Twelfth Night and Sexuality Essay - 1396 Words

An Imitation of Ignorance The play Twelfth Night encapsulates what it meant to be a man and women throughout the 16th century. The roles of each gender were set in stone, and one could not publicly cross over under any circumstances. During Shakespearean times women were not even allowed to portray themselves on stage, men played their roles instead. In my opinion Shakespeare uses the play to show the hypocrisy of the status quo that held people from expressing their true identity. Twelfth Night demonstrates that professions should not be given on a gender basis, skill should be the only consideration. During the play one sees that only through imitation of another gender can a person reverse the roles, which they are bonded to. In†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"I’ll serve this Duke; Thou shalt present me as an eunuch to him, it may be worth thy pains; for I can sing and speak to him in many sorts of music that will allow me very worth his service.† The captain that saved her agreed to tuto r her in manhood, and she fully comprehended what it is to be a man during these times. She picked up her profession extremely quickly. Her imitation did have limitations however. She ran into problems due to sexual urges and these proved to be insurmountable. Viola/Cesario fell in love with her master, and could not find a way to properly inform him of her true identity. The second problem she encountered was Olivia, a rich countess, ends up falling in love with her. Viola/Cesario did not know how to handle these certain situations as a man so she dealt with them as a woman. This becomes evident due to an incident were she almost kisses Orsino; and she does not make it clear to Olivia why somebody would not want to kiss her, a beautiful woman. Throughout the play Shakespeare enlightens his audience by showing alienation, which occurs when somebody is forced to imitate a person who they are not. Viola/Cesario not only alienates Olivia and Orsino, but she also isolates herself from f eelings that are undefeatable. This causes the characters to be in a confused state and each begins to question their sexuality. Olivia considers herself an attractive woman, and many men have always pursued her. Olivia,Show MoreRelatedTwelfth Night : Gender And Sexuality2101 Words   |  9 PagesIn Twelfth Night’, gender and sexuality in many ways add to the play’s themes of madness. Twelfth Night is a reflection of renaissance thought and culture, the renaissance was a transitional period from the medieval to the radical Elizabethan era. The culture of the time was a contradictory one, as from one aspect it was influenced by the patriarchal medieval time, where women were under the rule of men and seen as needing the protection of men, however, from another perspective, the cultureRead MoreShakespeare s Twelfth Night : Gift Exchange, Debt And The Early Modern Matrimonial Economy1321 Words   |  6 Pagesthe ages depicted different sexual orientation and gender i dentification. The play Twelfth Night made produced by William Shakespeare discusses the topics of sexuality during the early 17th century. The articles Gender Trouble in ‘Twelfth Night by Casey Charles agrees that the main central theme of this play is associated with gender identification and sexuality. 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Although many may postulate that he has disguised certain characters as the opposite gender solely for comedic purposes, the reason behind it is significantly deeper and complex. By disguising the actors as the opposite gender, also known as cross-dressing, Shakespeare introduces incipient views on femininity and sexuality, views that were unmentionable in the Elizabethan times. Itâ€℠¢s virtually as if ShakespeareRead Moretwelfth night Essay952 Words   |  4 Pages Twelfth Night Essay While many will agree that Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night is critically acclaimed to be one of the most entertaining and well-liked pieces that he has written, there tends to be a discrepancy over how the characters in the play are portrayed when it comes to the importance of gender roles. 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The roles of each gender were set in stone, and one could not publicly cross over under any circumstances. During Shakespearean times women were not even allowed to portray themselves on stage, men played their roles instead. In my opinion Shakespeare uses the play to show the hypocrisy of the status quo that held people from expressing their true identity. Twelfth Night demonstrates thatRead MoreCompare And Contrast Hamlet And Twelfth Night1162 Words   |  5 PagesFrom Hilarity to Tragedy in Shakespeare: How Hamlet and Twelfth Night Compare By Zawadi Bunzigiye William Shakespeare wrote plays covering the breadth of human experience. They seem to have transcended the restraints of age because of the universal themes that they contain. His body of his work is comprised of genres of plays varying from tragedies to comedies. Of them, Hamlet and Twelfth Night are perfect examples of both. A comparison between them would be of interest because their common pointsRead MoreThe Twelfth Night: A Happy Ending? Essay1501 Words   |  7 Pagesthat despite whatever difficulties appear within the play, by the end these will be resolved and the play will have a traditional happy-ending with a marriage or a celebration in the final scene. The â€Å"Twelfth Night† is no exception to this rule. Despite problems of confused identities and sexualities, the play ends with marriage for the major characters because they â€Å"have learned enough about their own foolishness to accept it wisely, and their reward, as it should be, is marriage.†(Schwar tz 5140)Read MoreTwelfth Night By William Shakespeare1666 Words   |  7 PagesIn Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, the main story told is of the battle between silliness (Feste, Maria, romance, pranks, and drama) and seriousness (Malvolio, dourness, rules, and stresses of life). One facet of this is gender – the main protagonist Viola presents as male for most of the play. Shakespeare, whether intentionally or not, has shown prime examples of projected identity based on sex, gender roles, and the power associated with each sex. These messages were revolutionary at the time, and