The Shakespeare Play Twelfth Night Essay

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fall into thy hand, revolve. In my stars I

am above thee; but be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon 'em. Thy Fates open their hands; let thy blood and spirit embrace them; and, to inure thyself to what thou art like to be, cast thy humble slough and appear fresh.

(Twelfth Night, Act II, scene v, -1171)

This monologue of Malvolio's follows his just being victim to a practical joke played by Maria and the other servants. Malvolio has read Maria's letter, which he believes to be from Olivia. Malvolio harbors several delusions about himself and his ability to win over Olivia and thereby gain upward social mobility. While Malvolio might indeed have some affection and genuine caring for his lady, he also seems far more interested in her wealth and status than in her well-being. This scene shows not only the farce of romantic love in situations like these, but also reveals one of the minor themes in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, which is related to the immutability of social class status.

Social class status is still relatively rigid in the 21st century, but was probably more so during Elizabethan England when Shakespeare wrote his plays. Status is related to one's family of origin, but also to other issues like gender. In this scene, Maria has crafted a letter in which she expresses three ways people can change their social status: some are "born great," as with people who are born to wealthy or elite families. Others "achieve greatness," as with inventors, artists, or scientists who apply their talents and abilities to creating meaningful and lasting objects. Finally, "some have greatness thrust upon 'em." It is to this latter category that Malvolio hopes to belong. He views Olivia in the earliest category: those people who were born into greatness. Rather than working hard, Malvolio hopes to achieve a higher social status by marrying Olivia. Malvolio believes that if he were to marry Olivia, he would leave behind his "humble" past and "appear fresh." The other servants chuckle when they see how excited Malvolio is at the prospect, particularly because it seems he actually believes it is possible that Olivia would love him and marry him.

There are several issues going on in this scene, all of which can find parallels in modern life. One of those issues is related to the practical joke.

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People still do play practical jokes on one another, and this type of joke would be viewed as being very cruel unless the victim was as unlikeable and unscrupulous as Malvolio. In this case, as in modern times, most people would say that a practical joke played on someone like Malvolio is perfectly acceptable.

Another issue in this scene is related to the difficulties with developing a relationship that transcends social barriers like race, class, or gender. This is one of the most important themes of the play, actually, as several characters fall in love with the "wrong" person at the wrong time. Viola, dressed as Cesario, becomes a man and is therefore unable to tell Duke Orsino that she loves him. In modern times, at least in most advanced societies, Cesario would be able to express his love. It would not matter that he is a man. It also would not matter that he is really a woman in man's clothing, either. However, there are still stigmas against homosexuality. I have witnessed both these kinds of stigmas, against people who are transgender and people who are gay. Shakespeare shows that gender is one of the hugest social barrier preventing the development of honest love relationships. Another barrier is race, which is not really an issue in Twelfth Night. Finally, class is a social barrier that can be an issue for relationships. In this scene of Twelfth Night, Malvolio symbolizes the "lower" social classes, and Olivia the "higher" classes of the society. In fact, Malvolio works for Olivia. Earlier in the scene, Malvolio admits, "she may command / me: I serve her; she is my lady," (Act II, scene v, lines 1139-1140). Members of different social classes have a hard time overcoming their positions of hierarchy and subordination. Olivia is allowed to "command" Malvolio, even though in a patriarchal society, men usually do the "commanding" over women. This fact….....

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