William Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra
Throughout the play, Antony grapples with the conflict between his
love for Cleopatra and his duties to the Roman Empire. In his opening
lines to Demetrius, Philo complains that Antony has abandoned the
military endeavours on which his reputation is based for Cleopatra's
sake. His criticism of Antony's "dotage," or stupidity, introduces a
tension between reason and emotion that runs throughout the play.
Antony and Cleopatra's first exchange heightens this tension, as they
argue whether their love can be put into words and understood or
whether it exceeds such faculties and boundaries of reason.
Shakespeare has mainly concentrated with the battle between reason and
emotion, rather than the triumph of one over the other. Antony
vacillates between Western and Eastern sensibilities, feeling pulled
by both his duty to the empire and his desire for pleasure, his want
for military glory and his passion for Cleopatra.
Enobarbus' speech in Act 2 sc. 2 tells the audience of Antony and
Cleopatra's first encounter. Shakespeare uses simile after simile and
plenty of metaphors as well for example, "like a burnished throne/the
poop was beaten gold." Enobarbus tells of "Antony…invited her to
supper" and he uses food imagery to try and explain how Antony felt
when he looked at Cleopatra, "pays his heart for what his eyes eat
only."
Antony's love for Cleopatra meant that on many occasions he neglected
his life in Rome. We find out the true Roman view of Antony's
behaviour from Caesar and Lepidus in Act 1 sc. 4. The comments from
Caesar, Antony's great rival, show his disgust when he says, "You
shall find there a man who is the abstract of all faults that all men
follow," meaning that Antony is seen as a role model to all young
Roman men due to his previous acheivments;"Antony…when thou once was
beaten from Modena, where thou slew'st Hirtius and Pansa." Caesar
making such fond remarks of Antony would almost shock the audience
because it is so unexpected from him. Both Lepidus and Caesar are
Inwardly examining his own nature, man would prefer to see himself as a virtuously courageous being designed in the image of a divine supernatural force. Not to say that the true nature of man is a complete beast, he does posses, like many other creatures admirable traits. As author Matt Ridley examines the nature of man in his work The Origins of Virtue, both the selfish and altruistic sides of man are explored. Upon making an honest and accurate assessment of his character, it seems evident that man is not such a creature divinely set apart from the trappings of selfishness and immorality. Rather than put man at either extreme it seems more accurate to describe man as a creature whose tendency is to look out for himself first, as a means of survival.
"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would
is once again brought up by Romeo at the end of Act 1, scene 4 when he
William Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet Romeo and Juliet written by William Shakespeare, tells the story of too unfortunate lovers caught up in their family’s hatred which in the end leads to the tragic deaths of both lovers. Classical Greek tragedy influenced Renaissance writers greatly Shakespeare was no exception. According to the dictionary, fate is ‘the supposed force, principle, or power that predetermines event.’ Which means that it is out of our hands.
with is that no man is a great man- the only great man encountered in
is a man who knows what is right and wrong, has the power to do
There are two reasons why The Aeneid is associated with the Shakespearean play Antony and Cleopatra. First, The Aeneid was written by a Roman named Virgil who, among many other reasons, wrote it as a tribute for Augustus Caesar, the leader of the Roman Empire. Augustus Caesar was formally named Octavian and is a character in Shakespeare's play. Secondly, both The Aeneid and Antony and Cleopatra share a common theme of a patriotic, heroic man having to choose between duty to his country and the passionate love of a beautiful, foreign and strong queen. In The Aeneid, the lovers are Aeneas and Dido and Antony and Cleopatra are the lovers in Shakespeare's play.
William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet I have been studying Romeo and Juliet in class and I have watched a production on television. Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet for an audience used to sixteenth century stage conventions, we must appreciate that these conventions are very different from our own. The Elizabethan theatre was very distinctive, when a play was performed thousands of people would pack inside the theatre, the rich would be able to pay for seats in the stand sheltered from the wind and rain, while the poor had to stand and brave the elements as the theatre had no roof.
Human nature is a concept that has interested scholars throughout history. Many have debated over what human nature is – that is, the distinguishing characteristics that are unique to humans by nature – while others have mulled over the fact that the answer to the question “what is human nature?” may be unattainable or simply not worth pursuing. Shakespeare explores the issue of human nature in his tragedy King Lear. In his play, he attempts to portray that human nature is either entirely good or entirely evil. He seems to suggest, however, that it is not impossible for one to move from one end of the spectrum of human nature to the other, as multiple characters go through somewhat of a metamorphosis where their nature is changed. In this paper I analyze and present Shakespeare’s account of human nature in King Lear in comparison with other authors that we have read throughout our year in the Aquinas program.
Oscar Wilde, an acclaimed Irish Poet, novelist, dramatist and critic once aptly commented, “Men become old, but they never become good”. The philosophical aspect of this quote relies on the basis that human beings are inherently malevolent. Through his pessimistic perspective, Wilde clearly captures the ill-disposed mindset of mankind. Moreover, there are various deductive arguments that discredit the optimistic depiction of human nature. One of the prime examples can be found in Kurt Vonnegut’s literature. In Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat's Cradle, through the illustration of his characters, the author symbolizes the four elements of human fallibility.
Micheal Jordan famously wrote “If you accept the expectations of others then you never will change the outcome” (Jordan). One can appreciate the context of the quote when relating it to one of William Shakespeare’s greatest work, “Romeo and Juliet”, in which two long-feuding families finally end their strife after their children defy the societal expectations, and consequently take their lives away. The two lovers struggle to live up to the expectations society demands from them, which oppose the existence of their love. For example, the audience sees Juliet challenge her family’s expectations in order to protect her relationship with her true love, Romeo. Additionally, both Romeo and Juliet challenge their gender roles in order to love freely without any opposition from society. Also, as the love between the two intensify, both Romeo and Juliet struggle to abide to the social expectations of their Christian faith. In a nutshell, one of William Shakespeare’s most celebrated plays, “Romeo and Juliet”, is about how two lovers choose to defy the social expectations demanded by their society in an attempt to create an environment where the “true love” they possess can exist.
In viewing 12 Angry Men, we see face to face exactly what man really is capable of being. We see different views, different opinions of men such as altruism, egoism, good and evil. It is no doubt that human beings possess either one or any of these characteristics, which make them unique. It is safe to say that our actions, beliefs, and choices separate us from animals and non-livings. The 20th century English philosopher, Martin Hollis, once said, “Free will – the ability to make decisions about how to act – is what distinguishes people from non-human animals and machines 1”. He went to describe human beings as “self conscious, rational, creative. We can fall in love, write sonnets or plan for tomorrow. We are capable of faith, hope and charity, and for that matter, of envy, hated and malice. We know truth from error, right from wrong 2.” Human nature by definition is “Characteristics or qualities that make human beings different from anything else”. With this said, the topic of human nature has been around for a very long time, it is a complex subject with no right or wrong answer. An American rabbi, Samuel Umen, gave examples of contradictions of human nature in his book, Images of Man. “He is compassionate, generous, loving and forgiving, but also cruel, vengeful, selfish and vindictive 3”. Existentialism by definition is, “The belief that existence comes before essence, that is, that who you are is only determined by you yourself, and not merely an accident of birth”. A French philosopher, Jean-Paul Sartre, is the most famous and influential 20th - century existentialist. He summed up human nature as “existence precedes essence”. In his book, Existentialism and Human Emotions, he explained what he meant by this. “It means that, first of all, man exists, turns up, appears on the scene, and, only afterwards, defines himself. If man, as the existentialist conceives him, is indefinable, it is because at first he is nothing. Only afterward will be something, and he himself will have made what he will be 4”. After watching 12 Angry Men, the prominent view on human nature that is best portrayed in the movie is that people are free to be whatever they want because as Sartre said, “people create themselves every moment of everyday according to the choices they make 5”.
In George Herbert’s Man, Herbert gives homage to God, and the centrality of man. The main point of the poem assumes that since God is the greatest being of all, and God created humanity, then human beings are great as well - greater than credit is given. It focuses on the concept that man is a microcosm, or a small-scale model of the world, and that every part of the body has a facet of the world of which it is equal.
Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra Antony bears the guilt. Shakespeare writes'Antony and Cleopatra'in a way where the reader places the blame on Cleopatra. Cleopatra brings the downfall of Mark.
...portant backgrounds and personal traits that a woman must have to be ideal. In general, she must be very devoted to her lover, keeping him in her priority and always being considerate towards him, and must not be concerned with his treatment of her. As for men, the ideal traits were defined within Genji himself and included his love for those he devoted himself to despite appearance, and the natural gifts of elegance that he was bestowed. Together, the handbook for perfect beings was written and recorded in Japanese history, and surely influenced the Heian society that is was written for.