All for Love

How is the theme of love expressed in the play, All For Love?

All for Love by John Dryden

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The Political Ramifications of Love

From the start, characters gossip about the political implications that Antony and Cleopatra's affair have had on the world. In this we see that their personal affairs are inextricable from the political realms in which they rule. Antony's love for Cleopatra has led him to abandon not only his family, but his country, and has wreaked havoc on his political reputation.

Later in the play, Antony suggests that any success he has had is due to his love for Cleopatra. When he believes that Cleopatra is dead, he tells Ventidius, "I was but great for her; my power, my empire,/Were but my merchandise to buy her love;/And conquered kings, my factors." This suggests that any political success Antony had was due to his desire for Cleopatra, further conflating the personal with the political.

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