(A critique of the title of Shakespeare’s play Measure for Measure)
“The title ‘Measure for Measure’ suggests balance. It is all about duality and the theory that there are two sides to everything, to every story” (Scola). Shakespeare’s play, Measure for Measure, is often labelled as one of his comedies, but anyone who has exposure to this text may question why that is. There is a lot of tragic things that are incorporated into this play, but the difference between this comedy and a Shakespearean tragedy is simple. The main character’s do not have a tragic flaw that leads them to an inevitable death as it happens in regular tragedies. In addition, Measure for Measure has a happier ending than those of tragedies, as it ends …show more content…
Many characters within this play endure things that they have no control over as the law refuses to acknowledge the other side of the story. Juliet is the girl that Claudio is imprisoned for impregnating, yet she knows that the baby was no one sided accident. No one ever considers that Juliet might be guilty also for the same premarital sex offense that got her soon to be husband locked up. “Duke: ‘Love you the man that wrong’d you?’ Juliet: ‘Yes as I love the woman that wrong’d him’” (Act 2:3 lines 24-25). Juliet tells the Duke who is disguised as a friar that she is equally as guilty as Claudio and that the two are deeply in love. It should also be noted that Angelo gave an extreme punishment to Claudio’s minor crime, which is where the title gets yet another meaning. The title Measure for Measure can be interpreted in such a way that it means for every crime, the criminal must face a fair punishment. Claudio did commit a crime, yet it seems that his severe punishment of death does not quite measure up equally with his crime. “The term ‘measure for measure’ also refers to a legal concept that is central to the play. That is, when a person commits a crime, he or she should be made to pay… When Angelo sentences Claudio to death for having sex outside of marriage, the penalty definitely doesn’t measure up to the crime” …show more content…
People do not often think before they act, and this can cause them trouble later in life or perhaps in the afterlife. “Measure for measure asks the audience to consider how and to what extent one person can judge another. Just because someone holds a position of power does not indicate that they are morally superior” (Jamieson). This idea is strongly applicable to Angelo, as he believes himself to be free of sin due to his temporary high political placement in Vienna. It does not matter how high up in the government and individual is, their actions are what determines if they are moral or not. No amount of money can change a dark soul into a light one and it should not be thought of to do so. Preachers and pardoners cannot be seen as having a one way ticket to heaven simply for their job, but rather their actions will prove if they are moral and if they should ascend to heaven or descend to