Measure for Measure Essay: Angelo

Claudio's sister Isabella is dragged out of the convent to plead for him, on the assumption that her superior virtue might move Angelo's heart to pardon her brother. Does it? No. Rather, it pierces right through Angelo's cold Puritanism and sets his heart and other bits on fire. We see through this carefully controlled man into the roaring pit that he has tried so hard to conceal. He falls a victim to the very passion he is prosecuting in Claudio; in doing so, he comes to represent the conflict between good and evil in Vienna as he struggles with the knowledge that he cannot control his own desires.

The prince is introduced as the person who tries to maintain order and peace in Verona; he does this firstly by calling to the mob. “Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace,” By addressing them as rebellious he shows them as being outside of the law. He also threatens them with torture to control the citizens so he has to address them with ferocity. This is something that the audience would relate to because peace existed at his time during Elizabeth’s rule. However to remain in power

"I cannot be intimidated from doing that which my judgment and conscience tell me is right by any earthly power."

“The government is merely a servant -- merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn't. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.”

respect for the threat fear poses to reason.” (23) He is saying that having fear will affect our

Measure 11. This is the law that gives people a mandatory minimum sentence starting at 5 years 10 months, and going up all the way to 25 years in prison. The law gives a list of about 21 crimes that, if committed by a person, come with a set amount of time that must be served day for day by the offender, without any chance of good-time, work-time, or the possibility of a second look. Applying to ages 15 and up, this law takes the power out of the judge’s hands when it comes to sentencing someone, and forces the judge to give a mandatory minimum sentence regardless of the specific circumstances involving the case at hand. The Measure 11 laws, which range from Arson to Murder, carry a heavy minimum sentence starting at 5 years 10 months to

”Unjust law is no law at all.” In face of unjust laws, merely tolerance and obeying could be detrimental not only to personal rights but also to the well-being of the society. Therefore, it is indeed every people’s responsibility to disobey or even resist them. As we know during the sixties of America a number of citizens decided not to obey the law which itself is unjust and wrong any longer. Without their resistance, there wouldn’t have been the civil rights movement, anti-war

"Any law that uplifts human personality is just. Any law that degrades human personality is unjust.”

Lucio's only explanation of why Angelo is a harsh ruler is because he thinks that Angelo doesn't understand human vulnerabilities: as aforementioned a propensity to lust and covet. And though Lucio is deceived, he makes a strong case for innate depravity by his reference to that "natural edge" (1.4.60) that all struggle with. Furthermore, Angelo seems to be even more pure, by trying

The appointment of Angelo as deputy is complex, to say the least, and can be variously interpreted. We could assume that the Duke's remarks display his awareness of the hypocrisy of personally enforcing the law -

Not only was life at home difficult for Francis, he also grew up in an atmosphere of civil war. Italy decided to retaliate against the pressing German empire. After a period of fighting with the Germans and resistance to Innocent III, Assisians lived in a very brief time of peace. The peace did not sustain long. Perugia, Assisi’s rival, declared war. Battle between the two communities would last for nearly a decade. Francis was not just a bystander during this period. “Francis fought in it bravely, was taken prisoner, and carried away as a hostage to Perugia.” He would remain in prison for a year. After his release, he became depressed and fell ill.

Niccolò Machiavelli was an activist of analyzing power. He believed firmly in his theories and he wanted to persuade everyone else of them as well. To comment on the common relationship that was seen between moral goodness and legitimate authority of those who held power, Machiavelli said that authority and power were essentially coequal.9 He believed that whomever had power obtained the right to command; but goodness does not ensure power. This implied that the only genuine apprehension of the administrative power was the attainment and preservation of powers which indirectly guided the maintenance of the state. That, to him, should have been the objective of all leaders. Machiavelli believed that one should do whatever it took, during the given circumstance, to keep his people in favor of him and to maintain the state. Thus, all leaders should have both a sly fox and ravenous wolf inside of him prepared to release when necessary.10

His cheekiness from the beginning of the story vanishes, and he comes to terms with the inevitability that he must submit to the law – as it is big and powerful enough that his own individual case is

“Law can only prohibit such actions as are hurtful to society. Nothing may be prevented which is not forbidden by law, and no one may be forced to do anything not provided for by law”

about the duke in the poem by what he says and how he says it. Through