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Theme Of Existentialism In As You Like It

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The play to be reviewed is As You Like It, written by William Shakespeare. The prevailing philosophy throughout the play is existentialism. What is existentialism? Existentialism can be defined through its ontology. Ontology is the study of the nature of reality and is also called the theory of reality. The ontology of existentialism can be discussed in under concepts of man and existence. In the concept of man, existentialists believe that man is not bound by any antecedent human nature but rather free to determine its own nature. It opposed those deterministic theories (ex. inborn talents, predestined path of life, etc.) and favoured principle of indeterminism. To be a man is to be undetermined, to be free. Man has the freedom to choose and …show more content…

As quoted from Marcel, ‘to exist’ means not just to be ‘present to my own aware-ness’ but also to be a manifest being. “I exist—that is as much to say: I have something to make myself known and recognized both by others and by myself”. In conclusion, existentialism is not about man as an absolute being but rather a relative and subjective one. As long as a man exists, there is always a room for him to revise and correct himself and has a future that is not determined by his innate nature, birthright, etc. The most important values on existentialism are freedom of choice and individuality. As You Like It is a play written by William Shakespeare and is classified as “marriage comedy” together with the plays Twelfth Night and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The list of main characters includes Duke Frederick: the usurper of the throne of Duke Senior which is also his brother; Celia (aka Aliena): the daughter of Duke Frederick; Rosalind (aka Ganymede): the daughter of Duke Senior; Touchstone: the court’s clown; Sons of the late Sir Rowland de Boys (of decreasing age): Oliver, Jaques, Orlando; Adam: a loyal servant to Sir Rowland and his sons; Amiens and Jaques: Lords that are banished with Duke Senior; Corin and Silvius: Sheperds in the forest of Arden; Phebe: a

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