Antony and Cleopatra: The Theme of Nature
Nature, described as mysterious and secretive, is a recurrent theme throughout Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra. Cleopatra, the ill-fated queen of Egypt, is both mysterious and secretive, and her emotional power is above and beyond nature’s great strength. Whether described in a positive or in a negative manner, both nature and Cleopatra are described as being “great natural forces.” Throughout the first act, the two are compared and contrasted by various characters in the play.
The first act, set in Alexandria, Egypt, sets the stage for the play and presents the majority of the actors. Scene two introduces one of the major themes of the play, Nature. This raunchy, innuendo- filled scene has two of Cleopatra’s close friends and one of Antony’s discussing her and Antony’s life. Charmian, one of Cleopatra’s best friends, Alexas, one of Cleopatra’s servants (as well as the link between her and Antony), Enobarbus, one of Antony’s trusted Lieutenants, as well as a Soothsayers are all present and discussing their fortunes. During this discussion, the Soothsayer states, “ In Nature’s infinite book of secrecy/ A little I can read” (I.ii.10-11). The Soothsayer explains to the others that there is little she can do outside of not only her powers, but also what nature allows her to. One of the first references to nature and the mystery that revolves around it, this quote simply demonstrates how little power the people have over something as great as nature.
Nature and the elements surrounding it are simply a mystery to the people of Rome. In his discussion with his commanding Lieutenant, Enobarbus refers to Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt and Antony’s soon-to- be lover, as a great natural force that is above nature’s powers. In the second scene of the first act, Antony states, “She is cunning past man’s thought” (I.ii.145). This statement is then followed by Enobarbus’ statement about Cleopatra: “…her passions are made of noth/ing but the finest part of pure love. We cannot call her /winds and waters sighs and tears; they are greater /storms and tempests than almanacs can re- port. This/ cannot be cunning in her; if it be, she makes a show’r of /rain as well as Jove” (I.ii.146-151). In this quote, Enobarbus shows great respect and admiration towards Cleopatra. Not only does he defend her from Antony’s statement, but also he regards her with such high esteem that he compares her to Jove, the ruler of the gods in charge of rain, thunder, and lightning.
The issues involving The Tragedy of Julius Ceaser is an equivocal topic, although to narrow one down is to reiterate how the men and women are viewed in this society. This play written by William Shakespeare, he introduced numerous characters but there are a few focal characters that surface around the idea of a bend in gender roles. To clarify, the characters that illustrate this are Julius Ceaser, the romans leader, as well as, his wife Calpurnia; and the other being Brutus, Ceasers friend, and his devoted wife Portia. This book reveals how dominance was ensued in men, while women’s worries were taken into account, but when challenged by a man’s there was no decision to be made the man hurled toward their fellow man’s idea. They felt that the men made more logical decisions when in fact that was utterly wrong.
The first philosopher that Candide encounters is named pangloss, and he is presented as a follower of optimism. Optimism is the belief that the world they live in is the best possible world. During their travels together Pangloss contracts a disease from a handmaiden and comments, “Oh, Pangloss cried candide, what a strange genealogy! Is not the Devil the original stock of it? Not at all, replied the great man, it was a necessary ingredient in the best of worlds; for if Columbus had not in an island of america caught this disease… we should have neither chocolate nor cochineal.” (Voltaire, 8). This is an example of Pangloss philosophy on optimism because he takes a negative event and adds on something positive which in turn gives it an optimistic view point. Pangloss believes deeply in his philosophy despite the fact that he has contracted a disease which worsens his health and prevents him from spawning children. He even goes on to say that des...
Throughout Candide the themes of corrupting money and love are present. Candide endures fake friends, gets taken advantage of, and is constantly throwing away his money to dishonest people. Through all of this, he remains on his journey to find Cunégonde because he truly loves her. They all retreat to the garden, which symbolizes a new beginning. They get away from philosophizing too much, and keep themselves busy by cultivating the garden. Throughout life, you have to work for what you want no matter what challenges may come.
Throughout the entirety of the novel, Candide encompasses a plethora of different horrific human deeds against one another and significant natural disasters. All of these events force some of the main characters to choose how to interpret these unfortunate events and reflect upon the meaning behind their occurrences. In Voltaire’s Candide, Professor Pangloss establishes political and intellectual certainty in an uncertain world by consistently repeating that everything in this world happens to benefit the greater good. If his ideas were true, this would be unacceptable—if everything disastrous in the world occurred for God’s greater plan, then everything humankind has done to remedy these
Cleopatra's family were the rulers of Egypt for more than 100 years before she was born around 69 B.C. The stories and myths surrounding Cleopatra's life inspired people to write a number of books, movies and plays, including Antony and Cleopatra by Shakespeare. Cleopatra has become one of the most well known ancient Egyptians.
However, the main point Voltaire makes at the end of this novel with the garden is that to be content is to be happy. All the characters in the book were searching for happiness and yet always found discontent. It is at the end that finally Candide understands to be happy it is necessary to do something he is content in, and thus finds happiness. This is important to the satire of the whole, because it is Voltaire’s summation of all the criticisms, all that is wrong with society. This book is just an all out attack on society, and uses humor to illustrate his views. It is indeed a finally irony that in the end seriousness that the satirical journey of Candide comes to a close. “Let us cultivate our Garden.” Five short words, Voltaire’s final summation to the great comedy that is Candide.
The Romans were immensely furious with Cleopatra and had primary influence over what sources were left behind about her. So certainly this is going to lead to biases and inaccuracies in the depictions we have. Furthermore, we are all well aware of how Hollywood likes to dramatize and embellish stories in order to generate ticket sales and is not worried about the accuracy of the historical anecdote. Because of this and her popularity, our knowledge of Cleopatra has been flooded with twisted truths. When examining Cleopatra’s full reign beyond her love affairs, reveals Cleopatra put all of her effort forth in order to solve the conflict between Egypt and Rome and should be recognized for her masterminded and commanding leadership
Throughout Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra, readers are constantly thrown in the middle of a battle between Roman and Egyptian values. Antony, a noble warrior for the Romans, is the character that seems to have the most trouble between this dichotomy. He is constantly caught between reason (Rome) and passion (Egypt) and has a difficult time making the transitions. Cleopatra is the character that stays most true to her roots, but begins adopting the other side’s values toward the end of the story. She makes a smoother transition than Antony, which can be attributed to her self-confidence and open-minded spirit. Antony is a constant source of back-and-forth commotion while Cleopatra seems to posses Egyptian qualities until the end of the book when the reader’s eyes are opened to her new, Roman ways.
... and the passionate love of a beautiful, foreign and strong queen. And, they are connected through the historical figure Augustus Caesar, for whom The Aeneid honors and Antony and Cleopatra portrays.
In life, people and things are not always as they appear. William Shakespeare displays this idea throughout his play, Julius Caesar. The play portrays the historical murder of one of ancient Rome's most precious leaders, Julius Caesar. The play takes its readers through the minds of the conspirators as they plot this massive murder and deal with the responsibilities of its consequences. During the aftermath of Caesar's death, Octavius talks to Antony about how they should bring peace back to Rome. He states, "And some that smile...have in their hearts...millions of mischiefs" (4.1.50-51). Here, Octavius is referring to the false appearance of the conspirators. He says that they might appear harmless, but behind their false smiles is a heart full of dirty tricks. He is also saying that someone's outward appearance doesn't always symbolize how he or she feels inside. This theme of appearance versus reality can be seen various times throughout Julius Caesar. It is developed through the personalities and actions of Antony, Brutus, and Cassius. These characters deceive their friends and add to the intriguing plot of the play.
Voltaire did not believe in the power of reason to overcome contemporary social conditions.In Candide, Voltaire uses Pangloss and his ramblings to represent an often humorous characterization of the "typical" optimist. Of Pangloss, Voltaire writes, "He proved admirably that there cannot possibly be an effect without a cause and that in the best of all possible worlds the Baron’s castle was the best of all castles and his wife the best of all possible Baronesses." (522) The attack on the claim that this is "the best of all possible worlds" permeates the entire novel. Throughout the story, satirical references to this theme contrast with natural catastrophes and human wrongdoing. When reunited with the diseased and dying Pangloss, who had contracted syphilis, Candide asks if the Devil is at fault.
soon as she appears on the stage, 'If it be love indeed tell me how
To get his point across in Candide, Voltaire created the character Dr. Pangloss, an unconditional follower of Leibniz's philosophy. Voltaire shows this early in the novel by stating, "He proved admirably that there is no effect without a cause and that, in this best of all possible worlds....(16)" Pangloss goes on to say that everything had its purpose and things were made for the best. For example, the nose was created for the purpose of wearing spectacles (Voltaire 16). Because of his "great knowledge," Candide, at this point a very naive and impressionable youth, regards Pangloss as the greatest philosopher in the world, a reverence that will soon be contradicted by contact with reality (Frautschi 75).
Candide was repeatedly put into situations of good fortune only to have that good fortune taken from him by some unexpected tragedy: there was a constant cycle of one good thing happening followed by a bad thing. A good thing happened to fix the previous bad thing, but the bad thing could only be prevented if the good thing never happened. For example, in the beginning of the story, Candide kissed the Baron’s daughter whom he h...
Caesar and Cleopatra effectively and accurately displays the early relationship between Julius Caesar and Cleopatra. After the death of her father, Cleopatra seeks Caesar’s aid in helping her achieve sole rule despite the presence of her brother/husband. As the film goes on, the viewer watches Caesar and Cleopatra grow as friends and as lovers. Gabriel Pascal, the director, works immensely hard to create a setting that helps the viewers feel like they have been transported back in time. This historically accurate rendition of the play by George Bernard Shaw is a delight to watch and fun for viewers young and old.