Love is often an important theme and a means of motivating or resolving action in plays. Write an essay on love as a theme and narrative device, with detailed reference to Arcadia. Essay

Love is often an important theme and a means of motivating or resolving action in plays. Write an essay on love as a theme and narrative device, with detailed reference to Arcadia.

The play Arcadia , written by Tom Stoppard, is comment on the themes of love and emotion vs
reason and intellect. Stoppard has employed various techniques, such as the use of motifs, symbols.,
characterisation and structure, through a range of characters to question the relevance of love and
emotion in science. The play is set on the wealthy English estate of Sidley Park in two time periods,
1809 and 1993, in the same room allowing the audience to explore the nature of truth in relevance
to its time. A common focus throughout these two time periods is the disruptive influence of sex and love on the predictability of the universe. Stoppard challenges and supports traditional expectations of love through three main characters who each interpret love and sex differently to suite lifestyle choices.

Thomasina is a typical thirteen year old, except that she is unusually privileged with both educational opportunities and the mind of a genius. She is not only driven by her quest for mathematical and literary knowledge, she is also interested in sexuality and relationships. The play opens with Thomasina engaged in a lesson with her tutor Septimus Hodge. Thomasina asks Septimus what ‘carnal embrace’ is, she heard the term being used between the butler and the cook. She says the wife of Ezra Chater has been found in ‘carnal embrace’ in the gazebo. Septimus explains to Thomasina that the term refers to sexual intercourse, however this does not satisfy Thomasina who wants to learn more about the topic. From this early section of the book, Stoppard has clearly developed the purpose of Thomasina’s character- to explain the rules of life and love through mathematical theory. As she develops her theory she introduces the subject of constant conflict throughout the play, knowledge of love...