Theme Of Human Nature In The Duchess Of Malfi

1079 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Duchess of Malfi as a Revenge Tragedy

In John Webster’s, The Duchess of Malfi, he investigates and examines the dark side of human nature. Some of the common dark qualities of humans are murder, treachery, and corruption. As humans we possess two different kinds of perceptions; the positive, that represents the good in us, and a darker nearly evil side. A person with a standard set of morals and values has the ability to defeat and even overcome the darkness that lies within us. The extremes of cruelty one human can inflict on another can be seen by examining the Duchess’ relationship with her brothers, Ferdinand and the Cardinal. Bosola, who actually does the deeds, also plays a vital role in showing the darker nature of human beings. In this tragedy we also see the abuse of human rights, choices, and freedom. In the Duchess of Malfi, themes of captivity and entrapment are seen through the victimization of the Duchess by the male characters, which unravel the dark aspects of human nature.
In the play, Webster does not only look at the physical entrapment of the Duchess that her brothers exert on her, but also the trapping of the soul and mentality. The Duchess resembles a beautiful bird that is held in a diamond filled cage. She has access to everything she needs on a materialistic level, but she is denied freedom in any form. Her overbearing brothers are the ones who control her every move and make every decision for her. “And fearfully equivocates, so we are forced to express our violent passions in riddles an in dream…”(1.2.354-357). Her brothers, along with Bosola, are the physical demonstrations of the evil that exists. Ferdinand’s devilish traits are often seen, “He and his brother are like plum trees, that grow crooked over standing pools, they are r...

... middle of paper ...

... very apparent that is does not matter what time period it is we are all humans and as human’s darkness seems to always exist in us.
In conclusion Webster’s play The Duchess of Malfi explores the dark possibilities of human nature. It looks at the extremes of cruelty and harm that one human can inflict on another by denying them basic human rights, choices, and freedom of association. Her brothers, who seem to be inertly malevolent and corrupt, show the audience how the darkness can consume you and that wickedness does indeed exist in humans. Although there are unexpected glimpses of light in the play that grasps the readers interest, the darkness and horror is compelling. Taking all these things in to account, the play achieves what Webster expects for us as the audiences to explore, being that darkness is always present but does not always take over the light.

Show More
Related

  • Archetype In The Tempest

    1160 Words  | 3 Pages

    ‘’ Speak not you for him; he’s a traitor. Come;/ I’ll manacle thy neck and feet together: /Sea-water shalt thou drink; thy food shall be /The fresh-brook muscles, wither’d roots, and husks/ Wherein the acorn cradled.’’ (Shakespeare, I, ii, 461-464), is dramatic irony as the audience is aware of the fact that Prospero likes Ferdinand and wants him an Miranda to fall in love, but is still being rude to Ferdinand as a test. This is funny and provided entertainment to the audience, as they are aware of something that the characters aren’t. The archetype of the hero’s journey is used here, as Ferdinand is going through trials to prove his love for Miranda. He is proving his determination, strength, and courage along with his love. The images used in the collage are of Miranda and Ferdinand meeting, to show the humour behind their role in Prospero’s plan to get the throne back. Overall, Shakespeare’s use of symbolism, imagery, allusions, and dramatic irony help the audience to understand the archetypes, which helps in analyzing the meaning behind the words of the

    Read More

  • Interior Monologue on Lady Macbeth

    749 Words  | 2 Pages

    I believe there are two kinds of people in life; the kind that let things happen and the kind that make things happen. I prefer to think of myself as a person who writes her destiny not awaits it. So I ask myself, is it such a crime to want the best for you and your better half? Was it such a terrible deed, to lust after power and status like a young girl after a dashing beau. The victory, our status, my position, my power has fast become a reality, a reality which was being threatened by the growing suspicion of Banquo. It had to be done, his cut throat, seemed the only way, his murder the saviour of my triumph. But now see the error in my ways, the corruption in my thought. The guilt of one man’s blood was almost unbearable, the guilt of another is inescapable, growing, it is becoming vicious like a savage dog locked up waiting to be released. I am forced to bear it, alone I must I endu...

    Read More

  • European Colonialism and Imperialism in Shakespeare's The Tempest

    942 Words  | 2 Pages

    .... An investigation into the imbalance of power in the play reveals the ideologies of race and gender that drive the power dynamics of the play. The construction of the inferior nature of non-European characters is firmly grounded in imperialist, European and patriarchal values.

    Read More

  • The Power Of Power In Macbeth

    982 Words  | 2 Pages

    One leading contribution for Macbeth’s tragedy is the inability to have his power kept in check. According the Berger, a position of authority can directly affect the individual’s sense of self, status, and their role in society. This also touches this individual’s sense of not only others, but also that of the world surrounding this person (1). A position of power directly impacts those around that person. These characters surrounding this power, who are close enough, can also maintain a power check over that person. Yet these characters holding such a position in the play are not able to keep this power in check. Under the influence of unchecked power, Macbeth takes actions that have serious and devastating consequences for other characters in the play.

    Read More

  • Witches, Supernatural, and Evil in Shakespeare's Macbeth

    935 Words  | 2 Pages

    No discussion of evil in Shakespeare’s play Macbeth would be satisfactory without considering its’ most famous symbols of evil: the coven of witches whose interactions with Macbeth play such a vital role in his thinking about his own life. Banquo and Macbeth recognize them as something supernatural, part of the landscape but not fully human inhabitants of it. They have malicious intentions and prophetic powers. And yet they are not active agents in the sense that they do nothing other than talk and offer visions and potions. The witches have no power to compel. If we are to explore the significance of these witches we must do so by treating them as vital poetic symbols in the play, essential manifestations of the moral atmosphere of Macbeth's world.

    Read More

  • Essay on the Image of Lady Macbeth

    936 Words  | 2 Pages

    Macbeth, one of the greatest tragedies written by William Shakespeare, tells a story about uncontrollable ambition, which destroys Macbeth and his wife. Interpreting the play using the mythological approach, Lady Macbeth exhibits a profound image as the terrible mother,  more so than the “weird sisters.” Her evil intention foreshadows the awful fate and destiny of her family. The force that drives Lady Macbeth is her insatiable thirst for power.

    Read More

  • Blind Ambition in Macbeth

    855 Words  | 2 Pages

    Among the greatest gifts that the renaissance produced was the eloquent and incredible Shakespearean plays. Written mostly in the 1590s these plays have been performed and admired countless times; entertaining mass audiences by providing interesting tales that explore the depth of human insights and the different universal themes. Among the many Shakespearean plays Macbeth, written in 1606, stands out with its short composition but multiple themes. This tragedy narrates the tale of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s quest to grasp ultimate power by ignoring their morals and succumbing to their dark desires, which ultimately leads to their downfall. This tragic play portrays the desires, needs, and temptations that accompany ambition in men and women. However the ambition in Macbeth is blind, it does not abide to the morals, but it allows space for dark actions as means necessary for accomplishment. Blind ambition serves as the main driving force that drives Macbeth to subdue to his dark desires, defy his noble behavior, and ultimately his downfall.

    Read More

  • Struggles of the Conscience in Macbeth by William Shakespeare

    1060 Words  | 3 Pages

    Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” explores a fundamental struggle of the human conscience. The reader is transported into the journey of a man who recognizes and acknowledges evil but still succumbs to its destructive powers. The character of Macbeth is shrouded in ambiguity that scholars have claimed as both being a tyrant and tragic hero. Macbeth’s inner turmoil and anxieties that burden him throughout the entire play evoke sympathy and pity in the reader. Though he has the characteristics of an irredeemable tyrant, Macbeth realizes his mistakes and knows there is no redemption for his sins. And that is indeed tragic.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Corruption In Macbeth

    829 Words  | 2 Pages

    Macbeth is a play revolving around many key ideas observed in Shakespeare’s time with various messages communicated to the audience successfully, despite the lack of the cinematic effects present in today’s literature entertainment. The interweaved themes of immoral ambition and corruption are displayed throughout the text, unveiling the corruptive nature of one’s excessive greed for supremacy, affecting both themselves and others. This idea in Macbeth is successfully conveyed to the audience in Shakespeare’s time through the literary devices of characterisation, soliloquy and plot.

    Read More

  • Essay On Human Nature In Macbeth

    857 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the early 1600’s, William Shakespeare penned an Aristotelian tragedy ‘Macbeth’ which provides his audiences both then and now with many valuable insights and perceptions into human nature. Shakespeare achieves this by cleverly employing many dramatic devices and themes within the character of ‘Macbeth’. Macbeth is depicted as an anti-hero; a noble protagonist with a tragic flaw that leads to his downfall. This tragic flaw of Macbeth’s, heavily laden with the themes of ‘fate or free will’, and ‘ambition’, is brought out by Shakespeare in his writing to present us with a character whose actions and final demise are, if not laudable, very recognisable as human failings.

    Read More

  • Human Relationships Between The Central Characters in William Shakespeare's The Tempest

    1450 Words  | 3 Pages

    I aim to show how the “human” relationships in the play reflect real life relationships within Shakespeare’s own society (as well as his future audience), for which his plays were written and performed. Ferdinand and Miranda’s type of relationship shows Shakespeare’s ideas about true love, recognising not just the emotional side of love, but the physical nature too. Miranda promises Ferdinand “The jewel in my dower” which is her virginity, a prized thing in Jacobean times. This knowledge would have been known by Shakespeare’s audience, and knowing this helps us to understand Prospero’s protection of his daughter from Caliban. Ferdinand is asked not to have lustful thoughts about Miranda as “Sour-eyed disdain and discord shall bestrew the union of your bed with weeds so loathly that you shall hate it both” meaning that sex before marriage will poison the lovers’ marriage bed so that they will both grow to loathe it.

    Read More

  • Women in The Duchess of Malfi and The Changeling

    1319 Words  | 3 Pages

    Webster based his play on a real-life 16th Century scandal where a widowed Duchess remarried for love and did so beneath her class. The widowed Duchess had certain advantages and freedoms that the younger and unmarried Beatrice in The Changeling did not. The Duchess had significant wealth and independence, and she need not answer to a father or a husband. She no longer had the burden of protecting her virginity and the stigma attached if it was lost. Beatrice, on the other hand, had little sexual freedom, and she had to answer to her father and to the man to whom she was engaged. However a the Duchess, and Beatrice were doomed to subject to a patriarchal and male-dominated society. Upon her capture the Duchess declares: “I am Duchess of Malfi still” (4.2.141). She is a duchess only in name. In the end in both tragedies, it is the men –fathers, brothers, suitors, and the Church—who rule by physical force and by law.

    Read More

  • An Analysis of Bosola in 'the Duchess of Malfi'

    888 Words  | 2 Pages

    Bosola's inconsistency makes him different to some of the other characters in the play; the Cardinal is always cold and calculating, Antonio is honorable and benevolent and Ferdinand is fierce and aggressive, even in his mad state. There is no change in their characters, yet Bosola reaches beyond the confinements of the stereotypical role of `black malcontent', as Antonio describes him, altering his opinion of the Duchess as a prostitute, `this precise fellow is the Duchess' bawd', to seeing her as a noble woman and feeling compassion for her in her last moments of life, `Return fair soul from darkness, and lead mine out of this sensible hell!' Bosola's capricious nature makes him more convincing and realistic as a character. At the beginning of the play, the audience will probably dislike Bosola's cruel, pessimistic look on life. His change in opinion t...

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Duchess Of Rpeari And The Duchess Of Malfi

    1347 Words  | 3 Pages

    English literature is continuously developing into a more complex, and interwoven network of shared, or argued ideas. Proof of this goes back into all of the varieties of literature that we have discovered from times past, as well as anything new that is written today. One example of these works of art that has been studied intensely over the years includes the story of The Duchess of Malfi written by John Webster somewhere between 1580 and 1625. This is a story of tragic loss, desperate love, and vicious vengeance which all comes together to form one of the greatest tragedies of all time.

    Read More

  • The Duchess Of Malfi by John Webster as A Revenge Tragedy

    1417 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Duchess Of Malfi by John Webster as A Revenge Tragedy “The Duchess of Malfi” is a macabre, tragic play, written by the English dramatist John Webster. It begins as a love story, with a Duchess who marries beneath her class, and ends as a nightmarish tragedy as her two brothers exact their revenge, destroying themselves in the process. The play is sometimes ridiculed by modern critics for the excessive violence and horror in its later scenes. But the violence and horror scenes give it the touch it needs to be a revenge tragedy.

    Read More

More about Theme Of Human Nature In The Duchess Of Malfi

Open Document