Blog Post #1--Fate

Fate consistently surfaced as a major theme in the works presented in my Reading Historically I class last semester. From Beowulf to Shakespeare's own Richard III, an argument could be made that fate had created the sequence of events in each piece and played a significant part in the roles and development of various characters. Using Richard III as an example, Richard states in Act I, Scene 1 the he is "determined to be the villain." This statement proved rather vexing due to the dual meaning of "determined." Did Richard possess a deep desire to paint himself as the story's villain, or was he the product or even the victim of some preordained cycle or prophecy. I personally understood "determined" to mean the latter--hence the reason I have chosen "fate" as my topic. I expect that this theme features hugely in Shakespeare's works, especially seeing as it is a concept consistently used in English literature, such as the "wheel of fortune" present in both Le Morte Darthur and Richard III. I am interested in tracking it because I believe the way one views the presence of fate can significantly change his or her perspective of a Shakespearean title. If fate indeed lurks in the backround of a play, it can, for example, potentially change how one views the charaters. With Richard, I personally felt sorry for him in a sense, as he appeared destined for his terrible role due to some plan from an omnipotent being. While I would not argue that Richard is a likeable character or that he should be viewed as such, his unhappy fortune made him, at least in my eyes, more pitiable, and I believe this added to his depth. Was he happy with his role in English society or did he view himself as a victim? This is just one interesting question that this concept brings up, and I believe that, especially with the ever-growing popularity of Calvinism and predestination throughout Europe, Shakespeare certainly could have taken advantage of this popular religious ideology and incorporated it into his works. So what exactly is "fate"? Deriving from the Latin "fatum", which translates "that which has been spoken", and is related to the Old English word wyrd, which the OED defines as "the principle, power, or agency by which events are predetermined; fate, destiny." The word fate itself was first used in literature by Geoffry Chaucer in 1374. The OED most generally defines fate as "The principle, power, or agency by which, according to certain philosophical and popular systems of belief, all events, or some events in particular, are unalterably predetermined from eternity. [It is] Often personified." It goes on to explain that fate can also be viewed as "the goddess of fate or destiny; in Homer", or "the three goddesses supposed to determine the course of human life." Shakespeare uses these three defintions. One definition that also caught my attention came in the eighteenth century, defining it as "an instrument of death or destruction." I hope to be able to find and develop my understanding of this concept throughout the semester.