Plan of the lecture english literature of the XVII century

EXPRESSION OF THE IDEA OF STRUGGLE AGAINST ABSOLUTE 
GOVERNMENT IN THE TRAGEDIES “SEJANUS HIS FALL” (SEJUNUS’S 
FALL), AND “CATILINE HIS CONSPIRACY” (CATILINE’S CONPIRACY) 
 
Sejanus His Fall
was Jonson’s first attempt at tragedy. It was performed in 1603 
by the King’s Men at the Globe Theatre. According to some sources, Shakespeare may 
have played the part of Tiberius. 
Sejanus His Fall
, however, is far from a classical 
tragedy. In his preface to the play Jonson apologizes for not upholding the unity of 
time, but Jonson does more than break with this one unity. Instead of focusing on one 
day, the action in 
Sejanus His Fall
spreads over several months. The locales change 
frequently. The cast is an assortment of characters caught in multiple sequences. The 
play lacks a chorus, and violent actions are graphically depicted on stage. Jonson could 
not hold to classical principles, and entertain Elizabethans, in writing his tragedy. 
Ironically, the play was not well received and was misunderstood by its contemporary 
audience. Today, it is seldom revived. 
Nevertheless, 
Sejanus His Fall
is worthy of critical acclaim. It is modern in its 
investigations of the machination of power, and it is deeply rooted in the primitive 
traditions of tragedy, which focus on the ritualistic dismemberment of a scapegoat 
figure. The greatness of the play does not lie in character portrayal, for Tiberius is the 
only character with complexity. Sejanus has no richness to his personality; he is not an 
interesting villain. The good characters, such as Lepidus and Arruntius, function 
primarily as choral commentators, comparing the past with the present; they are either 
ineffectual or impotent. Rather, our interest is drawn to the contest between two 
supreme Machiavellians, Tiberius and Sejanus, and to Jonson’s suggestion that a 
corrupt and decadent society will inevitably produce a Tiberius and a Sejanus. 
Under the sinister influence of Sulla’s ghost, the reckless patrician