Twelfth Night William Shakespeare

Because disguise and mistaken identity is such a central theme in many of Shakespeare’s comedies, so too then is gender ambiguity, with many female characters disguising themselves as men. The fact that young male actors played these characters,...

Originally used to signify a shield or a coat of arms, the term 'blazon' transformed it meaning through the description of virtues or positive attributes, usually of a woman, in late sixteenth century poetry. 'Blazon' can either denote a noun,...

Shakespeare’s classic play, Twelfth Night, tells the story of Viola, a woman who dresses like a man to find a place in Duke Orsino’s court. While working for Orsino, however, Viola falls in love with him, but must hide her feelings in order to...

In the resolution of most of Shakespeare’s comedies, the main characters, almost without exception, find love and happiness. However, this is certainly not the case in Twelfth Night. Whilst the marriages of Olivia and Sebastian, and Orsino and...

As is suggested in Armfield’s 1986 version of Twelfth Night, Orsino is certainly in love with the idea of love, at least at the beginning of the play, as his opening soliloquy is spoken as a performance to the party guests, suggesting that his...

Shakespeare’s play Twelfth Night epitomizes the patriarchal society of the 17th century, rooted within the comedic elements customary to plays during the era. Its modern film adaptation, Andy Fickman’s She’s the Man, encapsulates the essence of...

William Shakespeare’s theatrical comedy Twelfth Night follows the story of Viola, who finds herself entangled in a complicated love triangle between her master, Duke Orsino, and his beloved lady, Olivia. In the finale, Viola ends up falling in...

In Twelfth Night, Shakespeare emphasizes the importance of the roles we play in the lives of those around us through elaborate love triangles and complex characters. Whether we are romantically involved, tied by familial bonds, share a common...

Death, disease and suffering are very important themes in Twelfth Night and multiple charters suffer as a result of disease and death. Orsino suffers through lovesickness, which was a disease at the time and both Olivia and Viola suffer through...