Gift of the Gorgon Response Paper The Gift of the Gorgon is a two and a half hour play that I believe is worth seeing because it is exciting, and it kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire play. Although it was not just me, the rest of the audience seemed just as captivated as I did as the mesmerizing plot of Peter Shaffer's unfortunate tale unfolded. After the death of the playwright Edward Damson, his son Philip Damson travels to Greece trying to gain permission from his stepmother to first learn, and then write Edward's biography. The past and the present are linked as Helen tells the story of Edward's life, which is very similar to the Greek myth of Athena and Perseus. One of the best parts of this play was the stone wall located up stage that could literally open up to release the god Athena and her gorgon slaves. This feature really helped give off the god-like feeling that the director wanted the Athena to portray. The wall also offered an interesting way for many entrances, and exits in the play like in the very end when Edward Damson falls off the cliff to his death. Or when Athena appears glide out to the center of the stage which in turn grants her all of the audience’s attention. Another thing that I particularly enjoyed about this play was the transitions from act one, to act two, to act three. These were memorable for me because of the way the audience was left hanging there wanting to know what was going to happen next. These breaks were basically incorporated into the climax of the play because of how the actors would build up the intensity to the near breaking point and then just end the scene leaving you begging for more insight into the life of Edward Damson. Now the island that this takes place on... ... middle of paper ... ... as anything more than simple entertainment. I think this play was trying to communicate that revenge is not the best option. Although every situation is different, usually when one takes revenge against someone they end up negatively affected or right where they didn’t want to be in the first place. The Gift of the Gorgon is a two and a half hour play that I believe is worth seeing because it is exciting, and it kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire play. But, it was not just me; the rest of the audience seemed just as captivated as I did as the mesmerizing plot of Peter Shaffer's unfortunate tale unfolded. If I were you, I would hurry down to the theater before it is too late and watch this play because the problems shown in this play are very serious and could definitely teach you a thing or two about life and the way one should choose to live it.
In conclusion I think that the stage directions and dramatic irony are significant to the play, and without them there would be no need for a lot of the events that happen in the play.
Branagh's interpretation of Shakespeare's play leaves the viewer with the impression of a fairy tale in which everyone (except the villain) will live happily ever after. The film is good, but even as I am partial to the movie I do believe to properly appreciate Shakespeare's work it is necessary to take the time to peruse the play in a leisurely and contemplative manner, and if anything to get the WHOLE play in which the movie did not give.
Whether you hate your King, your Christian rival or a neighboring foe, if you're in a Shakespeare play then you will be punished. In the first act of each play Shakespeare shows a conflict between two groups of people, one is vengeful the other virtuous. After the conflict is introduced, the malignant characters have important parts of their lives taken away and in the end the ultimate penalties of each are inflicted. All of the antagonists are left desolate in the end of the plays by either lost fortunes or their lives. Shakespeare takes good care to give the protagonists of the plays much reward for being on the right side of the spectrum. As the characters hate increases throughout the play they begin to loose what is precious to them, first in small amounts, but in the end, they are stripped of all they love and value.
The main question that rises is why this play has been read for so long. The story consists of two “ star- crossed '; lovers who fall in love at first sight. One of the main reasons why this play has been so popular is because stories in those times relied more on the life and spirit of the play. For generations people saw in this play a reflection of their own life and experiences.
My least favorite aspect of this play was the ending. The ending confused me and was anticlimactic. It was not funny and not entertaining at all.
While reading and analyzing the play of Hamlet it is very clear all of the different themes and lessons Shakespeare is trying to develop. Throughout the story many themes stand out but the biggest one is that revengeful actions never have the best outcome. Shakespeare builds and works on that theme for the duration of the play and that makes this play a revenge tragedy. It is a revenge tragedy because revenge is the most established theme in Hamlet and most of the characters are involved with some type of revenge. Shakespeare enforces this idea by having Hamlet deal with three different revenge stories, all having to do with a son avenging his father. First there is hamlet wanting revenge on Claudius, then Laertes wants revenge on hamlet and last Fortinbras wants revenge on all of Denmark. These three stories all develop and produce the major theme of revengeful actions never having the best outcomes.
It was good setting to get the attention from the audience and also a way to move around or change settings of the play. Although I love this play my small critic for this play was the players. Some others actors had understandable accents but others didn’t. For example, the brother of the servant his accent was confusing because he kept switching his accent from different country languages. This play was really nice it had a little of bit of everything drama, comedy, romance, betrayal. What like about this play it was how they used the dramatic structure the inciting incident and the climax. The inciting incident for this play of musical comedy murders of 1940 was guessing who the killer of the play was because there was tension building up not knowing who the murder was. The climax for this play would be for me finding out who was the murder and just being in shock how everything had change into a new scenario. Overall it was amazing show how it developed and how well an organized transition the play
...a proper burial for her brother and in ‘Oedipus the King’ son has killed his father and married his mother while Glass Menagerie is the only play which is giving us the picture of real life and this the reason that I have chosen this play as my favorite. This play is more tragic of the above plays as it is a tragedy emerging from real life. The condition of the apartment shown in the play is very much common in the country. In poor countries even worse apartments are found. In the play all the characters are going through a frustration and no one is happy from his present state of mind. The wife is lonely as her husband has left the home. The son and daughter are not satisfied as the son is planning to escape and the daughter is playing the records over and over again to show her frustration. This play is a true tragedy found in the richest country of the world.
Act one scene five is paramount to the play as a whole in creating dramatic effectiveness. Shakespeare has cleverly built up tensions in the initial scenes where he introduces the main themes which are love, hate and rivalry and he gives the audience an insight into the main characters developing intrigue and curiosity leaving the audience wanting to know more. It has become a world-wide story and is very successful, to the extent that it has become a popular play to study. Act one scene five is the most important scene and without it the play would not make any sense. The scenes prior to that are mostly a build up; even if a scene was taken out it would still make sense; but if scene five was taken out it the play would lose its effectiveness.
It was very nice to read something that had a lot of drama and suspense. This story has a mix of everything. It has a bit of suspense, drama, and comedy; therefore, it led it to be a very nice play. The people that would most like this play, has to be people who like suspense, drama, and thriller. These people would like it, because this story has a mix of everything, so the people who like to have a mix in their stories, they will love this story. It will suit them, and will give them a pleasure of reading a nice
... lack of need for it as his negative qualities seal his fate and the old sage shows the benefit of having faith and forgiving those who have betrayed them. Rather than focusing on getting revenge, one should strive to move forward with their life. All that revenge does is slow down the personal growth of an individual; the consequences far outweigh the benefits.
For those who do not recall the story of Hamlet, this play is one of revenge,
Firstly I would set this play in the 21st century so that a modern audience could relate to it. Algernon, one of the main characters in the play, would live in a luxury apartment in the centre of London, over looking the River Thames. His apartment would have a minimalist theme to it and would be influenced by aesthetic; for example he would have a piece of abstract art on the wall for no reason other than that he thinks it looks nice.
The play is about a strong-willed woman, Antigone, defying the laws of a proud king, Creon. Antigone is torn between her devotion to the gods, her brother Polynices, and her loyalty to the king. Creon, ruler of Thebes, issued the order to leave the traitor Polynices’ body unburied.
In the play, Hamlet, William Shakespeare explores the theme of revenge. Throughout the work, Hamlet acquires a moral dilemma; he cannot decide how to carry out revenge without condemning himself. Thus, although the play promotes the idea of revenge at the beginning, the cultivation of dialogue, relationships, and complications provide evidence of the detrimental consequences and limitations of the theme.