( Act 3, Scene 1.)
S h ak esp eare’s C om edies
Shakespeare’s com edies did not establish a lasting tradition in
the theatre, as did those written by Ben Jonson. Jonson’s plays
portray the everyday life o f their time with the exaggerated satirical
characters. Shakespeare’s com edies are composed on opposite
principles. The scenes o f his com edies are usually set in some
imaginary country, and the action is based on stories that are almost
fairy-tails. But the characters, placed in these non-realistic settings
and plots, are true-to-life and are depicted with the deep knowledge
o f human psychology for which Shakespeare is famous. Each
comedy has the main plot and one or two sub-plots, and sometimes
sub-plots attract even more attention than the main plots. The
com ic characters o f these plays always have English colouring,
even if the scene is laid in other countries.
All these plays are written in easy-flow ing verse and light,
tripping prose. The text is full o f jokes and puns, but some o f the
texts contain topical allusions, which are hard to understand for
the readers o f our time. All the com edies tell o f love and harmony,
at first disturbed, and finally restored. In them Shakespeare
supports the right o f a human being to free choice in love, despite
the existing conventions and customs. More often Shakespeare
em bodies this tendency in female characters. His typical com edy
heroines are brave, noble, free in speech, and enthusiastic.
Another m otif stressed in the com edies is the contrast between
appearance and reality. Shakespeare makes his readers understand
Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: |
