Entertainment4

Answer Prepared by Sam Bernstein ** Long before the creation of modern inventions such as computers, video games, and televisions, the people in England had to find different systems of entertainment. The times for these leisure activities came usually on Sundays or holidays. According to A.L. Rowse, who wrote //The Elizabethan Renaissance,// the Elizabethan people where described as "...expressive and eloquent, ostentanious and pleasure-loving, not undustrious or hardworking, but bold and self-confident, markedly fearless of death, mercurial and inconsistent, loving change, above all, passionate"(353). As described these people were very spirited and intense about their culture. There were many different forms of customs and cultures as well. They all had a great impact on the rest of the world at that time. From the start to the end of each day, Elizabethans found different ways to keep themselves occupied. They were a innovative group of people.
 * WHAT WERE POPULAR FORMS OF SPORT, AMUSEMENT, AND ENTERTAINMENT IN SHAKESPEARE'S ENGLAND? HOW WERE THESE DIFFERENT IN URBAN/RURAL LIFE? HOW WERE THESE DIFFERENT IN NOBLE/MERCHANT/COMMON LIFE?

There were many different ways of sport, amusement, and entertainment in Shakespeare's England. Some of these outdoor sports included tennis, bowling, and fishing. A few indoor sports are chess, checkers, and a variety of card games. If you wanted to find entertainment, you would usually go to the theater where you would see music and drama. Dancing was also a very popular activity. According to Williams Stearns Davis, in his book //Life In Elizabethan Days// he writes, "a wholesome recreation of the mind and also exercise of the body"(81). As you can see dancing was a very serious activity for couples back then. Another major part of lifestyle was feasts and festivals such as Easter or Shrove Tuesday. On these holidays activities would include gifts, bonfires, music and jollity. Those are a few ways people kept themselves entertained. Different activities where designed for different kinds of people. There was the urban versus rural life activities or the noble versus merchant versus common life activities. For example, in the urban life the people couldn't afford all the fancy meals and feasts the rural or wealthy people could. Wealthy people usually had the more luxurious or elegant places to live while the urban people had more normal and not as fancy housing and life-style. Dancing was also different according to each class. For example, the upper class enjoyed dances such as the Brawl or Volte. The lower class enjoyed the Jig or the Dump. Also sports were different depending on each class. The upper class enjoyed sports like archery, jousting, or the "sport of royalty," hawking. Hunting was also very popular for the rich as well. It gave them a chance to show off their fine horses, hawks, clothing, and weapons. The lower class enjoyed sports like bowling or tennis. These different people weren't completely different though. Together they enjoyed the same type of music and celebrated the same holidays. All this according to Dame Judi Dench who wrote //Shakespeare For all Time(46-51)//. That is how the different classes varied from each other according to lifestyle and culture.

Works Cited Davis, Williams Stearns. // Life In Elizabethan Days //. New York: Harper and Brothers Publishers, 1930. Judi Dench, Dame. // Shakespeare for all Time //. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003. Print L. Singman, Jeffrey. // Elizabethan England //. United States of America: Library of Congress, 1995. Print. Rowse, A.L. // The Elizabethan Renaissance //. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1972