The Great Chain of Being At the top

The Great Chain of Being

At the top is God’s love flows through and sustains and holds together the whole system– everything in turn gives back that love

Immediately below are 9 orders of Angels… Ø The Intelligences (each group is in charge of a particular Heavenly sphere): l Seraphim (Primum Mobile), l Cherubim (Stars), l Thrones (Saturn), l Dominations (Jupiter), l Virtues (Mars) l Powers (Sun) l Principalities (Venus) l Archangels (Mercury) l Angels (Moon)

Ptolemic Universe Earth stands still- everything moves around it.

Humans Reason—(he can think matters out)– in a political hierarchy Emperor, King, Duke, Marquis, Earl, Viscount, Baronet, Knight, Esquire, gentleman, a) Trades (Doctor, Lawyer, Merchant, soldier b) ordinary citizens c) peasants d) fisherman e) beggar f) fool

Below Humans Ø The order of Beasts (Lack reason, but have memory, hearing, motion and touch or sense. ) Ø For every species on land there was thought to be a corresponding one in the ocean (further element in harmony and order).

The Animals 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Four legged animals, having all of the things mentioned. (Lion or elephant, wolf, snake, and at the bottom a mole. Two- legged animals: birds (eagle or falcon) Fish, having motion but no hearing (Dolphin) Land animals, having motion but no hearing: Insects (bees, ants, worms) Animals with sense or touch, but no motion: Oysters

Below Animals (Plants) Have only existence and growth. 1. Fruits- Highest because they are made for man’s needs. The highest being the pomme royal (the Pomeroy) or the royal apple. 2. Flowers (Rose) 3. Trees (Oak, elm, bramble, herbs)

Bottom of the ladder (Minerals) The quality of existence in both space and time. 1. The Liquids (the most mobile) 2. The Metals (gold, lead, brass) 3. The Stones (diamond, jewels, common stone)

The elements and the humours The world is made of 4 elements which correspond with 4 basic fluids of the body and 4 basic personality types: 1. Fire (hot and dry)- choleric man 2. Air (hot and moist)- blood- sanguine 3. Water (cold and moist)- phlegmatic 4. Earth (cold and dry)- black bile- melancholy “His life was gentle; and the elements So mixed in him, that Nature might stand up, And say to all the world, THIS WAS A MAN!” Julius Caesar, 5. 5. 73 -75

“The Great Chain of Being” describes a neat, tidy universe. As long as everyone or everything stays in place, all goes well. But if one thing, person or being moves, the whole order is wrenched and thrown into a state of confusion. A) Examples: 1 st –Lucifer rebelled against God. 2 nd-Adam sinned in Garden of Eden. B) These ‘wrenchings’ occur whenever son rebels against father, subject against prince or when a body falls into disease because one organ or humour has stepped out of line.

The chain represents the rightness of the order. What disturbs the order is wrong. A) Absolute rulers were part of God’s order– the man who kills a king is as bad as Judas B) Also represents a “chain of values. ” C) Also leads to comparison and /or parallel relationships. As God is the Father of all, the king is the ‘father of the land, ’ as the heart is to the organs, gold among metals or the sun among the planets.

D) So a body might be compared to the Earth, or a kingdom to a human body or a garden. E) Shakespeare’s language then, is one of metaphor and analogy.

Julius Caesar and the Great Chain Ø Brutus, Cassius and the other conspirators throw all of Rome into turmoil by usurping the natural order of their government. By killing Caesar, they assume supremacy over God’s rule and the “natural order” dictated by the Chain. Look at the storm that descends on Rome the night the conspirators meet to finalize their plans…

Hamlet and the Great Chain Ø The play opens after the death of the king, Hamlet’s father, and the kingdom of Denmark faces potential war in the “power vacuum”. Hamlet is visited by the ghost of his father- a very unnatural occurrenceand is given the news that regicide was the cause. Regicide, viewed in the light of the Great Chain, is an offense to God. What is Hamlet to do?