What is the Great Chain of Being?

Great Chain of Being was an important part of medieval and Renaissance thought. It is a framework that assigns a place in a hierarchy based on perceived importance or perfection. It's important to have a basic understanding of the Great Chain of Being for it has influenced the poetic expressions of the Renaissance and the centuries that follow. What's cool about the Great Chain of being is that is provides a repository of metaphors, personification, and allegorical references. In this video we will provide examples of the influence of the Great Chain of Being on poetry. Specifically, Chaucer and Shakespeare.

[@MrVulcanator]

This is fascinating. I had no idea that this hierarchy of different categories was so long standing and originally seen as the natural and divine order.

[@drybones5512]

Yeah, it's interesting to see the ideas pop up again and again in literature over the centuries.

[@whyslim9504]

This was a brilliant video! Glad I stumbled upon this!

[@drybones5512]

I'm glad you did too. And thanks for the affirmation.

[@Qu0thTheRaven]

well done, great presentation on the great chain of being

[@drybones5512]

Thank you very much. I appreciate you taking the time to comment.

[@13371138]

Thank you, I needed to find out what on earth the chain of being was, and your video was perfect.

[@drybones5512]

I'm very glad you found it useful. Thank you for letting me know.

[@Art2z123]

Very helpful for researching Macbeth 👍

[@drybones5512]

I'm glad it proved useful.

[@LaoDan13]

The Great Chain of Being is ...a circle whose centre is everywhere and circumference is nowhere. Hermes Trismegistus

[@drybones5512]

Oh, I like that bit about everywhere and nowhere. That's St. Bonaventure right. That's how he talked about God, right?
I come across two representations of the Great Chain. One is a circle.
Robert Fludd (died 1637) did an etching that showed the chain as circular. There are also several, more linear conceptions of the chain. The one i used in the video was from Didacus Valades, Rhetorica Christiana (1579). I find that the hierarchical one to be easier for my students.
Thanks for this.

[@DB-pp7kj]

Thank you Thomas Jefferson.

[@drybones5512]

A Modern approach, but it didn't contribute as much to poetry.