Time+Period

=__The Setting__= //Everything that influenced the writer and his work!//

The reign of Queen Elizabeth I heralded a new era for England. With the defeat of the Spanish Armada, England was taking great strides towards becoming a leading world power. The English Navy was a formidable foe, the Church of England was replacing Catholicism, and Sir Francis Drake circumnavigated the world. At a time when change was sweeping its way through England and bringing it much Glory, it was a great time for Shakespeare to take the stage and become one of the great minds that shaped a new England.

During the Elizabethan Age, the population rose drastically; 400 percent, in fact. This led to nearly 200,000 people inhabiting the cities and city areas. Said people were inevitably divided into classes. There were the Nobility, the Gentry, The Yeomanry, and the Poor.

There were around only 55 noble families living during Shakespeare's time, though their power and wealth made up for their lack in numbers. A typical noble household supported as many as 200 hundred people, including family, servants and the guests. One became a Noble only by birth or a grant from the King or Queen. The Gentry-- i.e., Knights or Squires --were just as few as the Nobility, and though they may not have been necessarily as powerful, they were also very wealthy. This wealth was gained through buying property bit by bit over generations. The Yeomanry were basically the middle class of the Elizabethan Age; able to live comfortably, but still having the potential of going into poverty. They were usually farmers, tradesmen and craft workers who took religion very seriously. The majority of them were literate. Those who had it the worst were the Poor. Because of enclosure-- a farming system that led to massive unemployment and many people who were evicted from their farmhouses to the city --a large chunk of the population was left in poverty. However, this led to the Poor Laws, which aimed to place those unable to take care of themselves in hospitals or orphanages, give able-bodied people work if they could not find it themselves, and to discourage the permanently unemployed.

Catholic religion and Protestant religion were the two main religions in the Elizabethan Age, though they were very different. Protestants believed that the Bible was the sole source of God's message, whereas Catholics believed tradition also played an important role. Protestants believed that one could be saved by faith alone, whereas Catholics believed that salvation relied on the Seven Sacraments: baptism, confirmation, the Eucharist, Penance, anointing of the sick, Holy Orders, and matrimony. These opposing views led to increasing prosecution for followers of either faith; failure to adhere to the "favored" religion could mean imprisonment, torture, and execution.

The average life expectancy in the Elizabethan era was 42 years old. Towns were very unsanitary, leading to problems with the spread of disease. Most people would have rather stayed at home and died than seek medical attention due to the poor quality available to people at this time. The poorer classes relied on superstitious home remedies to cure the sick. Most people ate at least two meals a day at this time, dinner and supper. The middle and lower classes ate chiefly vegetable and grains, while the nobility enjoyed meats and sweets. Sugar wasn't very common and many meats were cooked with fruits. Compared to today, food was a lot sweeter in the Elizabethan Era. Salt, at this time, also wasn't an everyday staple.

A form of entertainment that emerged in this time period were blood and team sports, for the lower classes and for the higher classes hunting became increasingly popular. Blood sports were generally carried over from medieval times. Blood sports included bear baiting, where a bear was tied to a stake and dogs were let in to attack it; bull baiting, where the bull was put into a pit and teased and hurt until it died; and cockfighting. Team sports such as football and hurling were also popular among the lower classes. Soccer was also played, but it was frowned upon because of all the rioting and bloodshed that it incited.

Early Elizabethan acting troupes traveled the country and negotiated with inn keepers to stage plays in the inn yards. The next stage for the theater was the creation of the amphitheater. As theater began to cater more towards nobles indoor theaters and playhouses were built to offer more luxury, but they also greatly benefited acting troupes because it allowed for performances all year round, regardless of weather.