"The care ... of subjects' good": 'Pericles,' James I, and the neglect of government

Article Abstract:

Early Jacobean politics and King James I's lack of interest in remaining in London and doing his job of governing are an analogy to the peripatetic nature of the protagonist in William Shakespeare's play 'Pericles, Prince of Tyre.' Throughout the play Marina is a positive model counterbalancing Pericles while in real life there was a nostalgia for the resolute Queen Elizabeth. The first audiences of the play knew of King James' putting his personal desires before the interests of government and Mariana may have provided a more compelling model.

16th century AD, English drama, Pericles (Play)

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"A beggar's book/ Outworths a noble's blood": the politics of faction in Henry VIII

Article Abstract:

The struggle to accumulate royal favor which motivates much of the factional struggle in Shakespeare's 'Henry VIII' was based on King James' abusive dispensation of titles for gain. James' practice brought much criticism in the theater, and in reprisal James closed the theaters until the acting companies offered financial insurance. The opening scenes in the play allude to these circumstances and the central conflict between Cardinal Wolsey and the Duke of Buckingham turns on issues of nobility and its relation to birth and action.

Tragedies (Drama), Henry VIII (Play), Historical drama, English, English historical drama

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James I and 'Timon of Athens'

Article Abstract:

There are significant parallels between the central character of William Shakespeare's 'Timon of Athens' and the conduct of King James I. James, like Timon, was at first welcomed but soon criticized for his extravagance. Gift-giving may come from a desire to please, but also has a political dimension to define greatness by the amount given, and this was a matter of intense debate while Shakespeare wrote 'Timon.'

Portrayals, Kings and rulers, Kings, Literary criticism, English literature, 1500-1660 (Renaissance), Timon of Athens (Play), English literature, 1603-1700 (17th century)

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