The Humanism In Shakespeare’s History Plays From The Perspective Of Thing Theory

The inconsistent relationship between people and things,and between people has been fully demonstrated in Shakespeare’s history plays which lead to a profound understanding of humanism.This thesis mainly employs Bill Brown’s thing theory to explore the existence of human beings on the basis of deconstructing the subject-object relationship in Shakespeare’s history plays.Since Brown’s argumentation about“thingness” challenges the subject-object relationship both between people and things,and between people to obtain a view of inclusive humanism,this thesis tries to analyze Shakespeare’s intention to construct and then deconstruct the binary opposition between the king and the crown,and between the playwright and the audience.This change corresponds to the essence of humanism which appeals for compassion for the real human conditions.The illusory essence of the subject-object relationship in the history plays is consciously hidden and then revealed.The first four history plays of Shakespeare,the trilogy of Henry VI（1591-1592）and Richard III（1592-1594）,apply a writing formula to establish the binary opposition that cater to the audience with selected historical materials to form a partial understanding of the reality of human conditions.The discussion about thingness in Richard II（1595-1596）,King John（1595-1597）and the two parts of Henry IV（1596-1598）challenge the subject-object relationship between people and things by intensifying the contradiction between the king and the crown to explore a more profound view of human existence.Being free from the illusion of the subject-object relationship,Henry V（1599）and Henry VIII（1613）,on the one hand,abandon the writing formula which restrains people’s mind,on the other hand,evoke compassion for different experiences of human beings by reflecting on uncertainties of the texts.Therefore,Shakespeare’s history plays present a process of change in which the essence of human beings is denied at first and then demonstrated,revealing Shakespeare’s emphasis on the thinking about humanity and his intention to set up a deeper understanding of human conditions through compassion and communication.