William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night alludes to a variety of themes that commonly include false identity, role-playing, and love. The general plot of the play could be described as a cross-dressing comedy about a woman, Viola, who tries to gain the attention and love of a Duke, Orsino, with obstacles along the way, including Olivia, the Duke’s love interest. The themes mentioned are developed and sometimes scrutinized by the play’s characters, such as Orsino, Olivia, and Feste the clown. In particular, the progression of the beginning of III, i expand upon the themes through a conversation between Viola and Feste, also referred to as Clown.
Through a quick reading of this part of the scene, a reader might view the conversation as further characterization …show more content…
However, the conversation between these two characters revolves around the flexibility of words, as well the practice of role-playing, with an overall emphasis on manipulation.
The usage of words in a particular manner is first mentioned by Feste after he makes a comparison between living by the church and being a churchman. After the first couple of lines in the scene, Feste exclaims: “You have said, sir. To see this age! A sentence is but a chev’ril glove to a good wit. How quickly the wrong side may be turn’d outward!” (III.i.11-13). These lines set up the begging topic of the two characters’ conversation, which could be summarized as words being used as a manipulation device where the words being said or used by the play’s characters have an ulterior motive or appearance. This is supported by the metaphor used by Feste, in which he makes an observation on the “chev’ril glove” representing what a sentence does …show more content…
In consideration of Viola portraying herself as a man named Cesario, her role-playing is very complex and requires more from her than what might be perceived. In Viola’s case, she has to maneuver being able to talk to Olivia knowing that she is the competition for Orsino’s love, as well as being able to present herself to the person she loves as a man who does not have any attraction other than that of a servant. For Viola’s manipulation of the other character’s in the play to be successful, she must be able to follow some of the same patterns as Feste, including noting the mood of Orsino or Viola, his or her type of character, and the setting that takes place when Viola performs her role as Cesario. Ultimately, Viola’s plan to end up happily with Orsino relies heavily on
Through a quick reading of this part of the scene, a reader might view the conversation as further characterization …show more content…
However, the conversation between these two characters revolves around the flexibility of words, as well the practice of role-playing, with an overall emphasis on manipulation.
The usage of words in a particular manner is first mentioned by Feste after he makes a comparison between living by the church and being a churchman. After the first couple of lines in the scene, Feste exclaims: “You have said, sir. To see this age! A sentence is but a chev’ril glove to a good wit. How quickly the wrong side may be turn’d outward!” (III.i.11-13). These lines set up the begging topic of the two characters’ conversation, which could be summarized as words being used as a manipulation device where the words being said or used by the play’s characters have an ulterior motive or appearance. This is supported by the metaphor used by Feste, in which he makes an observation on the “chev’ril glove” representing what a sentence does …show more content…
In consideration of Viola portraying herself as a man named Cesario, her role-playing is very complex and requires more from her than what might be perceived. In Viola’s case, she has to maneuver being able to talk to Olivia knowing that she is the competition for Orsino’s love, as well as being able to present herself to the person she loves as a man who does not have any attraction other than that of a servant. For Viola’s manipulation of the other character’s in the play to be successful, she must be able to follow some of the same patterns as Feste, including noting the mood of Orsino or Viola, his or her type of character, and the setting that takes place when Viola performs her role as Cesario. Ultimately, Viola’s plan to end up happily with Orsino relies heavily on