Shared Rhetorical Devices in Shakespeare's Dialogue

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There is currently a significant gap in our understanding of Shakespeare's use of rhetoric in dialogue. This proposed project, the first intensive study of its kind, will address this by investigating Shakespeare's use of shared rhetorical devices in dialogue. Shakespeare's plays abound with rhetoricaldevices, but due to rhetoric's oratory origins, they are extensively analysed in single-voiced speeches (Joseph, 1947; Vickers, 1988), and, despite momentary engagement with dialogic rhetoric (Davis, 2003; Keller, 2009; Walker, 2017), the exciting potential of shared devices remains unexplored. My thesis and research will show dialogic rhetoric is potent with opportunities for innovative analysis and interpretation that will unlock new performance possibilities, revealing fresh ideas about relationships and emotions; motivations and intentions; actions and reactions.As well as providing a deeper understanding of Shakespeare's characterisation and aiding contemporary actors in their interpretation of the text, my research will also offer an original contribution to the understanding of Early Modern theatre practice. It draws on Tiffany Stern and Simon Palfrey's comprehensive study into actors' parts, since countless examples of dialogic rhetoric would have been visible to actors working from parts that contained only their own lines and cues. As such, my findings will add to the list of 'tools' (Palfrey and Stern, 2007) available to Early Modern actors in their preparation for a role. Furthermore, the fact that these rhetorical devices are shared between characters means that they are one of the few ways in which Early Modern actors could have discerned something about their character's relationships with others in a scene.Three research questions drive my investigation: "How do rhetorical devices in dialogue function differently from those in single speeches in Shakespeare's work?", "How can an understanding of the function of dialogic rhetoric impact on an understanding of character relationships in Shakespeare's plays?" and "What impact might such knowledge have on contemporary theatre practice?". Answering these questions is imperative as many theatre professionals are currently misinterpreting dialogic rhetoric as analogous to the single-voiced form.I will begin my research process by investigating what Shakespeare is likely to have understood about rhetoric, using Elizabethan school texts and rhetoric manuals. I will then undertake an analysis of the devices and compare the way in which Shakespeare uses them within speeches and dialogue. I will apply the findings relating to dialogic rhetoric to an exploration of character interaction and communication, before looking at the significance of these findings for actors' understandings of character emotion, status and intention. The final stage of my enquiry will include a rigorous testing of my ideas through practice research and, having pursued this, I aim to create a series of practical workshop exercises thatcan be applied by contemporary actors in the rehearsal room.I will provide original contributions of knowledge to the fields of literary analysis and theatre history. The project will impact upon contemporary theatre practice by creating innovative ways of bringing underexplored elements of Shakespeare's dialogue to life for theatre professionals, inevitably producing fresh experiences for audiences.