FREE ESSAY ON TWELFTH NIGHT

TWELFTH NIGHT

In Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, it is obvious that the oscillation of attitude, in the
dual role played by the character of Viola/Cesario, gives her a better understanding of
both sexes. It allows her to encompass a better discernment of the sentiments of the
Duke, Orsino. Near the onset of the play, when Viola is assuming her male identity, she
fashions an alternate self, giving her two masks. She takes on the Cesario identity in
order to achieve more freedom in society. This is evident when, as Cesario, Orsino
readily accepts her; while, as Viola, he may not have. Thus, the customary societal
outlook on gender is portrayed. She now has the difficult task of deciding which mask to
wear as she alternates between her two identities, both in emotion and in character.
Orsino sees Cesario much like himself as a youth. For that reason, he has a tendency to
be more willing to share his troubles and sorrows with him/her. To Orsino, Cesario is
somewhat of a companion with whom to share and to teach. Thus, Viola grows in her male
disguise to gain a better understanding of Orsino's inner self, not the self that he
shows to the public, but rather his undisclosed self, shared only with an intimate
cohort. In the course, however, she grows to love him, while he seems to be in love with
love itself. His entire world is overflowing with love, but he foresees a potential
turning point; apparent when he says, If music be the food of love, play on; give me
excess of it, that, surfeiting, the appetite may sicken, and so die." From this quote,
the reader perceives Orsino's realization that he is caught up in love, as well as his
desire for this hunger of love to somehow diminish. A variety of "fools" enhance the
comical appeal of this play. Maria, Olivia's companion, is one such fool." She is
enthusiastic in playing pranks on others. She employs Feste, Sir Andrew, and Sir Toby to
carry out her tomfoolery, while she remains quiet and unsuspected. Much of the humor in
this play revolves around Maria's pranks. They are bleak and vindictive, using love and
power (status of Olivia) to seize Malvolio, who is .... sick of self Love. In this
particular prank, Maria forges Olivia's handwriting in a letter convincing Malvolio that
Olivia is in love with him. This scheme works entirely. Malvolio's greed for power is the
actual basis for his being locked up and accused of being a madman." Maria and her
collaborators recognize his desire for power, and consequently act upon it. Sir Toby
Belch, Olivia's uncle as well as another fool in this play, is always ready and willing
to assist in any game of make-believe. He constantly attempts to convince Sir Andrew
Aguecheek that he has a chance of winning the love of Olivia. He, at one point, sets up
an altercation between Cesario and Sir Andrew, convincing both parties that the other
desires this. He, as well as his friend Sir Andrew Aguecheek, seems to take to drinking a
bit too much for their own good. Their evening of joyous drunken singing can actually be
blamed for the fake-letter proposal. Malvolio, quite rudely, attempts to end their joyous
celebration stating, My masters, are you mad? Or what are you? Have you no wit, manners,
nor honesty, but to gabble like tinkers at this time of night?" This killjoy speech
induces its recipients to swear revenge upon him. Feste, the clown, plays the role of the
comic truth speaker." Although he makes no real philosophical remarks in the play, he
seems to be wisest among the bunch. Viola interprets this by saying, This fellow's wise
enough to play the fool. Since this somehow licenses him to be a fool, Feste takes to
speaking the truth on all matters. Much humor lies in his truthfulness. An example of
this is when he proves Olivia to be a true fool by asking her what she was mourning
about. The point Feste makes is that Olivia is a fool to mourn for a person whose soul is
in heaven. Adding to the wit of this play, Feste dresses up as Sir Topaz, the curate, and
pays a visit to the imprisoned Malvolio. There, he uses his wit to exploit Malvolio,
calling him a lunatic and satan. All the while, Malvolio is completely unaware of who he
is actually talking to. Comical is the fact that Olivia, unknowingly, falls in love with
another woman. There is such a mix-up of identities in this play, that the reader is
never bored or desirous of excitement. Olivia is in love with Viola, while Viola declares
her love for Orsino time and again. When Orsino first sends Cesario (Viola) to act as a
messenger of his love for Olivia, Viola says, " I'll do my best to woo your lady; [aside]
yet, a barful strife! Whoe'er I woo, myself would be his wife." Near the end of the play,
when all tricks and treacheries are exposed and masks removed, Orsino transfers his
copious love to Viola. He first relieves her from duty to him, and then declares that she
shall now be her "master's mistress." Olivia, analogously, winds up inadvertently
marrying Viola's twin brother Sebastian. In short, the "fools" control the comedy and
humor in this play. They lend a hand in the make believe games, and fool around with the
characters who dodge reality, or rather apprehend a fantasy world. The roles of Feste,
Maria, and Sir Toby are those of "fools," and they make the comedy work in many aspects.
They create confusion through humor, and it all works out in the end, making William
Shakespeare's Twelfth Night a genuinely humorous play.