The Fool In Shakespeare's Twelfth Night

     Deception is a key theme in William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. The characters must use deception to obtain good things, escape bad situations, or to play cruel hilarious ticks on other people. One example of deception is when Viola clothes herself in men's clothing in order to obtain a job under the Duke of Illyria, Orsino. During another scene Sir Andrew, Fabian, Maria, and Sir Toby Belch trick Malvolio into making a fool of himself. A third example of deception is when Feste the jester disguises himself as Sir Topas and taunts Malvolio. Each of these scenes and characters helps depict the different uses of deception.

Many people can be foolish because of the decisions they decide to make, surprisingly even fairies can be fools. In the play A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, fairies are just as fools as humans can be. From Bottom turning into an ass. Puck’s mistake in applying the love potion on the wrong person. Oberon’s decision to apply the love potion on his wife. By looking at the foolishness of Bottom, Puck and Oberon, it is evident that Puck’s statement “Lord what fools these mortals be” can also be applied to fairies

However, within the clown’s humor is some significance, with the clown guiding the audience or reader to ponder his words. The clown frequently is seen conversing with Olivia or Maria, and it is during these conversations that the clown makes his humorous, but thoughtful, commentaries. In Act I Scene V, as the clown speaks with Olivia, he says: “Misprision in the highest degree! Lady, cucullus non facit monachum; that ‘s as much to say as I wear not motley in my brain. Good madonna, give me leave to prove you a fool” (Shakespeare 11). While the clown’s words are humorous in his banter with Olivia about which of the two is a fool, they are words that evoke more in-depth thought in the audience or readers. Later on, as the clown is just about to depart from speaking with Olivia, he makes a few final comments to her, one of them addressing Olivia’s question about what a drunken man is like. The clown replies: “Like a drowned man, a fool and a mad man: one draught above heat makes him a fool; the second mads him; and a third drowns him” (Shakespeare 12-13). Once again, the clown’s words could be perceived as humorous, but require further thought to interpret other meanings. The clown continues to make commentary like the aforementioned throughout the play, and at one point during Act II Scene III, the clown

Human nature has a tendency to be rather foolish. The topic of foolishness is shown and developed throughout Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare. Foolishness is developed using the actions of the characters and through Feste’s observations. This topic is important in this play because it exposes how foolishness is part of human life. The characters in this play act foolish throughout the play.

Fools, ever since their inception these figures have been well known to be able to spread laughter like a plague in the 14th century through 'blissful ignorance.' A fool, however, is not always a fool, for in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, the fool is the mastermind. Feste, the court jester, plays a pivotal role in the play, so far as breaking the stereotype of the average buffoon and actually portraying a man with a razor sharp wit, through his skillful word play, unsolicited yet wise advice, and good ole humor.

After a series of dramatic events, Shakespeare introduces the fool to brighten the situation and in doing so causes the king to have an epiphany. I have noticed that Shakespeare frequently includes a character with the same purpose to that of the Fool, such as, Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream. This fool is intelligent and uses symbolic questions to help King Lear reflect on his heinous actions. For instance, he asks the King "Canst tell how an oyster makes his shell?" The fool answers with an analogy of the King, where the snail is the king and the home is his kingdom. The fool's questions are harshly candid that it appalled me that the King did not berate him for it. Instead, the King does something aberrational for his character; he admits

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the word “fool” can be defined in many ways. A fool can be “a stupid or silly person”, or “one who is made to appear foolish”, a dupe, a jester, or “one who lacks good sense or judgement”. The average child would see clowns or their fathers as silly fools. The more mature mind would describe fools as drunkards or annoying coworkers. While the many definitions above are valid, they are not as accurate in describing Feste the Fool in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.

The fool uses his humor as an excuse to criticize and show the truths in Lear. This character is able to get away with talking down to King Lear even though the fool is a very low ranking social position. In addition, “A fool could say and do things an ordinary

With every good story, there must be reason to the madness. With every great story, the audience is left to question their own thoughts over time. But what really makes a story great? Is it love and good will throughout where in the end nearly everyone is happy and all is well? Shakespeare’s play, Twelfth Night, or What You Will is an example of exactly this happy ending story. Or is it the taboo and transgressions of a story’s characters that make it great? Such as in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet; the deceitful actions of betrayal, death and incestuous behavior of the characters certainly leave the audience asking question far after the play has ended. What is the meaning? (Beha BR18) The characters in Shakespeare’s Hamlet are very diverse in personality and in their roles. Herein lie the questions: How do the characters differ and how do their roles impact others and ultimately affect the play?

In his famous comedy, Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare took a conventional comedic concept and constructed a fool character that inserts an intricacy and resonance to his work. This fool is completely placed distant from society and moreover disregards or is unable to reflect the model of society in which he finds himself. The fool is identified as the inferior in society, where he stands lower in the class system. Olivia states this notion by saying “There is no slander in an allowed fool though he do nothing but rail” (I.v. 83-84). The fool in Twelfth Night, Feste, whose insider-outsider position as a professional fool, supports him to obtain steadiness among the surrounding contradictions in a way that is unlike any other character in this play. He stuns and puzzles; persuades conjecture; and he works as a mediator between the play and audience. As stated by Walter Kaiser, it is when Feste mocks the characters’ flaws and turns to his wits to “create laughter, to teach us the truth, and to embody paradoxes.” By walking on this fine line, Feste reveals the foolishness and truths of the other characters.

Throughout William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, Feste exemplifies the role of a jester and fool, but thoroughly demonstrates to his audience that there is more to him than the other characters might see. Feste is often degraded by his fellow associates, and deemed inferior to others because they view him for his “lack of wits,” but very few of them realize that Feste is anything but a fool. Feste is Olivia's personal and professional fool, and is therefore given the license to kill (with words). In the first scene that Feste is introduced to the reader, he is immediately stereotyped for being the usual joker, and he even plays along with the part that others reckon him to play. In this scene, Feste wittily

After attending Texas Theatre and Dance’s full play production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, I am decently surprised to realize that the ‘Romantic Comedy’ genre can be timeless when done properly. This play, written in year 1601, still manages to translate the hardships of infatuation, loss, and gender identity surprisingly well to a modern audience. In this production, the tragedies of the main characters turn into an awkward love triangle in which no one is who they seem. Although the play Twelfth Night appears to be all about love and the characters endeavors to gain each other’s affection, it is clear that none of the characters are truly in love.

The language of this scene has a variation in text. It is sometimes comedic like when

In William Shakespeare's comedy Twelfth Night, it is ironic how many times the fool is said to be dishonest, when, in fact, his role proves entirely opposite. Though sometimes the characters do not realize his hidden messages, the reader can instantly comprehend Feste's figurative language, which is evident in every scene in which the fool appears. Whether he is singing to Orsino, arguing with Malvolio, or playing around with Viola, Feste always manages to sneak in a few symbolic foretokens before his exit. His keen eye and fast wit help him to actively partake in the portrayal of the story, however, the fool is merely present to express that which cannot be fully expressed through the

The audience is kept on their toes as they experience Romeo and Juliet for the first time. Romeo believes that Juliet has died, and contemplates death himself, “For fear of that, I still will stay with thee, /And never from this palace of dim night/Depart again” (5.3.115-17). “Don’t do it!” the crowd may whisper, as Romeo drinks the liquid of death. Little does Romeo know, Juliet has faked her death. The crowd is in sorrow for the tragic and gratuitous death of the beloved character as he sacrifices his life for love. The last lines of Romeo are a display of dramatic irony, after death, Romeo may not acknowledge his mistake. Only the audience will know of Juliet’s decision to fake her death. Shakespeare is able to use irony to a great extent in his plays, and Twelfth Night is no exception to this