Shakespeare's English seasons

Gwen HERAT

LITERATURE: What inspired William Shakespeare in his writing was nature in her pristine glory in the four seasons which we find repeated over and over again in his plays and in the sonnet.

Though characters and plots were important, they mostly revolved around environment to make his tragedies, histories, comedies, etc. more brilliant and spectacular.

The Bard would pick on a lark, nightingale or even a swallow and evolve a scene to indicate the seasons. Many were the flowers that he identified the seasons with, adding beauty and charm to enchant the reader and take him through a journey in the wonders of nature.

All Shakespeare homes had their garden laden with flowers and foliage in riots of colour, shapes and scents.

'There is a willow grows, aslant the brook,
That shows his hour leaves in the glassy stream;
There with fantastic garlands did she come,
Of cornflowers, nettles, daises and long-purples,
That liberal shepherd give a grosser name.'

Hamlet, Act.IV, Scene VII

A countryman by instinct, Shakespeare's rural Warwickshire reflects through innumerable passages that provide us evidence of his love and knowledge of plants and flowers of the seasons.

He describes the pastoral scenes and their wonders in the changing seasons that reveal an intimate acquaintance with the countryside. In Midsummer Night's Dream, he is full of praise for the simple woodland birds:

'The ousel-cock, so black of hue
With orange, tawny bill,
The throstle with his his note so true,
The wren with little quill
The finch, the sparrow, and the lark
The plain song cuckoo grey;
Whose note full many a man doth mark
And dares not answer, nay'...

Act. III, Scene 1.

Environment

Shakespeare's early environment was a clear indication of his passion for nature. Both his parents came from farming families based in the country few miles apart.

The River Avon alongside which Stratford-upon-Avon was, had originated centuries before as a river-crossing settlement which divided the Arden woodland country and still remains the ancient forests, open fields and pastures the poet so lovingly made a part of his writing.

'How sweet the moonlight sleep upon this bank,
Here will we sit, and let the sound of music
Creep in our ears; soft stillness and the night
Become the touches of sweet harmony'

The Merchant of Venice Act 5, Scene 1

Though Shakespeare left for London to make a name and a fortune, he never lost his love for his native land. Warwickshire was where he grew up, frolicked on the fields and listened to the birds sing and watched the sun set over his native land.

They all made a great impression. In the changing seasons, he saw exuberance, youth and romance in summer. Hope and promises of the future in spring. The falling leaves in autumn and the harsh winter indicating the end of the seasons.

He marvelled at the snow, he praised their worth, sometimes calling winter harsh and cruel. But all seasons held their magic and he was able to surface their worth; identify the good and the bad and praise God for their existence.

He sang their wonder, echoed their worth in a burning passion of a true Englishman.

'Full many a glorious morning have I seen,
Flatter the mountain-tops with sovereign eyes;
Kissing with golden face the meadows green
Gilding pale streams with heavenly alchemy...

Sonnette. XXXIII

Globe Theatre

Welcombe had land rising above overlooking a river valley over which Shakespeare often wondered as a little boy during all four seasons. He invested part of his money which he earned as playwright and became a part owner of the Globe Theatre.

He also selected New place at Stratford for his retirement but commenced a life devoted to masses of flowers and plants that he nurtured during the changing seasons.

The Bard's knowledge of plants and flowers were not that of an expert but a countryman gifted with an acute sense of observation that he was able to identify with the four seasons.

'I know a bank where the wild thyme blow,
Where oxslips and the nodding violet grows:
Quite over-canopied with luscious woodbine
With sweet musk-roses, and with eglantine;..

A Midsummer Night's Dream Act. II, Scene I.

The lush freshness of the Avon meadows and the wooded landscapes of the Arden forests are found in the romantic setting of As You Like It. This is a clear indication of Shakespeare's poetic gift he derives from nature.

No other writer has portrayed the character and atmosphere of Tudor garden with such poetic and ardent admiration and left behind a legacy of floraly imagery

'Suppose the singing birds musicians
The grass whereon thou tread'st the presence strew'd
The flowers fair ladies; and thy step no more
Then a delightful measure of dance.'...

King Richard. II, Act I Scene III

Often Shakespeare stood on River Avon's banks which was the meeting point where the forest country of Arden spread towards the north and linked arable farmlands of the south of the river. From here the roads linked his beloved Warwickshire.

Worcester, Tewkusbury and Glooucester and through these towns, the river connected and flowed down to Oxford and the Thames and joined up in London, which was a national magnet even then.

All these locations were more than familiar to the poet and their environment inspirational as found in his plays.

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