‘Comedy, while delights in the events of a topsy-turvy world, is ultimately conservative’ To what extent is this true for the Shakespearean comedy you have studied?
‘Comedy, while delights in the events of a topsy-turvy world, is ultimately conservative’ To what extent is this true for the Shakespearean comedy you have studied?
Comedy in A Midsummer Night's Dream is confined to the conservative oppression of women and contrived by the ironic licensed anarchist figure of Puck which while delights us with donkey kisses and lovers' mishaps, are neatly portioned within a common structure of society, agreeing with the hypothesis. The play is driven by a logical rhythm of conflict to harmony and its comedy remains in the temporary middle state of the 'Green World' preventing chaos from ensuing outside of these boundaries and therefore conserving it to rules and regulations. However, Shakespeare also utilises this simple structure in order for the audience to doubt its seemingly seamless ending as its accessibility allows us to question the events and attitudes of the play, using comedy as a tool to provoke radical thought. The irrational forest trope and lower class fool stereotype appear to be unsurprising but these conservative ideas are extended in giving them crucial roles in the unfolding of events and showing truth between the hypocrisy of others, rather than continuing the trope and just merely being a simple comedic release for the audience. Therefore, comedy's universality allows Shakespeare to convey profound ideas effectively, using the topsy-turvy world to provoke questions in the audience, making 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' truly radical.
The two strongest female characters, amazon warrior Hippolyta and fairy queen Titania, conform to being oppressed in the play by their lovers and their comedy is centred around this theme. After Oberon's spell that forces her to fall in love with Bottom, Titania is humiliated claiming 'O, how mine eyes do loathe his visage now!' showing that the topsy turvy humour in a queen kissing a donkey, is only able to be expressed by showing the settled dominance of man's social existence.
Comedy in A Midsummer Night's Dream is confined to the conservative oppression of women and contrived by the ironic licensed anarchist figure of Puck which while delights us with donkey kisses and lovers' mishaps, are neatly portioned within a common structure of society, agreeing with the hypothesis. The play is driven by a logical rhythm of conflict to harmony and its comedy remains in the temporary middle state of the 'Green World' preventing chaos from ensuing outside of these boundaries and therefore conserving it to rules and regulations. However, Shakespeare also utilises this simple structure in order for the audience to doubt its seemingly seamless ending as its accessibility allows us to question the events and attitudes of the play, using comedy as a tool to provoke radical thought. The irrational forest trope and lower class fool stereotype appear to be unsurprising but these conservative ideas are extended in giving them crucial roles in the unfolding of events and showing truth between the hypocrisy of others, rather than continuing the trope and just merely being a simple comedic release for the audience. Therefore, comedy's universality allows Shakespeare to convey profound ideas effectively, using the topsy-turvy world to provoke questions in the audience, making 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' truly radical.
The two strongest female characters, amazon warrior Hippolyta and fairy queen Titania, conform to being oppressed in the play by their lovers and their comedy is centred around this theme. After Oberon's spell that forces her to fall in love with Bottom, Titania is humiliated claiming 'O, how mine eyes do loathe his visage now!' showing that the topsy turvy humour in a queen kissing a donkey, is only able to be expressed by showing the settled dominance of man's social existence.