The characters’ likings change in the play is troubling, where Lysander is intensely in love with Hermia at first and with Helena at another point. “Transparent Helena! Nature shows art that through thy bosom makes me see thy heart” (Shakespeare and Foakes Act II). The aim of the play is not to observe the nature of true love but reasonably to mock misunderstandings that love brings. Lysander, Hermia, Demetrius and Helena are destined not to be romantic classics, but somewhat sympathetic figures thrown into perplexing situations of romantic farce.
The beloved in Sonnet 130 is described in an unappealing manner, and yet, because of his honest depiction of her the poet-speaker considers his love to be true. The sonnet suggests true, authentic feelings can only be expressed when traditional conventions are set aside. This essay will examine the various technical features used by Shakespeare to emphasise this theme. The discussion will also consider the context in which the sonnet was written. It is immediately clear that Sonnet 130 challenges traditional concepts of romantic love.
A Midsummer’s Night Dream: Comedy or Corrupt? Although most believe A Midsummer’s Night Dream by William Shakespeare is a light, romantic comedy, many well renowned experts such as Jan Katt argue the play encompasses the tragedy of Pyramus and Thisbe and should therefore be considered sinister and violent. In your eyes, is A Midsummer’s Night Dream a violent, erotic play or a lighthearted comedy? Without a doubt, the play is a sweet, light, comedy, intended to entertain the reader as evident in the mistaken identities, the character development of Bottom along the various forms of comedy. All these elements contrast the violent, sinister play many perceive it as.
These supernatural features of this play enlighten the readers as it displays that there are two realms, one for those who are mortal and another for those who are immortal. In the first scene of the second act, lines 155-174 demonstrate how Shakespeare first introduces magic into his play through one of his characters, Oberon the King fairy. In Oberon's passage, we see that a difference between what is reality and fantasy exists as magic first is introduced, there is a darkness behind Oberon's character as he seeks revenge in order to get what he wants, and lastly readers can speculate the relationships that will be created if Oberon's wishes do come true. During the second act of A Midsummer Night's Dream, readers are introduced to an outside world consisting of fairies. Oberon, the King fairy, has a fight with Titania, a Queen fairy.
The Fool is one of the most alluring characters in Shakespeare’s King Lear. He is a choric commentator whose lines reveal thematic motifs within the play, as well as a character that strategically uses humorous language as comic relief to Lear, but does not diminish the intensity of Lear’s misery. As he alleviates the intensity through humor, he equivocates because he says metaphors that speak the truth like the three witches in Macbeth, but the opposite. The Fool’s role is essential because he is aligned with Cordelia. Like Cordelia, the Fool is honest, but his comical language masks his honesty.
It could in some ways be considered the driving force of the play itself. The sickly jealousy which comes to consume Othello would have meant very little at all if he had not loved Desdemona with the passion and vigour that he did. There are a number of contrasts utilised by Shakespeare to convey two very different forms of love, each nearly completely antithetical to the other. The relationship between Othello and Desdemona, proved in the end to be something pure and good, is set beside the sickly, superficial relationship between Iago and Emilia. Interestingly, this makes the theme of love in Othello yet another aspect of the idea of opposites, two-facedness, the ultimate duality of black and white, good and evil, inherent in the play.
Within his works, Shakespeare writes with elaborate language but carefully includes contextual clues in the prose to aid readers in understanding. In The Tempest, Shakespeare uses poetic elements, primarily end rhyme, to draw attention to certain scenes that contain significant insight and alone have the power to affect the plot's development throughout the play. End rhyme is a powerful poetic element that sharply contrasts normal prose. Because people don't normally talk in rhyme, it stands out from everyday dialogue; a technique writers can use to their advantage to ensure the reader takes notice of significant scenes where end rhyme is used. In those scenes, end rhyme changes the tone of what the characters are saying and stresses the importance of it.
b) Shakespeare uses a mixture of prose and blank verse in this scene. What purpose does it serve? a) In Act 3 Scene 1, it is seen that Titania’s infatuation of Bottom is deep-set. However, it is artificial and not of true love, since it was a result of Puck’s trick on them. Titania does not truly feel this way; she only does under the spell of Puck’s trick.
I know I can definitely empathise with him. Ah yes, so did I. That element of the tragedy is also displayed in the film as John Othello expresses that the person he trusts the most is Ben Jago. There is a dramatic irony in that scene as the audience knows that Othello can’t trust Jago and this is represented through the use of dramatic music. Andrew Davies purposely used that technique to mirror Shakespeare’s thematic technique to create similar effect.
The convention of men playing woman parts intensifies the comedic value of Twelfth Night for the audience as gender changes are central to the plot. Viola’s disguise deceives the other characters, she innocently leads them to believe she is a man and this becomes a focal point of drama and comedy as the audience witness Viola’s disguise effective. Humour is particularly created through Olivia’s reaction to this deception when she confesses her love to Cesario who the audience know, ironically, is also a woman. The sub plot, the trick played on Malvolio, highlights comedy in the form of mockery due to deception and disguise, focalised around dramatic irony- the entertainment of the plot relies on the audiences knowledge. Malvolio’s adoption of the behaviour “strange, stout and dressed in yellow stockings cross-gartered” creates comedy through the use of satire of humiliating him.