First, it is important to understand the notion of melancholy. Following the Cambridge Dictionary online, “melancholy is sadness that lasts for a long period of time, often without any obvious reason”. Today, we can compare it to depression. Thus, in The Lover’s Melancholy, melancholy is seen as a real disease (an excess of black bile) associated with “depression, fear, eating disorders, insomnia, irritability and restlessness”. Following Robert Burton in The Anatomy of Melancholy (1621), “sanguinity upsets the humoral balance of the body” and a strong non-reciprocal love or any kind of strong attention can bring about an infection (excess of black bile which dries and cool the body). However, Burton explains that this illness can be cured
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Melancholy is “friend of virginity, enemy of lasciviousness”. The patient needs to stop any kind of adultery. Eating healthy can help him. Thus, several forms of remedies can cure it. The physician of the play, Corax, has a role of the consoler. He has to solve the problems of Meleander and Palador. He is more focused on diseases of the mind than a physical disease (even if Burton explains that melancholy’s symptoms are also in the body). So, why did Ford decide to focus on “perturbations of the minde” and not on the body? Probably because one cannot see melancholy on patient’s body (no blood or no bruise for instance). However, the character of Corax uses the technique of Burton which consists in thinking of the traumatic past in order to accept it and live with it (for the representation on stage, is can be characterized by the phenomenon of “catharsis”, where the spectator can purge his emotions ). For instance, Corax wants to purge the grief in Meleander’s soul by force him to say the cause of his despair. Ford uses Corax as the voice of …show more content…
This despair comes from his passions, his “perturbations of the minde” (R. Burton). Palador is lonely, even if he is helped by Corax and Aretus, seen as two consolers. Nothing can cure him, except if Eroclea, the woman he loves, could love him in return. However, she wants to keep her virginity, and protect her virtue. Sophronos (whose name means “wise man” ) tries to advise him (II, 1, 88-90): “I think you are of nature mild and easy// Not willingly provoked, but withal headstrong// In any passion that misleads your judgement”. But Palador is not the only character who suffers from melancholy. For instance, at the beginning of the play, Menaphon comes back from Greece because he wanted to forget the woman he loves, Thamasta. As Burton explains, travelling is a good solution to forget the object of attention and stop love melancholy. However, getting back to the original place, with his/her relatives is very dangerous. This form of melancholy is erotic. Thamasta scorns the poor man, insensitive to his love, until the fifth act. Then, Meleander (which means “the black man”) is accused of treason because he preferred to protect his own daughter who had been raped. Here, this is not a
Melancholy is “friend of virginity, enemy of lasciviousness”. The patient needs to stop any kind of adultery. Eating healthy can help him. Thus, several forms of remedies can cure it. The physician of the play, Corax, has a role of the consoler. He has to solve the problems of Meleander and Palador. He is more focused on diseases of the mind than a physical disease (even if Burton explains that melancholy’s symptoms are also in the body). So, why did Ford decide to focus on “perturbations of the minde” and not on the body? Probably because one cannot see melancholy on patient’s body (no blood or no bruise for instance). However, the character of Corax uses the technique of Burton which consists in thinking of the traumatic past in order to accept it and live with it (for the representation on stage, is can be characterized by the phenomenon of “catharsis”, where the spectator can purge his emotions ). For instance, Corax wants to purge the grief in Meleander’s soul by force him to say the cause of his despair. Ford uses Corax as the voice of …show more content…
This despair comes from his passions, his “perturbations of the minde” (R. Burton). Palador is lonely, even if he is helped by Corax and Aretus, seen as two consolers. Nothing can cure him, except if Eroclea, the woman he loves, could love him in return. However, she wants to keep her virginity, and protect her virtue. Sophronos (whose name means “wise man” ) tries to advise him (II, 1, 88-90): “I think you are of nature mild and easy// Not willingly provoked, but withal headstrong// In any passion that misleads your judgement”. But Palador is not the only character who suffers from melancholy. For instance, at the beginning of the play, Menaphon comes back from Greece because he wanted to forget the woman he loves, Thamasta. As Burton explains, travelling is a good solution to forget the object of attention and stop love melancholy. However, getting back to the original place, with his/her relatives is very dangerous. This form of melancholy is erotic. Thamasta scorns the poor man, insensitive to his love, until the fifth act. Then, Meleander (which means “the black man”) is accused of treason because he preferred to protect his own daughter who had been raped. Here, this is not a