Ultimately, I argue that in adapting the tragic history of Edward II for the popular stage, Marlowe self-consciously draws on the environmentally hazardous landscape immediately surrounding the site of his play’s earliest London performances in order to call attention to the socio-environmental politics of waste disposal at a unique historical moment when the collective exposure to improperly disposed waste was increasing as a result of the city’s exponential (and arguably unsustainable) population growth. These additional factors were directly related to the growing controversy over improper waste disposal in late-Elizabethan London. Although most critical readings of the play have interpreted this recurrence as a symptom of the trans-historical psychological associability between the homophobic contempt that Mortimer Junior and his co-conspirators demonstrate for Edward’s and Gaveston’s relationship and the scatological punishments to which the deposed king is subjected, I argue in this essay that Marlowe likely had additional motivating factors for increasing the role of open sewers in his dramatic adaptation of his historical sources. 1594) features a conspicuous recurrence of open sewers both on- and off-stage, and its characters repeatedly invoke the image of “channels” glutted with material and bodily waste. His first order of business is to recall his bosom favourite, Piers Gaveston from exile.Marlowe’s Edward II (c. Our Story: King Edward I has just died, and his son, also Edward, ascends the throne. Margaret, Niece to King Edward the Second, Daughter of the Earl of Gloucester. Queen Isabella, Wife of King Edward the Second. 1592 Earliest Extant Edition: 1594 DRAMATIS PERSONAE.

Frequently referring to, but generally by-passing, most of the important political developments of Edward’s reign (1307-1327), the story focuses in laser-like fashion on Edward’s weakness of character and obsession with his personal favourites the result is a tragedy of the highest order. Edward II Dramatis Personae 2 EDWARD the SECOND by Christopher Marlowe Written c. The history play Edward II repre sents the ultimate affirmation of Christopher Marlowe’s power and skill as a dramatist, and is to boot the only play of his which can be confidently stated to be an unadulterated example of his work. Language Difficulty Rating: 4 (slightly difficult).

Edward ii by christopher marlowe