"Love" is a central topic in Shakespeare′s plays. Many of his couples have gained a status of immortality: Antony and Cleopatra, Romeo and Juliet, or Beatrice and Benedick are only a few examples. These lovers share one experience, which Lysander in "A Midsummer Night′s Dream" sums up very clearly:
"The course of true love never did run smooth ..." (1,1,134)
This dilemma is the "raw material" I am interested in. I will take three Shakespearean plays with "love" as their central issue and examine the protagonists′ courses of love in them. This involves the beginning, the obstacles in the way, the reactions to these obstacles and the final failure or success to overcome them. The plays chosen are "Romeo and Juliet", "All′s Well that Ends Well", and "The Taming of the Shrew". In the First Folio edition the first one is classified as belonging to the literary form of "tragedy", the latter two as "comedies". This leads me to the second element in the title, which is "dramatic genre". What Northrop Frye says about comedy is also valid for tragedy:
"If a play in a theatre is subtitled ′a comedy′, information is conveyed to a potential audience about what kind of thing to expect, and this type of information has been intelligible since before the days of Aristophanes."
One such expectation concerns a play′s mood. Here lies a fundamental difference between tragedy and comedy. Generally speaking, the audience expects that a comedy creates a happy mood and a tragedy a sad one. However, I am not alone finding that "Romeo" is a rather happy play over long stretches, whereas "The Taming" and "All′s Well" are anything but thoroughly happy pieces. In these three dramas Shakespeare only partly fulfils the expectations, which are evoked. Their generic structure does not generate a consistent mood. So what are the causes of this inconsistency?
Table of Contents
General Introduction
Introduction to "Romeo and Juliet"
Romeo and Juliet's course of love
Conclusion
Introduction to "All's Well that Ends Well" and "The Taming of the Shrew"
Bertram and Helen's course of love
Conclusion
Katherina and Petruchio's course of love
Conclusion
General Conclusion
Research Objectives and Themes
The work examines the presentation of love as a central theme in three selected plays by William Shakespeare—"Romeo and Juliet", "All's Well that Ends Well", and "The Taming of the Shrew"—analyzing the protagonists' courses of love, the impact of their respective dramatic genres, and the interplay between internal and external obstacles.
- The influence of tragic and comic generic structures on plot development.
- Distinction between external obstacles (societal barriers) and internal obstacles (personal conflicts).
- Degrees of integration: distinguishing between formal (marriage) and emotional resolutions.
- The role of "inevitability" in tragedy versus "evitability" in comedy.
- How Shakespeare deviates from generic conventions to reflect complex human realities.
Excerpt from the Book
Romeo and Juliet's course of love
From the Prologue we already get to know the frame of the whole love story. First of all, we are presented the situation in this play's society, which is characterized by division:
"Two households both alike in dignity, In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, ..." (1,0,1-3)
In 1,1 we learn of the civil war fought between the families of the Montagues and of the Capulets, as well as of the existence of a neutral party, which consists of the Prince of Verona and the rest of the citizens. Secondly, the protagonists and the obstacle to their course of love are introduced to us. The verses even look ahead to the outcome of the conflict:
"From forth the fatal loins of these two foes A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life, Whose misadventured piteous overthrows Doth with their death bury their parents' strife." (1,0,5-8)
The first thing we get to know about Romeo and Juliet is that they are members of the warring groups. Their course of love is depicted as inseparably connected with their parents' feud. The fact that they are enemies forms the obstacle to their love, which clearly is an external one. There is a hint at the negative interference of an impersonal power for the story's outcome ("star-crossed lovers"), which I will call "Fate". I interpret this passage in this way that the concrete obstacle is built around the feud but that it is Fate which finally renders the inevitable failure to overcome it. In Charlton's words:
"The feud is, so to speak, the means by which Fate acts."
Summary of Chapters
General Introduction: This chapter establishes the theoretical framework regarding Shakespearean dramatic genres, defining key concepts such as "tragedy" and "comedy" based on plot structure, mood, and integration.
Introduction to "Romeo and Juliet": Explores the concepts of "necessity" and "inevitability" within the context of tragedy, setting the stage for analyzing the relationship between Romeo and Juliet.
Romeo and Juliet's course of love: Analyzes the protagonists' struggle against the external obstacle of the family feud, examining how their perception of this obstacle shifts throughout the play.
Conclusion: Discusses the tragic outcome of the play and reflects on how the "inevitability" of the plot structure interacts with the characters' perspectives.
Introduction to "All's Well that Ends Well" and "The Taming of the Shrew": Introduces the notion of different degrees of integration (internal and external) to explain the lack of expected happiness in these comedies.
Bertram and Helen's course of love: Examines Helen's struggle to overcome social barriers through personal virtue and her attempts to achieve emotional integration with Bertram.
Conclusion: Evaluates the success of the integration in "All's Well that Ends Well", noting the tension between formal marriage and true emotional resolution.
Katherina and Petruchio's course of love: Discusses the taming process and the development of the relationship from a formal match to a potential emotional partnership.
Conclusion: Summarizes the integration process in "The Taming of the Shrew", highlighting the dynamic between the couple's private world and the public societal sphere.
General Conclusion: Synthesizes the findings across all three plays, suggesting that Shakespeare's tendency to prioritize human reality over strict generic form explains the inconsistencies in generic expectations.
Keywords
William Shakespeare, Love, Dramatic Genre, Tragedy, Comedy, Romeo and Juliet, All's Well that Ends Well, The Taming of the Shrew, Integration, Social Norms, Inevitability, Evitability, Course of Love, Plot Structure, Character Perspective.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
The work investigates how love is portrayed as a central theme in three Shakespearean plays and how the respective dramatic genres of tragedy and comedy shape the course of this love.
What are the primary thematic areas explored?
The research focuses on the intersection of plot structure, the nature of obstacles (internal vs. external), and the levels of social and emotional integration achieved by the protagonists.
What is the ultimate goal of this study?
The primary goal is to determine why the selected plays do not fully conform to the traditional expectations of their generic labels, particularly regarding the mood and successful resolution of the plot.
Which scientific methodology is applied?
The author uses a comparative literary analysis of plot structures and character perspectives, supported by established theories of drama and secondary literary criticism.
What does the main body address?
The main body examines the specific courses of love in "Romeo and Juliet", "All's Well that Ends Well", and "The Taming of the Shrew", tracing the development of obstacles and the degree of integration at the end of each play.
Which keywords characterize this work?
Key terms include Shakespeare, dramatic genre, tragedy, comedy, integration, internal/external obstacles, and the concepts of inevitability and evitability.
How is the "inevitability" in "Romeo and Juliet" interpreted?
The author argues that "inevitability" is not inherent in the situation itself for much of the play, but rather becomes a tragic force as the characters' perceptions shift under the influence of Fate and personal choices.
What role does the "taming" process play in "The Taming of the Shrew"?
The taming procedure is analyzed not merely as a power struggle, but as a strategy employed by Petruchio to remove the internal obstacles created by Katherina's temperament, ultimately aiming to facilitate a deeper emotional connection.
- Quote paper
- Thomas Eger (Author), 2003, Love and dramatic genre - Approaches to the topic of love in three Shakespearean plays, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/56312
