On first view, the Twelfth Night has all the basic comic elements; clowns, double acts, women dressed as men, men dressed as priests and a "sublimely funny" servant, only funny because of his distinct lack of humour. Harold Bloom believes that Twelfth Night is indeed still funny to a modern day audience. In ... ... middle of paper ... ...r others who cannot return their passion. It contains all the situational, visual and verbal elements of comedy, along with satire, perplexity and commotion. Twelfth Night is, without a doubt, still funny to a modern day audience.
Part of the pleasure of viewing a Shakespearean play such as A Midsummer Night’s Dream is in recognizing the irony of its self-contained mini-dramas. In the "Pyramus and Thisbe" scene, Shakespeare satirizes theatrical convention. At the same time, however, he satirizes the naiveté of the audience that doubts the transforming power of the imagination. As Shakespeare continually points out, the acts of performing and viewing are not confined to the theatre. Life reflects the theatre just as the theatre reflects life.
William Shakespeare uses his plays not only to entertain the audience, but also to push the audience toward self-evaluation. The brilliance of Shakespeare is that his plays may be interpreted in different ways. The Tempest is not simply a fictional story meant to entertain the audience, but also a complete figurative narrative meant to mirror the art of the theatre. In this play each character represents a significant part in the alternate interpretation of the narrative. Examination of specific characters and their corresponding role in the theatrical world encourages a deeper understanding of self-reflexivity of The Tempest; which highlights William Shakespeare’s struggle to relinquish his art.
Their use of chorus, rhyme, wit and sarcasm are well used theatrical techniques employed by Shakespeare. The purposes of these devices include: Encouraging the audience to ‘enter’ the play and imagine the scenes for themselves, framing the plot of the play, as a way of interpreting the events for the audience, and to help the audience to understand the play’s plot and themes. An example of this is where, in A1 S1, Beatrice and Benedick engage in a squabble in which Benedick insults Beatrice- ‘A bird of my tongue is better than a beast of yours…’, and she concludes by saying, ‘You always end with a jade’s trick, I know you from old.’ Shakespeare’s use of dramatic irony is particularly relevant during the scene in which the conspirers (Leonato, Claudio and Don Pedro) manage to convince Benedick that Beatrice loves him, by setting him a trap. They have a conversation about the fact that Beatrice loves Benedick so that he can eavesdrop. When he hears them talking, he will believe that Beatrice is in love with him and act upon his knowledge.
Maria and Feste are like a comedy duo participating in quick fire exchanges, scoring points off each other and in act 1 scene 5 he hints at her relationship with sir Toby Belch. Shakespeare’s characters love to disguise themselves, this theme is often illustrated and important to the plot of his comedies, but in this case, the disguise takes an ironic turn. Feste, in dressing as a wise man reveals his true nature instead of concealing it. This scene is meant to be played for comedic value; the audience gets a glimpse of the true nature of the clown. This is a key element in the play as other people are in disguise for example viola masks as Cesario.
In Twelfth Night, Shakespeare portrays several characters in a controversial way. Some witty characters are portrayed as foolish, and some foolish characters are portrayed as witty. In the beginning of the play, Sir Andrew and Malvolio are presented as smart people; however, as the play progresses, the audience is exposed to their foolish sides. On the other hand, Sir Toby and Feste are portrayed as fools, but as the plot develops the audience acknowledges their wisdom. Malvolio and Sir Andrew’s foolish sides are exposed because of their gullible nature, while Feste and Sir Toby’s wisdom is revealed through their insightful remarks and brilliant prank ideas.
Unseen, he and Oberon pull the strings that control what the characters act and say. Finally, Shakespeare is like Puck, standing back from the other characters, acutely aware of their weaknesses and mocks them, relishing in mischief at their expense. With these three characters and some play-within-a-play enchantment, Shakespeare mocks himself and his plays as much as he does the young lovers and the mechanicals onstage. This genius playwright who is capable of writing serious dramas such as Hamlet and Julius Caesar is still able to laugh at himself just as he does at his characters. With the help of Bottom, Oberon, and Puck, Shakespeare shows us that theatre, and even life itself, are illusions that one should remember to laugh at.
I think it is important to bring out the comical aspects of the play as well as the message part of the play because the modern generation tends to always miss on those messages while watching this play. The symbolism is important to identify because there are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that help to develop and inform the text’s major themes. Gender is one of the most obvious and much-discussed topics in the play. Twelfth Night is one of Shakespeare’s transvestite comedies. In this play, Viola also known as Cesario in the play disguises herself as a man.
When Touchstone takes Audrey away from her rural swain, William, there are apparently no hard feelings (although much here depends on the staging). In this play, the professional jester participates in and contributes to a style of social interaction which is unqualified by any more sober and serious reflections. This makes Touchstone very different from the bitter fool of King Lear or from the most complex fool of all, the sad Feste of Twelfth Night , both of whom offer comments that cast either a shrewd, melancholy, or bitter irony on the proceedings. Touchstone himself becomes the target of much humour by his immediate attraction to Audrey, the "foul" country lass. There is something richly comic here, seeing the staunch apologist for the sophisticated life of the court fall so quickly to his animal lust.
Twelfth Night” or “What You Will” is one of Shakespeare’s many comedic plays. This essay will attempt to critically analyse a passage in Act 1, Scene 5 of “Twelfth Night.” The passage centres on a conversation primarily between Feste and Olivia about the mourning of her brother. This conversation adds comicality to the play, which contributes to the shape of it as a whole. The passage also briefly involves the character, Malvolio, who contributes to an underlining truth in the play. This essay will explain the meaning of the passage, attempt to unpack the language uses and determine the ideas behind the language.