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Introduction

The following terms and concepts are useful for studying and understanding Shakespearean drama. If you can understand the conventions of Shakespearean drama then it will be easier to determine and to explain how he has shaped meaning in the plays.

Foil

Shakespeare often makes use of this technique in his plays. A foil is a character whose role is in contrast to the main character. The foil will have qualities similar to the protagonist. They will generally be around the same age, rank and in a similar situation to those of the main character, but their reaction and attitude is different. In this way, a foil emphasises the actions of a character. Consider, for example, how the qualities of the first character are emphasised by the qualities of the second character in the following example.

John sat quietly at his desk. His back straight and eyes attentive, he copied down the notes diligently. Lisa, in the meantime, chewed her gum loudly. She swung perilously on her chair and while the teacher was giving the class notes to copy down, she scribbled notes to her friends on her worn and shabby diary.

Example One

The following table demonstrates some famous examples of foils from Shakespeare's plays.

Play	Main Character	Qualities	Foil	Qualities
Hamlet	Hamlet	Delays taking revenge for his father's death.	Laertes	Is swift and bold in avenging his father's death.
Romeo and Juliet	Romeo	Does not seek Juliet's father's permission and marries secretly.	Paris	Seeks Juliet's father's permission before even speaking to Juliet.
Macbeth	Macbeth	Nobleman with some right to throne, attempts to usurp the king.	MacDuff	Nobleman with some right to throne, does not attempt to usurp the king.

Protagonist

The protagonist is the main character of the play. This does not necessarily mean that the protagonist is the hero of the play, or that the play is about the protagonist. It is, however, the protagonist through which the play's themes are expressed and who is vital for the action of the play. The protagonist is usually hindered by a complication or situation that they must overcome. This will often involve the protagonist evolving as a character or, at least, addressing flaws in their character. In many Shakespearean dramas the protagonists are very clear. In Othello, Othello is the protagonist. In Hamlet, Hamlet is the protagonist, and so forth.

The word protagonist has its roots in Greek. It means, literally, 'first combatant'. This gives us the sense that the protagonist is the driving force of the text.

Antagonist

The antagonist, as the word implies through comparison of 'pro' and 'anta', is a character who works in opposition to the protagonist. Similar to modern film conventions, particularly in the action genre, where there is a hero and a villain, the antagonist provides the obstacle that the protagonist must overcome. Consider this word as close to the word 'antagonism' or 'to antagonise' which means to provoke. When looking for the antagonist in a play, it is important to examine what obstacles the antagonist provides or how they work against the protagonist. It is important to remember that just as a protagonist does not need to be a virtuous or heroic character, an antagonist does not need to be villainous or malicious.

Great Chain of Being or Scala Naturae

The Great Chain of Being, while a concept not exclusive to the Elizabethans, is nevertheless a belief that is prevalent in Shakespeare's works. Some plays, in particular King Lear, address the belief openly and in others, such as Macbeth, more indirectly. The Great Chain of Being is a belief that all things on Earth, having been created by God, exist in a strict hierarchy. This hierarchy cannot be altered and is entirely structured. At the bottom of the hierarchy were inanimate objects such as rocks followed by vegetation. At the top was God, with the angels just below him.

The significance of this belief for studying Shakespearean drama is that within each classification there were sub-categories. This applies to humans. It was believed that a person's status and class was part of the Great Chain of Being and thus should not be altered. Shakespeare examines this closely in King Lear, where Edmund's attempt to change his status, and hence disrupt the Chain of Being, ends in chaos and tragedy.

Interestingly, in the context of the Great Chain of Being, 'chaos' refers to the time before the hierarchy was divinely created by God. When you come across the word chaos in Shakespearean drama, remember that it has a lot more depth of meaning than does our modern concept of the term.

Fatal Flaw

A fatal flaw, more accurately called harmatia, is a convention that Aristotle defined in 'Poetics' to refer to the qualities of a protagonist that lead to their downfall in a tragedy. This flaw in character can relate to ignorance, errors of judgment and commonly, weaknesses such as greed, envy and jealousy. The following table links some protagonists from Shakespearean tragedies to their fatal flaw.

Play	Protagonist	Fatal Flaw
Macbeth	Macbeth	Ambition
King Lear	King Lear	Error of judgement
Othello	Othello	Jealousy
Julius Caesar	Julius Caesar	Arrogance

Bawdry or Bawdryness

These words relate to the sense of humour, often employed by Shakespeare, which is sexual in its content. Bawdry humour often involves the breaking of sexual conventions or codes. The bawdry sense of humour that Shakespeare employs is significant as it demonstrates his range and ability to appeal to diverse audiences by expressing meaningful theme and character development in unison with whimsical and flippant remarks.