Connection to shakespeare
Shakespeare lived throughout the Elizabethan era. Since there were no established information sharing system in the time of Shakespeare, he would get ideas for plays from personal experience or what he learned about crime and punishment throughout his life. The following are examples of crimes and punishments that Shakespeare incorporated into his plays:
Macbeth: opens with Thane of Cawdor being accused of treason and sentenced to death without trial. Later on, Lady Macduff affirms before his son that treachers must be hung.
Winter’s Tale and The Twelfth Night: both plays mention characters that practice boiling a convict in oil or lead.
Taming of the Shrew, Measure for Measure, and Two Gentlemen of Verona: restrainment at the pillory is mentioned in these plays.
Other types of punishments documented in Shakespeare’s work: wheel, stocks, the press, whipping, branding, the wisp, and defacement.
Spying was a crime in the Elizabethan era that would result in a normal death. Spying is defined as an individual who is gathering information about the crown to then deliver it to an enemy monarchy. In connection to Hamlet, Polonius spies on Hamlet to gather information of his insanity. Polonius did not receive any punishments because he was spying for Claudius (the King of Denmark), however this is a crime that could have resulted in death if Polonius was spying on Hamlet without Claudius’ permission or if Old Hamlet was still King and found out that Polonius was spying on his son.
Macbeth: opens with Thane of Cawdor being accused of treason and sentenced to death without trial. Later on, Lady Macduff affirms before his son that treachers must be hung.
Winter’s Tale and The Twelfth Night: both plays mention characters that practice boiling a convict in oil or lead.
Taming of the Shrew, Measure for Measure, and Two Gentlemen of Verona: restrainment at the pillory is mentioned in these plays.
Other types of punishments documented in Shakespeare’s work: wheel, stocks, the press, whipping, branding, the wisp, and defacement.
Spying was a crime in the Elizabethan era that would result in a normal death. Spying is defined as an individual who is gathering information about the crown to then deliver it to an enemy monarchy. In connection to Hamlet, Polonius spies on Hamlet to gather information of his insanity. Polonius did not receive any punishments because he was spying for Claudius (the King of Denmark), however this is a crime that could have resulted in death if Polonius was spying on Hamlet without Claudius’ permission or if Old Hamlet was still King and found out that Polonius was spying on his son.