E X T E N S I O N ELISABETHAN LITERATURE The Golden Age English Renaissance is a term often used to describe a cultural and artistic movement in England from the early 16th century to the mid17th century. This era in English cultural history is sometimes referred to as "the Elizabethan Era" taking the name of the English Renaissance s most important monarch. However, it is worth remembering that the English Renaissance covers a period both before and after Elizabeth s reign. Elizabeth s reign is also referred to as the Golden Age and was marked by many changes in English culture. Although all the arts flourished during this eventful period, the outstanding1 realizations were in literature. The period s finest achievement was drama, which developed from the popular medieval drama and the academic classical drama. It sprang to life in the 1580s when a group of educated young playwrights (University Wits) redefined theatrical language and form. The lesser dramatists John Lyly, George Peele, Thomas Kyd and Robert Greene also varied and crossbred2 dramatic types, helping to produce the age s flexible and mixed forms of comedy, tragedy and history. William Shakespeare was the greatest dramatist of the age. Culling3 plots from the teeming4 literature of the time, absorbing techniques from his contemporaries and adding his legendary gift for language, Shakespeare, in this period, created masterpieces in each genre: A Midsummer Night s Dream, As You Like It (comedy); The Merchant of Venice (tragicomedy); Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet (tragedy); Henry IV, Richard III (history play). In addition to William Shakespeare, the age produced the dramatists Ben Jonson (Volpone, The Alchemist) and Christopher Marlowe (Tamburlaine the Great and Doctor Faustus). 1. outstanding: excellent, superior to others. 2. crossbred (crossbreed-crossbredcrossbred): mixed (two or more different varieties). 3. culling: selecting. 4. teeming: present in large numbers. Ben Jonson Christopher Marlowe 62