version 2 Comic characters always displ
Comic characters always display a lack of self-knowledge. Explore how far you agree with this idea in relation to any of the comic characters in Twelfth Night.
It has been stated that comic characters always display a lack of self-knowledge, however within Twelfth Night to some extent this can be disagreed with. The subject of self-knowledge is presented as a theme throughout the comedic play as it adds to the image of love being folly. Orsino and Malvolio are examples of comedic characters within the play which display a lack of self-knowledge whereas Viola and Feste are characters which oppose this view.
The play begins with Orsino displaying his ever changing mind-set which becomes more obvious and frequent throughout the play. Orsino’s first line is “if music be the food of love, play on;” this being where Orsino manifests to the audience the view that music is feeding his desires although he never allows the musicians to finish as he suddenly changes his mind and interrupts with “Enough; no more.” In addition to this the other characters within the play also realise Orsino has an inconsistent mind set. Within Act 2 Scene 4 Feste states “thy mind is very opal” towards the Duke, implying that he is highly temperamental with his moods by comparing him to an opal gemstone, which shift colours. This is also reinforced at the end of Twelfth Night when Viola admits she is a woman; Orsino drops his affections for Olivia and proclaims his love for Viola instead. By the end of Scene 1 the audience realise that Orsino is not truly in love with Olivia he is in fact in love with the idea of love, perhaps Shakespeare has constructed this character to satirise the view of the melancholy lover. Orsino in act 2 scene 4 states “now good Cesario, but that piece of song, that old and antique song we heard last night” which is where he is asking for a melancholy love song, being another example of him being a melancholy lover. Orsino has been exposed as a being a comic
It has been stated that comic characters always display a lack of self-knowledge, however within Twelfth Night to some extent this can be disagreed with. The subject of self-knowledge is presented as a theme throughout the comedic play as it adds to the image of love being folly. Orsino and Malvolio are examples of comedic characters within the play which display a lack of self-knowledge whereas Viola and Feste are characters which oppose this view.
The play begins with Orsino displaying his ever changing mind-set which becomes more obvious and frequent throughout the play. Orsino’s first line is “if music be the food of love, play on;” this being where Orsino manifests to the audience the view that music is feeding his desires although he never allows the musicians to finish as he suddenly changes his mind and interrupts with “Enough; no more.” In addition to this the other characters within the play also realise Orsino has an inconsistent mind set. Within Act 2 Scene 4 Feste states “thy mind is very opal” towards the Duke, implying that he is highly temperamental with his moods by comparing him to an opal gemstone, which shift colours. This is also reinforced at the end of Twelfth Night when Viola admits she is a woman; Orsino drops his affections for Olivia and proclaims his love for Viola instead. By the end of Scene 1 the audience realise that Orsino is not truly in love with Olivia he is in fact in love with the idea of love, perhaps Shakespeare has constructed this character to satirise the view of the melancholy lover. Orsino in act 2 scene 4 states “now good Cesario, but that piece of song, that old and antique song we heard last night” which is where he is asking for a melancholy love song, being another example of him being a melancholy lover. Orsino has been exposed as a being a comic