"LAURA: Go on, I trust you with him! (Places it in his palm.) There now--you're holding him gently! hold him over the light, he loves the light! You see how the light shines through him?" pg. 1281
So at first, I was sincerely creeped out by Laura. She seemed so delusional that it was almost psychotic. The way she fawned over her glass collection of animals and treated it like it was alive was enough to worry someone, and that combined with her overwhelming shy and introverted personality almost made you think she was crazy. It was also pretty frustrating that she would never face her fears. She quit college as soon as she started. She wouldn't talk to Jim and almost wouldn't even answer the door when he came. She just seemed like a big old quitter who would rather hide up in her room with her glass collection, polishing and polishing like a maniac, not socializing with anyone. But, by the end of the play, I'll admit I began to like her more. I had a little more sympathy for her. Though her handicap may have seemed not that bad to the audience, having a mother like Amanda who was only worried about public appearance and keeping up with the standards of society could certainly make someone feel inadequate if they weren't completely perfect. She had developed a shy personality because she had been made ashamed of who she was, but all she needed was a little coaxing out and as Him found out, she was a truly amazing girl. She had much to offer to anyone who would just take the chance to get to know her. Maybe that works the same way for the audience, or at least for me.
Monday, February 27, 2012
The Glass Menagerie: Dramatic Irony
"AMANDA: That light bill I gave you several days ago. The one I told you we got the notices about?
TOM: Oh--Yeah.
AMANDA: You didn't neglect to pay it by chance?
TOM: Why, I--
AMANDA: Didn't! I might have known it!" pg. 1272
Dramatic irony does not play a large role in this play until the very end, in the last scene. While everyone is at dinner, the lights suddenly flicker and go out. Amanda is quick to blame Tom, and it is, in fact, his fault. He did not pay the light bill and so the light had been shut off. But more importantly and what Amanda does not know about the situation is why Tom did not pay the light bill. The reader does know, however, for earlier in the play, in the last scene, the audience saw and heard Tom and Jim's conversation about Tom not paying the bill in order to pay his dues for the Union of Merchant Seamen. Tom is tired of living a boring life and letting all of the movie characters and stars soak up all the adventure while he just sits back and watches. He says he is like his father and he needs adventure. So, he is leaving his mother and Laura. But his mother has no clue. Amanda believes that Tom didn't pay the light bill because he made a stupid mistake and forgot, but in reality, he did it with full intention. He did it to plan his getaway from his mother and life as a warehouse worker. In the end, when Tom finally does leave, this dramatically ironic situation becomes very important. Had Amanda not jumped to conclusions and actually asked Tom about the bill, the ending could have been very different.
TOM: Oh--Yeah.
AMANDA: You didn't neglect to pay it by chance?
TOM: Why, I--
AMANDA: Didn't! I might have known it!" pg. 1272
Dramatic irony does not play a large role in this play until the very end, in the last scene. While everyone is at dinner, the lights suddenly flicker and go out. Amanda is quick to blame Tom, and it is, in fact, his fault. He did not pay the light bill and so the light had been shut off. But more importantly and what Amanda does not know about the situation is why Tom did not pay the light bill. The reader does know, however, for earlier in the play, in the last scene, the audience saw and heard Tom and Jim's conversation about Tom not paying the bill in order to pay his dues for the Union of Merchant Seamen. Tom is tired of living a boring life and letting all of the movie characters and stars soak up all the adventure while he just sits back and watches. He says he is like his father and he needs adventure. So, he is leaving his mother and Laura. But his mother has no clue. Amanda believes that Tom didn't pay the light bill because he made a stupid mistake and forgot, but in reality, he did it with full intention. He did it to plan his getaway from his mother and life as a warehouse worker. In the end, when Tom finally does leave, this dramatically ironic situation becomes very important. Had Amanda not jumped to conclusions and actually asked Tom about the bill, the ending could have been very different.
The Glass Menagerie: Realism vs. Nonrealism
"TOM: The play is a memory. Being a memory play, it is dimly lighted, it is sentimental, it is not realistic. In memory everything seems to happen to music. That explains the fiddle in the wings.
I am the narrator of the play, and also a character in it." pg. 1236
After having read Shakespeare's whimsical tales of love at first sight and duels between the respectable hero and the obvious antagonist, it is nice to read a play that touches on a more realistic portrayal of life. There are no magical creatures in The Glass Menagerie. The characters' relationships with one another are complicated, and their personalities have a lot of depth. The presentation of the play is mostly realistic. Although the play is a memory and that keeps it from being completely realistic, the play is presented in the same way that a memory happens in the mind of an individual. Certain characters and events are focused on more than others. There is soft music in the background to reflect the feelings and emotions that are occurring. There are other memories intertwined. However, though Tennessee Williams was a mostly realistic writer, some nonrealistic qualities exist in the play. The fact that Tom functions as a narrator speaking to the audience is obviously not true to life. There are no narrators in real life, and there is no audience that watches us as we live our daily lives. Real life does not take place on a stage either. Much of the scenery and setting must be imagined. While these qualities add a nonrealistic feel to the play, Williams's plays tend far more toward a realistic feel.
I am the narrator of the play, and also a character in it." pg. 1236
After having read Shakespeare's whimsical tales of love at first sight and duels between the respectable hero and the obvious antagonist, it is nice to read a play that touches on a more realistic portrayal of life. There are no magical creatures in The Glass Menagerie. The characters' relationships with one another are complicated, and their personalities have a lot of depth. The presentation of the play is mostly realistic. Although the play is a memory and that keeps it from being completely realistic, the play is presented in the same way that a memory happens in the mind of an individual. Certain characters and events are focused on more than others. There is soft music in the background to reflect the feelings and emotions that are occurring. There are other memories intertwined. However, though Tennessee Williams was a mostly realistic writer, some nonrealistic qualities exist in the play. The fact that Tom functions as a narrator speaking to the audience is obviously not true to life. There are no narrators in real life, and there is no audience that watches us as we live our daily lives. Real life does not take place on a stage either. Much of the scenery and setting must be imagined. While these qualities add a nonrealistic feel to the play, Williams's plays tend far more toward a realistic feel.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
As You Like It: I Guess a Shakespearean Play Means Shakespearean Love
"OLIVER: ...but say with me, I love Aliena; say with her that she loves me; consent with both that we may enjoy each other: it shall be to your good; for my father's house and all the revenue that was old Sir Rowland's will I estate upon you, and here live and die a shepherd.
ORLANDO: You have my consent. Let your wedding be to-morrow..." pg. 69
One thing that always frustrates me about Shakespeare's plays is that the main characters always fall in love at first sight. It might just be because I don't believe in the concept or it might be the fact that I enjoy the building of a relationship more than the relationship itself, but it's something I've often struggled with in his works. The fact that Rosalind falls in love with Orlando not even the first time she speaks to him, but the first time she sees him fight is just completely silly to me. That would be like someone today falling in love with one of the Pacers just because they saw one basketball game. It's impossible and unreasonable. Oliver's relationship with Celia is even more unbelievable. He is marrying her basically as soon as he meets her. It has all the qualities of an arranged marriage except that they aren't even being forced to marry a complete stranger, they're choosing it! Completely ridiculous if you ask me. I guess there's only so much time a playwright has to work with though, so love at first sight is probably the best option. It's just not very pleasing to those of us who actually enjoy the story behind the love.
ORLANDO: You have my consent. Let your wedding be to-morrow..." pg. 69
One thing that always frustrates me about Shakespeare's plays is that the main characters always fall in love at first sight. It might just be because I don't believe in the concept or it might be the fact that I enjoy the building of a relationship more than the relationship itself, but it's something I've often struggled with in his works. The fact that Rosalind falls in love with Orlando not even the first time she speaks to him, but the first time she sees him fight is just completely silly to me. That would be like someone today falling in love with one of the Pacers just because they saw one basketball game. It's impossible and unreasonable. Oliver's relationship with Celia is even more unbelievable. He is marrying her basically as soon as he meets her. It has all the qualities of an arranged marriage except that they aren't even being forced to marry a complete stranger, they're choosing it! Completely ridiculous if you ask me. I guess there's only so much time a playwright has to work with though, so love at first sight is probably the best option. It's just not very pleasing to those of us who actually enjoy the story behind the love.
As You Like It: Dramatic Irony
"ROSALIND: I will speak to him like a saucy lackey, and under that habit play the knave with him. Do you hear, forester?" pg. 43
Throughout the last part of act 3 scene 2, Rosalind speaks to Orlando in her disguise as Ganymede. He does not know that it is the love of his life. However, the audience knows Ganymede's real identity. Shakespeare employs this sort of dramatic irony often to inspire excitement in his audiences. The suspense of Orlando not knowing that he is talking to the woman he loves almost makes the audience want to shout it. They just want to inform the character because they want Orlando and Rosalind to be together. It's frustrating that he is completely oblivious, but it also keeps the audience interested and drawn in. It makes them a part of the story even though they are inactive or unable to take any action. But this technique succeeds in making Shakespeare's audiences feel like the story is more real because they are a part of it.
Throughout the last part of act 3 scene 2, Rosalind speaks to Orlando in her disguise as Ganymede. He does not know that it is the love of his life. However, the audience knows Ganymede's real identity. Shakespeare employs this sort of dramatic irony often to inspire excitement in his audiences. The suspense of Orlando not knowing that he is talking to the woman he loves almost makes the audience want to shout it. They just want to inform the character because they want Orlando and Rosalind to be together. It's frustrating that he is completely oblivious, but it also keeps the audience interested and drawn in. It makes them a part of the story even though they are inactive or unable to take any action. But this technique succeeds in making Shakespeare's audiences feel like the story is more real because they are a part of it.
As You Like It: Dynamic Characters
"OLIVER: Now will I stir this gamester: I hope I shall see and end of him; for my soul, yet I know not why, hates nothing more than he." pg. 5
In the story, Oliver, Orlando's brother, and Duke Frederick, Duke Senior's brother, have much in common. Both resent their brother and both seek power over them. While Oliver keeps Orlando as a servant and does not allow him to get an education, Frederick has banished Senior from his own dukedom and taken rule of it himself. They both show no concern for their brother's strife or troubles but instead wish it upon them. But another thing that they have in common is that they are dynamic characters. Both go through conversions throughout the course of the story that cause them to have a change of heart toward their brothers. At the beginning of the story, they seem one-dimensional but this transformation makes them more than just a minor character or someone to move the plot along. It makes them stand out more. Even though they convert in different ways, Oliver by getting a taste of his own medicine and Frederick by talking with old religious convertites, both become dynamic characters through their change.
In the story, Oliver, Orlando's brother, and Duke Frederick, Duke Senior's brother, have much in common. Both resent their brother and both seek power over them. While Oliver keeps Orlando as a servant and does not allow him to get an education, Frederick has banished Senior from his own dukedom and taken rule of it himself. They both show no concern for their brother's strife or troubles but instead wish it upon them. But another thing that they have in common is that they are dynamic characters. Both go through conversions throughout the course of the story that cause them to have a change of heart toward their brothers. At the beginning of the story, they seem one-dimensional but this transformation makes them more than just a minor character or someone to move the plot along. It makes them stand out more. Even though they convert in different ways, Oliver by getting a taste of his own medicine and Frederick by talking with old religious convertites, both become dynamic characters through their change.
Monday, February 13, 2012
The Timelessness of Othello: Connections to the Past and Today
**DISCLAIMER: Many of the clips and pictures featured in this entry exhibit explicit language and/or sexually suggestive material. Parental discretion is advised.
Throughout time, stories detailing betrayal of one person by an individual he or she trusts have come to light in both the fictional and nonfictional spheres. Such a timeless event of theme is subject to repetition. In Othello, the person being betrayed is Othello himself, and the betrayer is none other than Iago, a trusted lieutenant under his command. Othello hardly even suspected “honest” Iago of lying until it had been confirmed. In a similar way in the play Julius Caesar, also written by Shakespeare, Caesar never suspects his trusted friend Brutus of plotting his murder, but that is exactly what happens. Even within modern works, this sort of conflict is found in the film Mean Girls, released in 2004, when the central character Cady Heron befriends Regina George only to help other students try to sabotage her. With such a strong and enduring theme at its base, Othello is in itself lasting in worth.
Because Julius Caesar is based off a story that happened in Ancient Rome, long before Shakespeare’s time, it is obvious that treachery and disloyalty are in no way newfound ideas. They have existed as long as humans have been intelligent enough to form relationships with one another. In the story, Brutus is a trusted colleague and friend of Caesar. Both of the men are involved in the Roman republic and have gotten to know each other quite well during their years of service. Much like these two, Othello and Iago served together in the army and forged a relationship due to their work together.
from the film adaptation
Despite the two men’s differences in motives, both betrayers maintain similar attitudes of dishonesty and deception throughout their plays. Brutus conspires with other officials as to how to bring about Caesar’s downfall while Iago works by himself to ensure Othello’s demise. Both men must keep all of their work completely secret from the subject of betrayal, and both succeed. Neither Caesar nor Othello ever suspects his trusted colleague of plotting to sabotage him. At the end of both stories, the betrayer’s plan comes to fruition.
Death of Caesar by Vincenzo Camuccini
Brutus and his fellow conspirators succeed in the assassination of Caesar and Iago succeeds in making Othello believe that his wife Desdemona is having an affair. With such similar plots, these plays help to illustrate how stories centering on betrayal remain relevant and interesting to their audiences.
The film Mean Girls presents a story similar to both Julius Caesar and Othello in its theme of trust and disloyalty. The new student at a high school Cady Heron first meets Janis and Damian, social outcasts who have a strong hate for the “plastics”, a group of girls at the top of the social pyramid at the school who believe they are better than other students.
The Plastics
When Regina George, the leader of the plastics, offers Cady a position in the group, Janis and Damian encourage her to befriend Regina in order to sabotage her.
Sabotage Plotting Scene from the Film
As the film progresses, Cady and her two cohorts try in a few different ways to dethrone Regina, but Cady slowly becomes sucked into the social competition and desires Regina’s position for herself. Pretending that she is loyal to both Janis and Damian and to Regina, Cady begins her ascent on the social ladder by the means of deceit and lies. Much like Iago and Brutus betray their good friends, Cady betrays all of her friends for selfish reasons. She not only plays awful tricks on Regina, but also starts lying to and gossiping about Janis and Damian. Cady achieves leader status of the plastics through all of this treachery and betrayal, but like Iago in Othello, her friends soon find out about her mischievous ways. While Janis and Damian only confront her about it...
Confrontation by Janis and Damian
Regina counteracts her plan of sabotage with a plan of her own and in the end, Cady must suffer the consequences of her actions much like Iago. The connections to Othello that exist in such a popular modern work as Mean Girls show that betrayal and deception have become no less relevant today than they were hundreds of years ago.
Both before and after its time, historical and fictional stories have been created with a similar central conflict to Othello. The themes and plot presented, though they have been altered in different ways were as prevalent thousands of years ago and are as prevalent today as they were when the work was written. A story that revolves around such timeless ideas as betrayal and treachery is sure to interest audiences without boundaries of time. Therefore, one can expect Othello to be performed and read both for pleasure and for education for years to come.
Works Cited
Shakespeare, William. Othello. Perrine’s Literature Structure, Sound, and Sense. Ed. Laurence Perrine. 8th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2002. 1361-1461
Shakespeare, William. Julius Caesar. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Michigan: Edwards Brothers Inc., 2009. 813-840
Mean Girls. Dir. Mark Waters. Perf. Lindsay Lohan, Rachel McAdams, and Tina Fey. Paramount Pictures, 2004. DVD.
Monday, February 6, 2012
Othello, the Moor of Venice, Better Known as Justin Timberlake
Who would have known that this guy...
and this guy...
would have so much in common!
Turns out, the song Cry Me A River by Justin Timbelake bears an uncanny resemblance to Othello's feelings in the play. So in the song, JT is concerned that his girl is cheating on him. This girl that he held above everything else (she was his sun and earth at least) has been seeing some other guy and he is completely shocked. He won't even listen to the girl's argument because he heard about her escapades from the guy himself. In the play, Othello reacts the same. Though Desdemona tries to tell him the truth, that she did not cheat on him with Cassio, he won't even give her the time of day because he heard what he thought was Cassio talking about he and Desdemona's relationship. As those of us who have read that part of the play know, that was not the case. He was really talking about Bianca. But, back to the similarities. N*SYNC's former lead singer also talks about how other people have been telling him things that are messing with his head. IAGO, ANYONE?! He has to be referencing Othello at this point! Iago's sole purpose in the story is telling Othello things that mess with his head, INCLUDING that Desdemona cheated on him with Cassio. It's like Mr. Timberlake is telling a modern version of the story or something! One part of the lyrics also mentions how there is no chance for them to be together anymore, and a little later, it says "the damage is done, so I guess I be leaving". That sounds a lot like something bad happened. Like maybe he killed her?? Is this a coincidence? I think not. I think the real truth behind it all is that Justin has a real passion for Shakespeare that he can't resist incorporating into his songs.
To put the cherry on top of an excellent blog, here's a vid of JB singing JT, because I've had a case of Bieber Fever lately. But really, who can resist that boyish charm?...
and this guy...
would have so much in common!
Turns out, the song Cry Me A River by Justin Timbelake bears an uncanny resemblance to Othello's feelings in the play. So in the song, JT is concerned that his girl is cheating on him. This girl that he held above everything else (she was his sun and earth at least) has been seeing some other guy and he is completely shocked. He won't even listen to the girl's argument because he heard about her escapades from the guy himself. In the play, Othello reacts the same. Though Desdemona tries to tell him the truth, that she did not cheat on him with Cassio, he won't even give her the time of day because he heard what he thought was Cassio talking about he and Desdemona's relationship. As those of us who have read that part of the play know, that was not the case. He was really talking about Bianca. But, back to the similarities. N*SYNC's former lead singer also talks about how other people have been telling him things that are messing with his head. IAGO, ANYONE?! He has to be referencing Othello at this point! Iago's sole purpose in the story is telling Othello things that mess with his head, INCLUDING that Desdemona cheated on him with Cassio. It's like Mr. Timberlake is telling a modern version of the story or something! One part of the lyrics also mentions how there is no chance for them to be together anymore, and a little later, it says "the damage is done, so I guess I be leaving". That sounds a lot like something bad happened. Like maybe he killed her?? Is this a coincidence? I think not. I think the real truth behind it all is that Justin has a real passion for Shakespeare that he can't resist incorporating into his songs.
To put the cherry on top of an excellent blog, here's a vid of JB singing JT, because I've had a case of Bieber Fever lately. But really, who can resist that boyish charm?...
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