This paper analyzes Giuseppe Verdi’s 1851 opera, Rigoletto, from the perspective of J.B Thompson’s model of media analysis; focusing on two particular scenes, as seen in the 1977 production directed by Kirk Browning. The two chosen scenes are Povero Rigoletto, from Act 2 and Bella Figlia dell’Amore, from Act 3. First, each scene will be described contextually, to be followed by structual analysis that will attempt to ascertain the intention of the artist.
Leading into Act 2, Scene 2, the courtiers of the Duke of Mantua abduct Rigoletto’s daughter, under the assumption that she is Rigoletto’s partner. They then proceed to imprison her in the palace, where the Duke is assumed to have raped her. This fact is never stated outright in the opera, however, the Duke makes it clear early on that he intends to collect her on his sexual conquest. Verdi, taking the story of Victor Hugo’s Le roi s’amuse, already knew of the difficulty Hugo had experienced under the strict censorship laws in Europe, yet he chose to risk charges of treason in the writing of Rigoletto. “Symbolic forms are always embedded in specific social-historical contexts and processes within which, and by means of which, they are produced, transmitted and received.” (Thompson 1990, p. 145)
In this context, the negative portayal of the rulership was forbidden and censored, so it would seem that Verdi had a rebellious intention, or some sense of injustice which he wished to express in his work. It is known that Verdi had experienced extreme grief at the loss of his son, daughter and wife, so it is very likely that he felt a strong relation to the story of Rigoletto, who was equally helpless to defend the life and honour of his family. Under the dictatorship of the monarchy and...
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...t something.” While it is evident that this is true for every symbolic form by definition, it is a statement that particularly compliments this scene. It refers to a broad range of human emotions, yet maintains a cohesive bond between them, through carefully constructed harmony. Conclusively, it dissolves the core of human nature into the four characters on stage and combines them to describe the chaotic nature of emotion.
The opera Rigoletto is a significant cultural object, containing many symbolic forms in its physical production and in its use of musical conventions to convey meaning. The story pertains to topics of broad ideologies which are consistent with varied audiences, and in its time, the opera challenged popular belief. Today, it stands rather as an icon of the tragic exploitation of the lower class, and of the injustices that every person must face.
Christmas and Opera did not merely seem to correlate, but understanding where the two events derived from can help one to understand the similarities and differences between them. The development of Christmas was different from the creation of opera because the working class was controlling the other social classes for profit. Whereas for opera, the different social classes unified to keep opera as entertainment and not a social event. Another difference came within the writing and context throughout the article and the presentation of information conveyed by the author. Yet the events share the similarity of both being refined and reinvented.
For the musical composer essay, I have chosen to write about a man who I felt made the greatest impact on Romantic opera in the 19th century this master of a man was given the name Giuseppe Fortunio Francesco Verdi but was commonly known as Giuseppe Verdi by all who knew and loved him. This great man was born on either October 9, or 10 in the year 1813 in the community of Le Roncole, near a small town called Busseto in the province of Parma, Italy his astrological sign is that of a Libra. His mother and father were both of Italian descent and their names were Carlo and Luigia Verdi respectively. Now this is where it gets complicated Verdi told every person that talked to him about his background that his parents were illiterate peasants. Despite this lie that Verdi told them they later discovered that his parents were not illiterate peasants as he had claimed but were very smart individuals tha...
In many instances, Emilia and Iago’s relationship serves as a reflection of the misogyny of the play and the time period in which it was written. Throughout the play, the conduct of Iago and the rest of the male characters suggest they hold relatively strong antifeminist beliefs. Iago is especially expressive in his discrimination, frequently condemning the entirety of the gender as weak, useless, and sexually indiscriminate. Both an expectation that women should remain chaste and a fear of their deviation from this societal standard are prevalent and trouble various male characters. Iago is particularly concerned with these issues and accuses Emilia of having not one, but two, affairs. In his soliloquy he arraigns “…it is thought abroad, that ‘twixt my sheets / [Othello] has done my office,” or that everyone thinks Emilia and Othello are having an affair (1.3.387-88). It’s fairly evident that he has l...
Shakespeare illustrates the injustices done to women by demonstrating the treatment Desdemona and Emilia received after having been framed of adultery. Because both women are though of cheating on their husbands, they no longer fit in society’s model of an exemplary wife. Despite having proved their affection for their husbands countless of times, not having a pure image led to Iago and Othello mistreating of the women they once loved. Once both women began to stand up for themselves and challenge the authority of their husbands, the repercussions of their bravery were both women’s death. Which shows, women’s only source of authority was their reputation as a wife. Once they lost that status, they no longer held any form or respect in society or with their husband’s.
In The Tragedy of Othello, William Shakespeare tells the tale of the “noble Moor” whose honor and innocence bring about his downfall. Shakespeare writes of the power of jealousy, and the art of masterful deception and trickery. The story primarily takes place in Cyprus, during a war between the people of Venice and the invading Turks. In this play Shakespeare shows the feelings of Othello’s embittered right-hand man of, Iago, who feels he is passed over for a promotion and swears his revenge. He proceeds to manipulate his friends, enemies, and family into doing his bidding without any of them ever realizing his ultimate goal. He makes Othello believe that his new wife, the innocent Desdemona, is committing adultery with his newly promoted officer Michael Cassio. After this seed of jealousy has been planted, Othello’s mind takes its course in determining the true outcome, with a little more nudging from Iago. The course of action he proceeds to follow is one that not only ends his own life, but also the life of his wife and others. In Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Othello, Othello is a man who is still truly honorable, despite the course of action he takes to resolve his perceived problem.
Although many arguments could take place over the blame of Othello’s fate, the one murderer no one doubts is jealousy. Although Othello’s insecurities and “blindness” along with one of the most duplicitous villains in all of literature definitely catalyze the deaths at the conclusion of the play, in the end Othello must suffer the consequences manipulated or not. Despite the number of uninteresting characters in the play, Othello, the Moor of Venice contains one of the most intricate characters in any of Shakespeare’s plays, and will be discussed and intensely argued forever.
...whelmed by jealousy and rage and murdered his wife. Overall, Othello showed numerous characteristics of a great fighter who at that time is associated with Black people. However, there are parts of the story that show Othello is a learned man and can discuss and argue with others. Even though creating,viewing and reading increased my understanding of ‘The Moor’ concept, creating was the brought me the most understand of ‘The Moor’ concept out of these three medias. Recreating the piece allowed me to further understand the cultural and social aspects of ‘The Moor’ especially when the conceit of our plotline was motivated by the audience imperative. When we wrote the script, we maintained the basic plotline but twisted it a bit through changing setting and the language and the costumes to allow the audience imperative to understand the play and connect to it better.
Shakespeare, William, and Kim F. Hall. Othello, the Moor of Venice: Texts and Contexts. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2007. Print.
Bonandella, P. (2010), Italian Cinema: From Neorealism to the Present (3rd edn), London: The Continuum International Publishing Group Ltd.
... One day he meets a girl, who happens to be his friend’s daughter, and falls in love. She falls in love with his stories and he falls in love with her passion. One troublemaker tries to cause problems by accusing Othello of stealing his friend’s daughter using drugs and witchcraft. All this happens after Othello and Desdemona gets married. Othello is put in the position of defending his honor, and Brabanzio in the position of defending his daughter’s honor. Iago is the villain who started the nasty rumor. Brabanzio is also a man who does not believe in mixed marriages and Othello was a black man. This is a story that does not end very well. Shakespeare tackles the issues of race, lies, friendship and jealousy.
Othello is a dramatic play in which ends in ironic tragedy. In the play, Iago is a jealous man who wants revenge on Othello for giving Cassio the position of lieutenant, when Iago wanted the position for himself. In the play there is a handkerchief that is a symbol of Othello’s love for his wife, Desdemona. Iago has a plan to steal the handkerchief and place it with Cassio, then spread a rumor that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio. Iago uses Emilia and Desdemona’s close relationship as leverage in order to gain the handkerchief. Emilia takes the handkerchief without Desdemona knowing. Once the handkerchief is placed with Cassio, Othello believes that his wife is cheating on him. Othello then decides to kill his wife Desdemona. When Emilia realizes what she has done, she tells O...
Othello: The Moor of Venice is probably Shakespeare's most controversial play. Throughout this work, there is a clear theme of racism, a racism that has become commonplace in Venetian society which rejects the marriage of Othello and Desdemona as anathema. The text expresses racism throughout the play within the language transaction of the dialogue to question the societal ethos established by Othello, thereby making him nothing less than a cultural "other." Furthermore, the character of Desdemona is displayed as mad, or out of her wits, for marrying such an "other," and the audience sees her slip from an angelic state of purity to that of a tainted character. Also, the menacing Iago, a mastermind of deviant rhetoric, is able to play Othello and Desdemona against one another until their marriage fails, while at the same time destroying his adversary and friend, Cassio. Thus Iago has a specific agenda, not only to get back at Othello for choosing Cassio instead of him, but also to make Cassio the victim of his plan to destroy the forbidden marriage referred to by Brabantio as a "treason of the blood" (1.2.166-167). Essentially, Iago is a representative of the white race, a pre-Nazi figure who tries to inform the public of the impurity of Othello and Desdemona's marriage. He demonstrates how this miscegenation is threatening to the existing social order. Thus, through analysis of racism, the play represents the hatred possessed by mankind -- a hate so strong that society sees the mixing with an "other" to be a curse to humanity and a terrible threat to Aryan culture.
Upon an initial examination of William Shakespeare’s play, The Merchant of Venice, a reader is provided with superficial details regarding the moral dilemmas embedded in the text. Further analysis allows a reader to recognize the multi-faceted issues each character faces as an individual in response to his or her surroundings and/or situations. Nevertheless, the subtle yet vital motif of music is ingrained in the play in order to offer a unique approach to understanding the plot and its relationship with the characters. Whether the appearance of music be an actual song or an allusion to music in a mythological or social context, the world of Venice and Belmont that Shakespeare was writing about was teeming with music. The acceptance or denunciation
The proscription from any domain of memorable works may be due to a major problem both in the novel and film: the ambiguous point of view adopted. The novel is geared for a transposition to the screen. It is no coincidence that the film was scripted by Niccolò Ammaniti, who adapted ...
William Shakespeare's, Twelfth Night has many themes, but appearance vs. reality is the theme that illustrates a different picture from two perspectives, there are many characters behind their masks and disguises. Some are hiding love behind these disguises and some are trying to show their love through a different disguise. They both still being servants are using disguise differently. Malvolio, servant of Olivia, falls in love with the trap (the letter) thinking his lady likes him, and to show his love he uses a different appearance to express it. Viola, servant of Orsino, falls in love with him, but secretly, not wanting to express her love for him, because of her disguise as her barrier for that case. Viola/Ceasario is wearing a disguise and secretly loves Orsino. Malvolio, on the other hand, is also a servant but still changes his appearance to express love for the great lady Olivia. This essay will prove that disguises and appearances are symbolic of the characters named Viola and Malvolio and are differently used for both.