Twelfth Night Is One Of Shakespeare’s Best-loved Essay Example

with men than grieve for her deceased sibling.

An instance illustrating that Twelfth Night is more than just a lighthearted romantic comedy is the harsh mistreatment of Malvolio throughout the play. Serving as Olivia's steward, Malvolio becomes the target of a prank orchestrated by Sir Toby, Sir Andrew, and Maria. Due to his belief in his elevated social standing compared to Sir Toby, Malvolio holds a resentful attitude towards him. Consequently, a practical joke is devised against Malvolio, involving Maria composing a letter under the guise of Olivia and directing it towards him.

The letter is believed to be from Olivia and expresses her love for Malvolio. Believing it is Olivia's writing, Malvolio becomes very excited. However, his excitement comes more from the potential increase in his social status if he were to marry Olivia, rather than the fact that a beautiful lady loves him. He sees this as an opportunity to exert power over Sir Toby. This illustrates how love is portrayed as a means of exploiting others, as Malvolio is more focused on his social class than on Olivia's love. In reality, the letter is written by Maria.

The scene in the play is comedic for the audience, who are aware that the letter is a prank but Malvolio is not. The letter instructs Malvolio to wear yellow cross-garters and constantly smile at Olivia, which amuses both the audience and the pranksters. However, as the play progresses, we come to understand how this prank turns out to be cruel towards Malvolio. When Malvolio encounters Olivia wearing his ridiculous smile and yellow cross-garters, she believes he has gone insane and imprisons him in a gloomy cell.

Malvolio represents the idea that in the disorderly world of Twelfth Night, someone must always suffer while others are happy. Additionally, a significant point of interest in the play is the frequent use of words such as 'fool', 'folly', 'foolish', and 'mad' in conjunction with 'love' and 'romance'. By close examination, it becomes clear that true love is only truly present once in the play, despite three couples ending up together. The only genuine example of love in Twelfth Night is seen in Sir Toby and Maria, as their love for each other is untainted by ulterior motives such as money or power.

Nevertheless, the given scenario does not meet the criteria for genuine love since there exists a significant disparity in social standing between Sir Toby and Maria. Consequently, this union would have been deemed inappropriate during Shakespeare's era. Olivia, although unfamiliar with Sebastian, confuses him for 'Cesario' and they ultimately wed. However, Viola's marriage to Orsino cannot be classified as true love either since Orsino remained infatuated with Olivia throughout the play. Only when Olivia professed her love for Sebastian (mistaking him for Cesario) did Orsino decide to marry Viola.

Despite the happy unions of three couples, there remain characters such as Feste, Malvolio, and Sir Andrew who either suffer from unreciprocated love or lack romantic feelings for anyone. However, Antonio is omitted from this group as his relationship with Sebastian can be seen as a brotherly love. The bond between them grew strong after Antonio rescued Sebastian from a shipwreck. Remarkably, the character supposed to be a fool, Feste, appears to be the most intelligent by the conclusion of the play.

Throughout Twelfth Night, characters

are accused of madness, highlighting the transformative effects of love. Unrequited love is a central theme in the play, with multiple examples. Viola endures unrequited love until marrying Orsino at the end. Meanwhile, both Malvolio and Sir Andrew are subjected to Olivia's unreciprocated affections and are left alone by the play's conclusion.

Additionally, Feste appears to be experiencing unreciprocated affections, potentially stemming from contracting an STD while at war. While it is conceivable that Feste might be enamored with Olivia, this remains uncertain. Similarly, Sir Andrew harbored hopes of marrying Olivia, yet his prospects were ultimately futile. These instances of unrequited love exemplify that the play does not conclude with a blissful resolution for all characters. Indeed, several characters remain single by the play's end, thus impeding a jubilant depiction of romantic love for all individuals involved.

In Shakespeare's play, love is portrayed as a painful experience that many characters perceive as a curse. Even the less emotional Viola expresses her unhappiness, saying "My state is desperate for my master's love". Selfishness is a common characteristic among the characters, which counteracts the theme of romantic love throughout the play. This selfishness is evident early on, with Orsino displaying it in his love for Olivia. He states, "O, she that hath a heart of that fine frame to pay this debt of love but to a brother, How will she love, when the rich golden shaft hath kill'd the flock of all affections else...". This quote shows Orsino's love for Olivia but also highlights his lack of concern for her feelings. He sees her brother's death as an opportunity to make her fall in love with him,

disregarding her emotional stability. This proves that Orsino is not truly in love with Olivia but rather infatuated with her in vain. Olivia also demonstrates her selfishness when she forgets about mourning for her deceased brother upon meeting Viola (Cesario) and revealing herself.

Malvolio's selfishness is evident in his response to the letter, which was actually a prank orchestrated by Sir Toby and Maria to deceive him into thinking Olivia loves him. Malvolio declares, "I will be proud, I will read political authors, I will baffle Sir Toby, I will wash off gross acquaintance..." This indicates that he views the situation solely as an opportunity to exert power over Sir Toby and elevate his own social standing. His excitement stems not from the prospect of a beautiful young woman's affection, but rather from the chance to transcend his current social status and attain higher societal standing.

Sir Toby can also be categorized as self-centered, as his friendship with Sir Andrew is solely based on the fact that Sir Andrew provides him with money for his alcohol consumption. Although Sir Andrew is wealthy but foolish, Sebastian also demonstrates a slight degree of selfishness in the play. When Olivia mistakenly takes him for Cesario (Viola) and proposes marriage, Sebastian is confused because he has never encountered her before. Nevertheless, he notices her wealth and beauty and is consequently eager to comply with her request. The character Feste, who serves as a 'fool', plays a significant role in the play.

Feste is versatile, capable of playing various roles depending on the situation. He connects the main and sub plot of Twelfth Night, making the play cohesive. His clever wit, as

opposed to foolishness, adds humor. Although he is perceived as a fool due to his role as Olivia's clown, Feste is actually quite intelligent. It's worth mentioning that he remains impartial and serves as a commentator in the play.

Feste's music often brings a touch of reality to the play, making the characters aware of the physical existence of life, death, and love. They recognize him as a wise character, as Viola puts it, "This fellow's wise enough to play the fool." Feste's ironic role as a jester is evident in Twelfth Night, as he turns out to be the cleverest of all characters, filling his songs with grief and sorrow. It is interesting to note how often Feste emphasizes the words 'folly' and 'foolish' in his speech.

Shakespeare has included Feste as a deceitful character in the play, just as Viola disguises herself as a man, Orsino pursues Olivia's love, and Sir Toby is portrayed as Sir Andrew's companion. The theme of deception plays a significant role in the play, creating multiple sub-plots and adding to its humor. Twelfth Night, one of Shakespeare's most notable works, has been adapted into several films. The two film versions of Twelfth Night differ in various aspects of the play.

The location-based production by Trevor Nunn differs significantly from the studio-produced Granada TV play. Performing the play in a studio restricts the production's effects and imagery, making this difference particularly relevant. Additionally, there is a noticeable contrast in the mood and tone between the two films. Nunn's production is more lighthearted, comic, and cheerful, while the Granada TV production is gloomy and lacks humor. Furthermore, the interpretations of Feste vary

greatly between the two films.

In Trevor Nunn's production, Ben Kingsley portrays the character Feste as a serious and detached clown, not closely involved in either storyline. Feste's sole affection is directed towards Olivia, his lady and employer. He is regarded as an old family friend within Olivia's household. Through his acting in the film, it is implied that he has known Olivia since her birth and greatly cares for her. On the other hand, in the Granada TV play, Anton Lesser portrays a younger and much sadder Feste. He appears sickly, as if returning from war with a broken heart and a sexually transmitted disease.

The use of language in Twelfth Night by Shakespeare is significant as it conveys the tone of the play and showcases how characters' speech changes when they experience specific emotions. Shakespeare employs archaic English throughout the play, which was the prevailing language at the time it was produced. Overall, the language employed by Shakespeare in Twelfth Night can be described as predominantly comedic and lighthearted, aligning with the play's genre of comedy.

Shakespeare incorporated lengthy and intricate vocabulary in the play to enhance the comedic effect, as using extensive terminology is regarded as humorous in British comedy. Shakespeare employs language to enable the audience to gauge the character's mindset or contemplate the character's emotions. For instance, when Malvolio believes that Olivia is in love with him, he converses in an overly affectionate and extravagant manner. In the play, he exclaims: "Daylight and champaign reveals no greater truth! This is evident.

I will be proud, I will read political authors, I will baffle Sir Toby, I will wash off gross acquaintance, I will be

point-device the very man. I do not fool myself, to let imagination jade me; for every reason excites to this, that my lady loves me. " As we can see, Malvolio completely loses his composure and begins fantasizing about how his life is going to change after reading what appears to be a letter from his lady Olivia. Shakespeare also uses language to highlight the contrast in social status among the characters.

The characters Maria and Sir Toby, who are of a lower social class, consistently speak in prose. However, characters like Olivia, Orsino, and Viola occasionally use poetry as a form of communication. Shakespeare also deviates from his usual style at times by employing lines that are either longer or shorter than the customary ten syllables, and altering the stress patterns to emphasize certain aspects. Overall, Twelfth Night, in my opinion, does not rank among Shakespeare's most beloved and frequently performed comedies due to its lack of subtlety and sophistication in portraying romantic love, which is typically expected in romantic comedies.

Twelfth Night, also known as What You Will, is a play that encompasses more than just romance and comedy. Despite these being the predominant themes, the play offers much more depth. The two film versions of the play have shown that it can be interpreted in various ways. The alternative title, What You Will, suggests that one can form their own understanding of the play since it lacks a definitive interpretation. Undoubtedly, Twelfth Night remains one of Shakespeare's greatest plays, but its brilliance does not solely stem from its portrayal of romantic love.