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A review by charlote_1347
Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare
5.0
SOME SPOILERS AHEAD.
‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore’ already primed me for ‘Twelfth Night’ and my excitement doubled when I realised ‘She’s the Man’, one of my favourite films, was based on this play. I started Act 1 Scene 1 with huge expectations and they were more than met.
Scene 1 tossed me straight into the deep-end with beautiful language and speeches on my favourite subject: love. Curio and Valentine were an effective contrast to the love-struck Duke and the dynamic between them did well to set the tone for the rest of the play.
Scene 2 saw Viola and the sea-captain introduced. Again, I liked the formulaic structure of their dialogue. Viola’s plan to pose as a eunuch in the Duke’s court seemed more plausible after seeing her discount all other options first.
Scene 3 lobbed Sir Toby, a drunkard; Maria, a busybody and Sir Andrew, an easily-led fool, into the mix. While their comic presence was not as necessary as in some of Shakespeare’s more serious plays, they added a welcome hilarity to the plot.
After the time jump in Scene 4 in which Viola was instructed to woo Olivia on the Duke’s behalf, Scene 5 focused on Olivia and her servants. Feste, the fool, made his first appearance. With Olivia’s other servants later engineering a prank in the play, Feste’s role as ‘the clown’ was jeopardised. He overcame this by showing his serious side and became quite a unique and important figure in the play. Olivia’s character was an ambiguously fascinating one because she seemed to adopt appropriate behaviour depending on her company. There was a stated difference, for example, in the way she addressed the Duke and Viola and I would love to see that difference performed on the stage.
Act 2 Scene 1 mimicked the structure of Act 1 Scene 1, which helped to make the play feel more concise. It also welcomed Antonio and Sebastian into the story. I wasn’t too fond of Sebastian’s broodiness but I let it go, since he was labouring under the assumption that his twin sister had drowned in the shipwreck.
Scene 2 was one of my favourite scenes because of the theme it explored: cross-dressing and the consequences of mistaken identity. Viola vocalised her struggle to hold on to her identity as a woman and her inability to “untangle” the “knot” that her deception had tied.
Scene 3 saw the plan to prank Malvolio come into being but Scene 4 was where the magic lay. Dramatic irony was used to maximum effect in this scene as the Duke questioned Viola about her preference in a partner, not knowing about her disguise. Her replies were, like Olivia’s character, ambiguous. They could have been said playfully or seriously or shyly. The Duke’s were equally vague. He seemed to shoot down every word out of Viola’s mouth but he did pursue the conversation. Their dynamic in this scene was one I’d love to see on the stage.
Scene 5 impressed me because I finally got to learn where the phrase: “some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon ‘em” came from.
Act 3 had a faster pace than the other Acts, but not to its detriment. Scene 1 saw the framework for the duel established and it had Olivia confessing her feelings to Viola and Viola rejecting them. I thought Viola’s rejection of Olivia’s feelings was a startlingly insightful one, considering the role Shakespeare’s other female characters often play in his dramas. I was impressed.
Scene 2 was a stop-gap for the later action. Nothing significant happened. Scene 3, on the other hand, confirmed Sebastian’s arrival in Illyria and signalled the ‘beginning of the end’. It was oddly thoughtless of Sebastian to insist on sight-seeing considering Antonio's circumstances - I didn’t know how to feel about that. Then Antonio gave Sebastian his money and my heart broke. Antonio became my bestie in that moment, mainly because I wanted to wrap him in a blanket and hide him somewhere safe so he wouldn’t get hurt.
Scene 4 ran significantly longer than its predecessors. I can’t recall exactly what happened – it contained the whole duel debacle, which I found humorous. Malvolio’s imprisonment was in there somewhere too but I’d lost interest by then. The prank had gone from good-natured malice to pure cruelty and I can’t get behind that.
Act 4 kick-started the confused climax. Feste mistook Sebastian for Viola , as did Sir Toby and Sir Andrew. They launched into an attack, which Sebastian valiantly defended against, and then Olivia made her entrance. She reprimanded Toby for his behaviour and laid a heartfelt apology at Seb’s feet. What fool would reject her in that moment? Certainly not Sebastian. He counted his blessings and toddled off with her.
Scene 2 showed the torment Malvolio was put through, which again I didn’t appreciate. It made me severely dislike Sir Toby and Sir Andrew, although I felt strangely forgiving towards Feste and Maria.
Scene 3, the final scene in Act 4, saw Olivia making the most of Seb’s sudden compliance with a betrothal ceremony. I found it cringe-worthy that Sebastian agreed to marry her purely on account of her beauty but I knew what I was getting into when I cracked open the play.
Act 5 moved quickly but it wasn’t overwhelming. The whole play was unwrapped and every issue was resolved in the one, long scene. It was a sweet conclusion devoid of tragedy and it fit the two-weddings mould. Shakespeare even allowed for an extra marriage between Sir Toby and Maria. Sebastian and Viola got their reunion. Malvolio was freed from his prison but denied vengeance. I completely agreed with his temper tantrum, if I’m being honest. The ‘nobles’ only laughed at his expense and spoke to him with belittling pity. Antonio was spared his punishment, I assume. All’s well that end’s well.
My final thoughts on the play were these: it was a heartfelt comedy with some grave moments. I liked the scenes with blunt honesty almost as much as I liked those with humour and lovey-dovey emotions – they balanced one another out and made the play so much more than a silly story about mistaken identity. Definitely a five-star read and a fitting example of Shakespeare’s skill.
‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore’ already primed me for ‘Twelfth Night’ and my excitement doubled when I realised ‘She’s the Man’, one of my favourite films, was based on this play. I started Act 1 Scene 1 with huge expectations and they were more than met.
Scene 1 tossed me straight into the deep-end with beautiful language and speeches on my favourite subject: love. Curio and Valentine were an effective contrast to the love-struck Duke and the dynamic between them did well to set the tone for the rest of the play.
Scene 2 saw Viola and the sea-captain introduced. Again, I liked the formulaic structure of their dialogue. Viola’s plan to pose as a eunuch in the Duke’s court seemed more plausible after seeing her discount all other options first.
Scene 3 lobbed Sir Toby, a drunkard; Maria, a busybody and Sir Andrew, an easily-led fool, into the mix. While their comic presence was not as necessary as in some of Shakespeare’s more serious plays, they added a welcome hilarity to the plot.
After the time jump in Scene 4 in which Viola was instructed to woo Olivia on the Duke’s behalf, Scene 5 focused on Olivia and her servants. Feste, the fool, made his first appearance. With Olivia’s other servants later engineering a prank in the play, Feste’s role as ‘the clown’ was jeopardised. He overcame this by showing his serious side and became quite a unique and important figure in the play. Olivia’s character was an ambiguously fascinating one because she seemed to adopt appropriate behaviour depending on her company. There was a stated difference, for example, in the way she addressed the Duke and Viola and I would love to see that difference performed on the stage.
Act 2 Scene 1 mimicked the structure of Act 1 Scene 1, which helped to make the play feel more concise. It also welcomed Antonio and Sebastian into the story. I wasn’t too fond of Sebastian’s broodiness but I let it go, since he was labouring under the assumption that his twin sister had drowned in the shipwreck.
Scene 2 was one of my favourite scenes because of the theme it explored: cross-dressing and the consequences of mistaken identity. Viola vocalised her struggle to hold on to her identity as a woman and her inability to “untangle” the “knot” that her deception had tied.
Scene 3 saw the plan to prank Malvolio come into being but Scene 4 was where the magic lay. Dramatic irony was used to maximum effect in this scene as the Duke questioned Viola about her preference in a partner, not knowing about her disguise. Her replies were, like Olivia’s character, ambiguous. They could have been said playfully or seriously or shyly. The Duke’s were equally vague. He seemed to shoot down every word out of Viola’s mouth but he did pursue the conversation. Their dynamic in this scene was one I’d love to see on the stage.
Scene 5 impressed me because I finally got to learn where the phrase: “some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon ‘em” came from.
Act 3 had a faster pace than the other Acts, but not to its detriment. Scene 1 saw the framework for the duel established and it had Olivia confessing her feelings to Viola and Viola rejecting them. I thought Viola’s rejection of Olivia’s feelings was a startlingly insightful one, considering the role Shakespeare’s other female characters often play in his dramas. I was impressed.
Scene 2 was a stop-gap for the later action. Nothing significant happened. Scene 3, on the other hand, confirmed Sebastian’s arrival in Illyria and signalled the ‘beginning of the end’. It was oddly thoughtless of Sebastian to insist on sight-seeing considering Antonio's circumstances - I didn’t know how to feel about that. Then Antonio gave Sebastian his money and my heart broke. Antonio became my bestie in that moment, mainly because I wanted to wrap him in a blanket and hide him somewhere safe so he wouldn’t get hurt.
Scene 4 ran significantly longer than its predecessors. I can’t recall exactly what happened – it contained the whole duel debacle, which I found humorous. Malvolio’s imprisonment was in there somewhere too but I’d lost interest by then. The prank had gone from good-natured malice to pure cruelty and I can’t get behind that.
Act 4 kick-started the confused climax. Feste mistook Sebastian for Viola , as did Sir Toby and Sir Andrew. They launched into an attack, which Sebastian valiantly defended against, and then Olivia made her entrance. She reprimanded Toby for his behaviour and laid a heartfelt apology at Seb’s feet. What fool would reject her in that moment? Certainly not Sebastian. He counted his blessings and toddled off with her.
Scene 2 showed the torment Malvolio was put through, which again I didn’t appreciate. It made me severely dislike Sir Toby and Sir Andrew, although I felt strangely forgiving towards Feste and Maria.
Scene 3, the final scene in Act 4, saw Olivia making the most of Seb’s sudden compliance with a betrothal ceremony. I found it cringe-worthy that Sebastian agreed to marry her purely on account of her beauty but I knew what I was getting into when I cracked open the play.
Act 5 moved quickly but it wasn’t overwhelming. The whole play was unwrapped and every issue was resolved in the one, long scene. It was a sweet conclusion devoid of tragedy and it fit the two-weddings mould. Shakespeare even allowed for an extra marriage between Sir Toby and Maria. Sebastian and Viola got their reunion. Malvolio was freed from his prison but denied vengeance. I completely agreed with his temper tantrum, if I’m being honest. The ‘nobles’ only laughed at his expense and spoke to him with belittling pity. Antonio was spared his punishment, I assume. All’s well that end’s well.
My final thoughts on the play were these: it was a heartfelt comedy with some grave moments. I liked the scenes with blunt honesty almost as much as I liked those with humour and lovey-dovey emotions – they balanced one another out and made the play so much more than a silly story about mistaken identity. Definitely a five-star read and a fitting example of Shakespeare’s skill.