Sunday, December 15, 2013
The Sweet Sting of Love
William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night or What You Will is a comical story full of love, foolery, and pain all at the same time. It ends with three weddings; a happy note for most characters. However, for some the end is not so joyous. Malvolio, a character who has been unlawfully deceived, swears his revenge at the end of the story. Why do you think Shakespeare made this comedy end so badly for this character? Twelfth Night demonstrates that love can cause pain and suffering. Malvolio's unhappy ending demonstrates this as well as Antonio's situation in the end. Orsino mopes around for most of the play longing for the woman he loves, causing him to realize in the end that he is a fool. How else does Shakespeare demonstrate through this play the idea that love can not only cause happiness, but also pain and suffering? Why else might Shakespeare have ended this play on a happy note for some and an unhappy note for others? What other themes can you find in Twelfth Night and where do they apply in the story?
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I believe that when two people fall in love, there are almost always some people that are really unhappy with the relationship. This could be people that liked that person in a romantic way or family that thinks that the one person is not good enough for him/her. For every action, there is a consequence. This could be that consequence. Shakespeare probably included this because it would make the play more realistic. This story could teach us to be more aware about how we effect the people around us that matter the most. This play could not have had a great fairy tale ending because it would be just that: a fairytale. This would cause the audience not to have been able to relate. I am sure that Shakespeare wanted to make this play as realistic as possible.
ReplyDeleteI agree with that. In every relationship, there is almost always someone that ends up being hurt in the making. Be it friends or family, there will be someone. They may not be hurt, they may just be confused or they may be concerned. If they see that the person they care about is getting involved with someone they feel is undesirable or not good for the other person, and the person they care for does not see it, then they can become worried or just give up on the person. Also, when someone likes someone and the person they like is suddenly involved with people of the other gender, after they talk to them for a long time and think they have feelings for them, it can hurt, and that is one thing that happens a lot in the world.
DeleteThe more relatable a story is, the better. People crave real life drama through stories because they love to see what other lives go through. When they can someone else going through something similar to them, it means a lot. They can then know that they are not the only ones suffering. Shakespeare put a character in Twelfth Night for everyone to connect with. There is so much diversity within the many characters and this is a great tool that Shakespeare uses to reach his audience. There are people out there that will be able to connect with even Malvolio. Even though his live in Twelfth Night may not be so spectacular, there will be a person in an audience that feels his pain and uses his story to strive for their life to change.
DeleteI like how you pointed out that each person needs to be aware of how their actions are effecting those that surround them. Shakespeare really wanted to make his play relatable and I think that through all the confusion, that is exactly what he accomplished. Like Moriah said, people like reading and watching things that they can relate too. Fairytales are nice, but they set a false standard for real life to live up to when in fact, real life won't reach those standards. Shakespeare tried to show his audience that even through the love mess, a happy ending could come out in the end, even if some people were left with hurt feelings. That's life.
DeleteTwelfth Night is a demonstration of turning real life emotions into a crazy, comedic story. Most of us would never even think to disguise ourselves as the opposite sex. It is not a typical thought that would come up in somebody's head. The fact that Viola dresses up as a man is the first peek at this peculiar story. It sets up something for the audience to hold on their own. This is an example of dramatic irony because not many of the characters actually know about Ceasario's true self. It gives the audience knowledge that they will remember and keep in mind during all of his/her conversations and interactions with others. She acts as a border around both sexes. This is a major key in the story because it shows how naive love can be. Olivia falls for him/her without even getting to know who he/she truly is. Meanwhile, Viola is falling for the Duke and there is nothing she can do about it because she is a man in the eyes of Orsino and he is in love with Olivia who will never be into him. The love triangle in Twelfth Night may be insanely blown out of proportion, but it is still very relatable. People know what it is like to look at someone with desire and know that they are taken or into someone else. It is painful. It is clear in the story that love can create pain, but that is mostly demonstrated through the smaller characters such as Malvolio. In stories, the audience always wants the main characters to win. This is a desire that is created by seeing what the characters want and wishing that they receive that. Twelfth Night as well as many other plays, novels, and movies are set up so that the main character(s) will always be the hero to the audience. In Twelfth Night, Malvolio, Antonio, and Andrew all end up unhappy unlike the rest of the characters. These are not terrible events to happen in the play because these characters were never really set up to be enjoyed or liked by the audience. It does not mean anything to the audience that these characters do not find love because they were not exactly the "fan favorites."
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that many times the audience wants the major characters to win. We cannot ignore the pain that the smaller characters are feeling though. There are always people who are unhappy in everyday life. It is no wonder that Shakespeare included them in his play. It just makes for a much more realistic play. This causes the audience to buy into the plot and enjoy the play much more. The more people enjoy the play, the more people go to see it. Back in Shakespeare's time, this would mean more revenue for him and the actors.
DeleteBoth Malvolio and Antonio love or have feelings for one of the other characters in the play, but both of those characters are, in Malvolio's case, in love with someone else and cannot love him, and in Antonio's case, the other person is of the same gender and he falls in love with a woman he meets out of the blue and then marries her. Sir Andrew is hurt because his best friend, Sir Toby, marries Mariah for helping play a prank, and feels that he is nothing because all Toby uses him for is for his money. All of the characters that end up being unhappy love another or enjoy being with them, and during the course of the play, someone takes that person from them and they feel forgotten. Shakespeare does this to exemplify what does happen every day in the world of love. Friends are lost because someone comes between them. People know that they shouldn't love someone because they know that the other person will never have feelings for them, and yet they love them anyway, only leading themselves to be hurt. People are used and thrown away when the other person is done with them or finds someone else. Every day, people fall in love with someone they can't have or shouldn't want. And Shakespeare knew this, and brought that out within the play.
ReplyDeleteI think that with this play, Shakespeare truly grasped the real concept of love. No love story is perfect and there will always be people not satisfied with the ending. Love is also unpredictable and I think that Shakespeare exaggerated how crazy love is to get across that point. Malvolio tries to love a person that does not love him and that is where his fault is. Love needs to flow in both directions. It cannot be one sided or it will not work. This is all we find in this play the entire love, one sided love. It would be surprising if any of the love stories work out in the end since none of them actually knew the person they claimed to love.
ReplyDeleteSarah, I agree with you. Shakespeare absolutely grasps what love is. Love can lead to many different situations, including heartbreak or happiness. Twelfth Night demonstrates all sides of love. Love can also make one foolish and unwise. Malvolio, for example, presented himself as a complete lunatic in order to win the love of a woman that does not love him back. He is locked away because of his foolery, which leads to heartbreak, hatred, and a lust for revenge. Also, the sudden love that many characters fall into will most likely end unhappily as the years pass. The characters know little about each other which can lead to destruction in the long run.
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