C 3 D 4 B 5 C 6 D Page 68 exercise 2 1 defeated 2 triumph 3 ignores 4 powerful 5 assassinate 6 convinces 7 dream 8 persuade 9 crowd 10 raise 11 honourable 12 noblest Page 68 exercise 3 1 C 2 A 3 E 4 D 5 A 6 E 7 F 8 C 9 B 10 G Page 68 exercise 3 1 by 2 into 3 the 4 who 5 to 6 them 7 which 8 make 9 gave 10 about 11 from 12 not 13 one The Dark Side of Shakespeare s Plays: Revenge, Ghosts and Witches Hamlet Page 72 exercise 1 1 B 2 B 3 A 4 B 5 B 6 A 7 B Page 74 exercise 2 1 C 2 extra heading 3 D 4 A 5 B Page 74 exercise 3 1 C 2 D 3 F 4 E 5 A 6 B Page 81 exercise 1 1 Hamlet felt shame over his mother s marriage to his uncle. 2 Bernardo and Marcellus had seen the apparition of the recently deceased king Hamlet on the castle ramparts. 3 Prince Fortinbras, nephew of the king of Norway, wanted to invade 6

6 k e y t o t h e e x e r c i c e s Denmark and Horatio felt that the ghost was warning them of danger. 4 Claudius had said that a snake had bitten King Hamlet, but young Hamlet suspected that the snake was Claudius himself. 5 The ghost had to return to purgatory at dawn. 6 The old king was murdered as he lay sleeping in the orchard. Claudius poured poison in his ear. 7 Claudius wanted Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to find out what was wrong with Hamlet. 8 Hamlet wanted the actors to perform The Murder of Gonzago because the storyline was similar to what he suspected had happened to his father. 9 When Hamlet saw the guilt on Claudius s face, he realised that the ghost s words were true. Page 81 exercise 2 1 madness ( Ghost, apparition and spirit are synonyms; madness is a state of mind.) 2 footsteps (It s a noun and the other three words are verbs.) 3 murderer (It s the person who commits the crime; the other three words are verbs.) 4 beckoned (You use your voice with the other three words.) 5 servants (It is not a word connected to theatrical life.) 6 disorder (It s a noun. The other three words are verbs.) Page 81 exercise 3 1 servants 2 Footsteps 3 madness 4 murderer 5 beckoned 6 disorder Page 81 exercise 4 1 Francisco 2 Gertrude 3 Horatio 4 Hamlet 5 the ghost 6 Ophelia Page 82 exercise 5 1 had died, was 2 suspected, had been 3 spoke, had seen 4 had entered, poured 5 came, had hidden 6 said, had gone Page 82 exercise 5 1 C 2 F 3 G 4 J 5 I 6 E 7 A 8 H 9 B 10 D Page 83 exercise 1 1 A 2 C 3 C 4 B 5 B 6 D Page 83 exercise 2 Page 88 exercise 1 1 Because he still had the rewards of his murder. He was still king and still married to Gertrude. 2 He thought it was Claudius. 3 He said that it was not as bad as his mother s act when she killed her husband and married his brother. 4 Because he was afraid that fear and grief would kill her. 5 He sent him to England by ship. 6 That Hamlet should be put to death as soon as he arrived in England. 7 Pirates attacked his ship. 8 She had taken flowers to hang in a tree. The branch had broken and she had drowned in the stream. 9 No he didn t. He put a goblet of poisoned wine for Hamlet to drink and Gertrude drunk it by mistake. 10 He wounded Claudius with the poisoned sword and forced him to drink the poisoned wine. Page 88 exercise 2 1 death 2 considered 3 performance 4 occurrences 5 appointed 6 beginning 7 repulsion 8 agreement 9 marriage 7

7 k e y t o t h e e x e r c i c e s Page 89 exercise 3 Open answer. Page 89 exercise 4 1 A 2 D 3 D 4 A 5 C 6 C 7 B 8 C 9 A 10 D 11 B Page 90 exercise 5 Page 90 Internet project 1 In Kate Winslet 3 Julie Christie 4 Open answer. Page 91 exercise 6 Page 92 exercise 7 1 was suspected of killing 2 that he would watch 3 know if the ghost was 4 was growing more and more 5 on Hamlet s nerves Page 92 exercise 8 Macbeth Page 94 exercise 2 1 B 2 B 3 B 4 B 5 A Page 94 exercise 3 1 bravely 2 heath 3 mortal 4 intrigued 5 meeting Page 101 exercise 1 1 C 2 F 3 E 4 B 5 D 6 A Page 101 exercise 2 1 was, were waiting 2 was reading, arrived 3 wanted, was having 4 returned, was holding 5 was, was knocking 6 shouted, saw 7 went, was sitting Page 102 exercise 3 A hideous B brave C ruthless D uneasy E coward F evil Page 102 exercise 4 1 B 2 A 3 F 4 C 5 E 6 D Page 102 exercise 1 1 B 2 A 3 A 4 B 5 A Page 102 exercise 2 1 Lady Macbeth 2 Because she sees them covered in blood and she wants to clean them. 3 In the background there are a doctor and a lady-in-waiting. They are looking at Lady Macbeth and talking about her strange behaviour. Page 107 exercise 1 1 B 2 A 3 B 4 D 5 C 6 A Page 108 exercise 2 1 Lady Macbeth 2 the witches 3 Lady Macbeth 4 Macduff 5 Malcolm 6 Banquo 7 the witches and Duncan Page 108 exercise 3 1 C 2 D 3 A 4 I 5 F 6 H 7 B 8 E 9 G Page 109 exercise 4 Page 109 exercise 5 AFTER READING Page 110 exercise 1 1 Richard III: C, F, L 2 Henry V: B, G, I 3 Julius Caesar: M, D, J 4 Hamlet: K, E, O 5 Macbeth: H, N, A Page 111 exercises 2 and 3 8

8 k e y t o t h e e x i t t e s t 1 1 Shakespeare was born on 23rd April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon. 2 He was one of eight children and his father was a wealthy man. He went to the Grammar School, but had to leave when he was 13 because his father had got into debt. 3 The themes running through thefive plays are the potency of power and the danger of unchecked ambition. 4 There was the plague. 5 They were mostly performed at The Globe Theatre. 6 He wrote tragedies. 7 His legacy lives on in the plays and sonnets, but also in the language we use today. 2 1 about 2 since 3 to 4 though 5 in 6 between 7 to 8 them 9 to 10 an 11 before 12 is 3 Possible answer: The play is set in England in the 15th century. In his youth Henry was a wild young man who met thieves in a tavern in London. When he becomes King of England, he decides to change. Henry is convinced that he has a legal claim to the French throne and so he makes plans to attack France. The English army take the town of Harfleur and move on towards Calais. The two armies prepare for battle and even though the French army are five times larger than the English army, Henry wins. Henry returns to London in triumph before making peace with the French king. Henry marries Katharine and the marriage unites the two kingdoms. 4 1 C 2 B 3 A 4 D 5 D 6 C 7 B 8 A 9 A 10 D 2012 Black Cat, Genoa, London 5 Possible answer: Claudius, Hamlet s uncle, has killed Hamlet s father. Two months later he marries Gertrude, Hamlet s mother. One evening the ghost of Hamlet s father tells his son that it was Claudius who poisoned him. He wants Hamlet to avenge this terrible murder. Hamlet needs proof, so he pretends to be mad so that Claudius will not suspect him. The king and queen think that he is still in love with Ophelia, but that relationship ended when Hamlet s father died. Hamlet organizes a group of players to re-enact a play which is similar to his father s murder. Hamlet watches Claudius s reaction and from now on he knows that he is guilty. When Hamlet speaks to his mother about his father s murder, he discovers someone hiding in the curtains and he thinks it s Claudius. He kills the man, but it is Polonius, Ophelia s father and not Claudius. Ophelia becomes mad with grief. Claudius sends Hamlet to England with two friends. They have a letter with orders that Hamlet is to be killed when they arrive. Hamlet changes the name in the letter and escapes. He arrives home just as they are burying Ophelia. She drowned in the river. Laertes, Ophelia s brother, has returned from France and he fights with Hamlet. There is poison on Laertes sword and in the fight Hamlet picks up Laertes sword and kills him. Hamlet s mother drinks a cup of poisoned wine, which was meant for Hamlet. She dies. Hamlet kills Claudius, but he is also fatally wounded. He dies, but his revenge is complete. 6 1 until 2 his 3 about 4 tell 5 who 6 have 7 order 8 them 9 Everything 10 has 9

9 E X I T T E S T 1 The author Answer the following questions. 1 When and where was Shakespeare born? 2 What do you remember about his early life? 3 What are the themes running through these five plays? 4 What happened in London between 1592 and 1594? 5 Where were most of Shakespeare s plays performed? 6 Which plays did Shakespeare write between 1593 and 1600? 7 How does William Shakespeare s legacy live on? 10 Photocopiable 2012 Black Cat

10 E X I T T E S T 2 Richard III Read this summary of Richard III and fill in the gaps with a suitable word. Edward IV is King of England, but his younger brother Richard wants to be king. Richard is evil, but clever. He is bitter (1)... the physical deformity he has had (2)... birth. Using his intelligence, he convinces Lady Anne (3)... marry him, even (4)... he murdered her first husband. He also persuades Edward IV to put their brother Clarence (5)... the Tower of London and then Richard orders his execution. Only his two young nephews now stand (6)... Richard and the throne. He takes the two young boys (7)... the Tower of London telling them it is for their own safety. Then he pays an assassin to kill (8).... Later, in order (9)... marry his niece Elizabeth, Richard has his wife murdered. He is hated by everyone, but there is hope when, at some point, a challenger to the throne, Richmond, gathers (10)... army in France. Richard prepares to fight, but on the night (11)... the battle Richard has a terrible dream. The ghosts of everyone he has murdered appear to him and curse him. Richard (12)... killed in battle and Richmond is crowned King Henry VII. Photocopiable 2012 Black Cat 11

11 E X I T T E S T 3 Henry V Give a brief summary of Henry V. 12 Photocopiable 2012 Black Cat

12 E X I T T E S T 4 Julius Caesar Read this summary of Julius Caesar and decide which answer (A, B, C or D) best fits each gap. At the beginning of the play Julius Caesar (1)... the sons of Pompey and returns to Rome in triumph. A fortune-teller tells Caesar that he (2)... die on 15th March but Caesar ignores him. There are fears that Caesar is becoming (3)... powerful. Cassius persuades Brutus to join a group of conspirators and assassinate Caesar and (4)... Brutus agrees, he convinces (5)... not to kill Mark Antony. Caeasar s wife, Calpurnia, has a terrible dream. She fears (6)... Caesar s life and she tries to persuade him not to go to the Senate. He goes and the conspirators kill him. Brutus gains support from the citizens of Rome when he explains why they killed Caesar, but it is Mark Antony s words that make the crowd (7)... anger for Caesar s death. The mob turn (8)... the conspirators and Cassius and Brutus run away. Mark Antony, Lepidus and Octavius raise (9)... army and meet Cassius and Brutus in battle. Brutus and Cassius prefer to die honourable deaths than be captured. Mark Antony pays tribute to Brutus saying that he was (10)... Roman of them all. 1 A is defeating B had defeated C has defeated D will defeat 2 A won t B will C might D must 3 A too B more C most D to 4 A even B if C despite D although 5 A they B he C they re D them 6 A in B from C for D to 7 A see B feel C smell D hear 8 A on B off C from D away 9 A an B a C the D / 10 A noblest B noble C the nobler D the noblest Photocopiable 2012 Black Cat 13

13 E X I T T E S T 5 Hamlet Give a brief summary of Hamlet. 14 Photocopiable 2012 Black Cat

14 E X I T T E S T 6 Macbeth Read this summary of Macbeth and fill in the gaps with a suitable word. Macbeth, a Scottish general in King Duncan s army, has never thought of becoming king (1)... he meets three witches. They tell him that he will be king one day and that his friend Banquo will father a line of kings. Macbeth sends a letter to (2)... wife to tell her about his encounter with the witches. Lady Macbeth is ambitious and she persuades her husband to murder King Duncan when he is staying at their castle. After Duncan s death, Macbeth is crowned king, but he cannot sleep and he thinks (3)... the witches prophecy. He hires murderers to kill Banquo and later goes to see the witches again. They (4)... him that no one born of a woman can harm him and he can only be defeated when Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane Hill. They also tell him to beware of Macduff, so Macbeth has Macduff s wife and children killed. Meanwhile Lady Macbeth, (5)... has gone mad, dies. Malcolm and Macduff (6)... raised a large army. In (7)... to disguise the army, they cut branches from Birnam Wood and carry (8)... in front of them: now Macbeth sees Birnam Wood moving to Dunsinane Hill. There is a great battle and Macduff tells Macbeth that he was not born naturally. He was taken from his mother s womb. Shortly after that, Macduff kills Macbeth. (9)... the witches said (10)... come true. Photocopiable 2012 Black Cat 15

15 E X I T T E S T 7 Your favourite play Write a paragraph about your favourite of the five plays. Explain why you like it. 16 Photocopiable 2012 Black Cat

16