Prometheus

Shakespeare, Hate, and Sonnets

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 07:08:12 PST

Shakespeare's eclectic catalog of sonnets deal with a variety of emotions, ranging from anger and love to winter and summer. One of the more interesting conceits of the sonnets are forgiveness, which, expressed with the buttress of jealousy, is the dominating tenet between Sonnet 133 and Sonnet 144.

The theme of forgiveness is evident only after certain lines within the sonnets have been analyzed. These poems outline a specific event in the narrator's life. Both sonnets deal with the "Love Triangle" theme, existent in many of Shakespeare's poems, which encompass the narrator, a fair (male) youth, and a "dark" woman. Through a close reading of the two poems, one can infer that an affair was had between the fair youth and the dark woman, behind the narrator's back. In the first and second quartets of Sonnet 133, lines like "deep wound," "thee I am forsaken," and "slave to slavery" give heavy reference that an infidelity has been had. What is interesting however is that although the narrator seems to be addressing this impious fair youth, he is not angry. This lack of contempt is illustrated in the single line of 133 "But then my friend's heart let my poor heart bail." The line, as well as the ending couplet, explicitly states that the youth's heart bailed out the narrator's heart from a jail of anger, meaning the youth told the narrator about the affair. In confessing, the narrator forgave the youth and, as the reader can see in Sonnet 144, turned his anger to the one who had not confessed, the dark woman.

Sonnet 144 begins by reiterating the affair of the first quartet. Unlike Sonnet 133, the narrator devotes the first four lines to explain what invoked the theme of the two poems. "Two loves I have, of comfort of despair" describe what the reader already knows, an affair within the love triangle, but tension and anticipation are created with the last line of the quartet, "The worser spirit a woman colored ill." Already the narrator has devolved a tone that insinuates Sonnet 144 to appear directed more towards the woman, rather than addressed to the youth (as in 133). The second quartet deals with anger and jealousy, accusing the woman had "tempteth thy better angel from thy side." The idea of contempt is much more obvious in this quartet, as well as a verbal defense for the fair youth. Apparently, as in Sonnet 133, although the youth was involved in the affair, the narrator has already forgiven him and chose to allocate that the woman violated the youth's innocence; "wooing with purity" is an obvious example. The last three lines of the poem solidify the idea of forgiveness by depicting how the "dark" woman did not confess the affair, thus, not earning the narrator's forgiveness, "yet this I never know but live in doubt."

The theme of forgiveness is vivid within the two poems. Forgiveness acts as a white light in Sonnet 133, assumedly addressed to the fair youth, the author takes on a sense of compassion, because the youth confessed the affair to the author. In contrast, forgiveness is played upon like a shadow to the "dark" woman in 144. With a tone of anger and contempt, it is obvious that the woman did not confess, thus receiving no absolution from the narrator. These two Sonnets express an illustrious example of forgiveness.

The Darkness of Oliver Twist

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 07:06:00 PST

In the novel Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens uses satire and motifs to cultivate an incredulously prophetic work of literature. One of the most important of these concepts is the theme of darkness. Through careful analysis, one is able to dissect this symbolic tenet to discover an axiomatic theme that is easily identifiable throughout the story.

The first eminent use of darkness begins while Oliver is trapped in the workhouse. While in solitary confinement, (for asking for more food) the "dark" of the cell frightens the young boy, as in chapter three. The reference is repeated when Oliver tries to close his own eyes to "shut out the darkness" (15), in the same chapter. Both instances connote a strictly negative and evil place, based on the prevalence of the darkness that frightens Oliver. Through the satire of the narrator and the darkness associated with the workhouse, the reader is presented with an affrontingly malicious illustration. In this way, the author uses the idea of darkness to make a political point on the injustice and corruption rampant in the workhouses of England.

The workhouse is merely the first example of the darkness expressed throughout the novel. In chapter seven, the element of darkness takes monstrous shape in the form of night. After the incident with Oliver and Noah, the poor boy decides to leave the house and journey somewhere else. The scene where Oliver looks outside the house, but is afraid to leave because it is so dark (53), is a very significant point in the narrative. Before, darkness was simply described as a singular, finite thing, as in the room Oliver was isolated in was "dark", or the workhouse was "dark". Literally, both locations were dark in a sense that outside the room and building, the reader could assume there was light. Symbolically, the darkness inherit in the workhouse was used to illustrate the "darkness" of the single specific system of workhouses. However, chapter seven marks the first time in the novel that darkness takes the infinite form of "night," and Oliver is, understandably, scared. One might look at this as a symbol that although the workhouse has its dark, evil individuals, the omniscient darkness of "night" in the world implies a much more evil force being existent.

In this way, the narrator transfers the symbol of darkness from a small, rural parish to the dreadful city of London, using "night" and "darkness" as the foci of transition, as how Oliver departs from a town of evil to a world, more so, a city of darkness. This is where the reader observes the eleven o clock flight into London, chapter eight. Dawkins invites Oliver to stay with him in London and "objected to their entering London before nightfall" (59). So in the pitch black of England, the boys run through the filthiest and darkest side of the city. Oliver's host takes him from Angel to St John's road, through Exmouth-street and Coppice-row and past Little Saffron hill, each place more renown to evil then the last. The urgency of the Dodger apparently climaxes once they enter the territory Saffron-hill the Great, in which they began moving at a "rapid pace" (59). The voyage ends near a place called Field-Lane, the worst part of all the places described, according to the explanatory notes. This venture shows a divulgence into the evil and darkness of London, masked by night. Upon entering this new world, Oliver enters a world of poverty, oppression and corruption, all explicit in the description of the homeless that the boys race past in their journey. In this light, the theme of darkness not only acts as a symbol, but also helps to shape the tone of the novel into a canvas of night.

Darkness is an extremely important tenet in "Oliver Twist." The author uses darkness not only to depress the dauntingly optimistic tone of satire, but also to make a significant point on evil in the world. Through Oliver's journey from the darkness of the workhouse to the abyss of London, the author makes an audaciously blatant criticism of the evils of England

Love and A Midsummer Night's Dream

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 04:40:03 PST

Shakespeare's play “A Midsummer's Night Dream” (MND) celebrates romantic love in a medley of ways, as with Lysander and Hermia. However, with this play, Shakespeare's use of comedy subjugates the popular opinions of love at the time. The play mocks love by reducing love to what it truly is within the Elizabethan age, lust, as with Theseus, need, illustrated by Helena, and obedience, through the mythological.

MND revolves around the idea of love, but Shakespeare takes the typical ideologies of love and exaggerates them to a point of parody. The play begins with Theseus making a direct reference to his lust, “she lingers my desires” (1.1.4) The story starts with this engaged couple, but instead of talking about the joy of love, the king is impatient that he has to wait so long until the couple “shall behold the night of our (their) solemnities” (1.1.10-11) “Night of our solemnities” is a direct reference to the intercourse associated with a couple's wedding night, marking the first description of love to be one of lust. This mocks the audience of the time because they are aware of lust, but it is not an obvious form of expression, so they can find humor in actors expressing this open facade of lust on stage.

Helena's character shows another type of mocking of “real” love. While she follows Demetrius' voyage into the forest, love-stuck, the nobleman rebukes her by exclaiming “I am sick when I do look at thee” (2.1.212) In this way, Demetrius is voicing that he has so much distain and disgust for Helena, her mere sight makes him sick. Although Demetrius makes it clear he does not have affection for her, the author uses the girl's idea of love to mock it once more. “The more you beat me I will fawn on you” (2.1.206) and “spurn me, strike me, neglect me…only give me leave…to follow you” (2.1.205-207) show Helena's mindset towards her love, which is a very faulted sentiment. These lines, transmitted through her character, show a love that is blind and ignorant that is willing to debase itself. In this way, Shakespeare mocks the concept of “I need you because I love you.”

Another example of how the playwright continues to disavow love is in the fairy realm. Love is rarely used in terms of romance within the play, as the reader obverses the qualms of love through the Fairy King Oberon. Within this relationship, the monarch is annoyed with his queen's disobedience towards him concerning an Indian boy. Rather than observe the classical idea of love by indulging her and letting her keep the boy, the king says to her “Tarry, rash wanton. Am not I thy Lord” (2.1.63) Titania responds to cite “jealousy” (2.1.81) and “revenge” (2.1.89) within her husband. This exchange amplifies the corruption of love due to disobedience. The king believes that their love and marriage promise his wife's obedience, which is fundamental to the sixteenth century nuclear family. By using fairies, Shakespeare does not directly address the common system of patriarchy, explained in The Bedford Companion to Shakespeare (BCS), but creates a hyperbole of the situation. Through this symbolism, Shakespeare denotes how the accepted virtues of marriage, at the time, conflict with the idea of mutual love. Thus making this exchange a paramount example of how Shakespeare suggests, through humiliation, that conventional love and marriage does not mandate mutual love between the married.

It is interesting how the only openly conventional form of love at the time, obedience, is presented through the mythological. According to BCS, patriarchy was very common and a tenet of the nuclear family. Under this light, one may look upon the entire dispute between Oberon and Titania with sardonic overcasts. Titania did not obey her husband, so he poisoned her with potion, humiliated her by making her love an ass and then made her love him again. One may gather a very real message from this that is much more ardent than the light banter associated with lust and need. The connection is that Shakespeare uses the fairy world, in this case, as an outlet to mock the real world. In this way, the author is able to mock an actual accepted ideal of love without any repercussions. Lust and need were both represented in the human world of the play because they were both underlying human emotions. In contrast, marital obedience was represented in the fairy world because it was an open human emotion.

MND makes numerous points surrounding the audience's perception of love. Through lust, need and obedience, the author is able to mock the system of love accepted during his life. The play is an explicit example of Shakespeare's vibrant and satirical humor.