Sarcasm is the most prevalent technique to inspire laughs. The most common character who uses it is Touchstone. He is sarcastic all the time, often making rather indecent comments. While this, taken at face value, is the comedy of the play, it also offers insight to the themes. For instance, Touchstone is often regarded as the most free person, able to say what he wants and do what he wants. This is because he is a fool, and thus can say sarcastic things with double meanings. So perhaps sarcasm helps to illustrate Touchstone's freedom as well. At any rate, Touchstone is a very sarcastic person. I would also say that Jaques uses sarcasm as well, as he constantly berates the court and its arrogant members. So sarcasm can twist the characters in different ways: Touchstone's sarcasm is funny foolery, while Jaques is a bit cynical. The sarcasm throughout the play influences the behavior portrayed by individual characters.
Sarcasm serves to entertain the audience in two ways: as a comedic medium, to make the audience laugh, but also to make the audience think. There is a lot of irony in this play, for instance when "Ganymede" and Orlando talk to one another- the audience is aware of the play on words and the suggestions, although Orlando is not. The sarcasm effects the language used by the characters: with double meanings, perhaps more, there is wittiness, with the obvious literal translation vs. the suggestive slang language. This could tie in to how comedies often can be understood differently by kids and adults, fun for the kids and analytical for the adults, although I think it also just serves to provide a double meaning for any audience. One to understand the plot, another to understand the emotions, and even another to further the theme. Jaques cynicism enables the audience to understand the characters- who Jaques is, who others are around him, as well as the theme of the civilized "court" vs. the "wild" forest. Also, in his world famous speech of the world being a stage: it speaks of Jaques character and what he thinks of the world, one of the themes of the play (of people putting on different personas eg. Rosalind vs. Ganymede in the play world) as well as what Shakespeare says about our world: that at times things can sometimes feel like one is in a movie or a play and that things are "predestined". Also, I think Shakespeare here could be mentioning that as we progress through life we change into different characters- the "schoolboy", the "lover", or the "soldier". Anyways, the sarcasm and irony help establish this. It keeps us on our feet- ideas are changing, things contradict each other- this is because of the sarcasm in the play: the scorn, the derision, the jokes, the cynicism, the irony. When Phoebe scorns Silvius and Rosalind scorns Phoebe, the idea of love contradicts itself. It makes the audience question: what is love?
Sarcasm serves to entertain the audience in two ways: as a comedic medium, to make the audience laugh, but also to make the audience think. There is a lot of irony in this play, for instance when "Ganymede" and Orlando talk to one another- the audience is aware of the play on words and the suggestions, although Orlando is not. The sarcasm effects the language used by the characters: with double meanings, perhaps more, there is wittiness, with the obvious literal translation vs. the suggestive slang language. This could tie in to how comedies often can be understood differently by kids and adults, fun for the kids and analytical for the adults, although I think it also just serves to provide a double meaning for any audience. One to understand the plot, another to understand the emotions, and even another to further the theme. Jaques cynicism enables the audience to understand the characters- who Jaques is, who others are around him, as well as the theme of the civilized "court" vs. the "wild" forest. Also, in his world famous speech of the world being a stage: it speaks of Jaques character and what he thinks of the world, one of the themes of the play (of people putting on different personas eg. Rosalind vs. Ganymede in the play world) as well as what Shakespeare says about our world: that at times things can sometimes feel like one is in a movie or a play and that things are "predestined". Also, I think Shakespeare here could be mentioning that as we progress through life we change into different characters- the "schoolboy", the "lover", or the "soldier". Anyways, the sarcasm and irony help establish this. It keeps us on our feet- ideas are changing, things contradict each other- this is because of the sarcasm in the play: the scorn, the derision, the jokes, the cynicism, the irony. When Phoebe scorns Silvius and Rosalind scorns Phoebe, the idea of love contradicts itself. It makes the audience question: what is love?
Oh, and I just got the pun with my title: sarcasm keeps us on our feet (always throwing new and unexpected things at us, keeping us awake and sharp), and it also keeps us on our feet (for an encore). Interesting.
ReplyDeleteVery nice, Adrienne :) Ms. M
ReplyDeletei like your comparison of jaques and touchstone. personally i think sarcasm is one of the best tools you can use when as a writer becuase it allows for the audience to have some comedic release while also exposing the authors social commentary.i like your last comment about love and how it contradicts itself, through the sarcasm. i talked about love a bit too but it was more about how touchstones' parody of orlandos' poems show how love can be over romanticised and is never that heroic or perfect.i like your perspective about how it urges the audience to ask "what is love?" rather than specifically saying what love is. becuase there is so much duality of ideas in the play it makes sense that he would want you to decide for yourself rather than tell you a simplistic view.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth
I think one of the main ideas Shakespeare is trying to get across is that while Shakespeare has his own opinion about love ("over romanticized", as you say), I think Shakespeare allows the audience to have differing opinions. He is not trying to influence the result of the thinking the audience go through, merely that they think about it in the first place. There is not "right and wrong"- merely just different opinions about different things.
ReplyDeleteHey Adrienne,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post. I think one thing that makes Shakespeare "tick" is that he knows his audience really well. That is such an important aspect to theater. The sarcasm in the play--"the scorn, the derision, the jokes, the cynicism, the irony"--is employed quite cleverly. Shakespeare doesn't shove his commentary down people's throats. He lets his audience ponder and come to their own conclusions. There are two kinds of humor used in the play--Touchstone's lewd, indecent humor and Jaques' intellectual cynicism. I think this is to appeal to the two types of audience members Shakespeare would have had--the bourgeoisie and the aristocracy. I presume they would've really appreciated Shakespeare for giving them the freedom to think as they wanted about love, the court, etc., which I doubt they would've been able to do that often, given the time period.