This is an important opportunity to take a look at what I have been able to accomplish while looking at how Shakespeare uses spontaneity and volatility in relationships in his plays. In my hub post, I give a pretty good overview of what I wanted to accomplish, but it may be that I need to rethink my direction.
My original main direction: How do characters have such quick changes in emotion and then manage to have successful relationships?
Ways I tried to answer the main question:
- Othello As a Case Study- I talk about Othello's seeming change of emotion, and how that is actually not the case. Othello does not experience volatile love, because he still loves Desdemona when he kills her. His type of love can be considered "idolatrous" because his manifestation of love is the equivalent of worship.
- Love is an Ever-fixed Mark- Here is a more textual interpretation of Sonnet 116. I wanted to contrast the poem with some of the ideas conveyed in Shakespeare's plays. I came to the conclusion that inconstancy in love is not really love at all. Therefore, in the case of Romeo and his previous love before Juliet, that was not really love because it changed. (This particular entry is still a work in progress.)
- Macbeth the Movie- Here I just wanted to see if I could see any semblance of love in a play that emphasizes the wickedness of one man and his wife. They are in a marital relationship, but it almost seems more like a business partnership. This only had a nominal connection with my focus.
- Shakespeare's Own Romance- This is where I compared Shakespeare's life with this theme of spontaneity in relationships. It turns out that he had a bit of a shot-gun wedding (or sword-point, whichever you prefer). I compared the rashness of his own marriage to that of Romeo and Juliet. Yet we are fairly certain that Shakespeare did in fact love his wife, as he dedicated poetry to her throughout his life.
- There are connections between Shakespeare's life and the themes of love he used in his plays.
- Constancy is still valued more by Shakespeare than volatility and spontaneity.
- Sometimes love is replaced by lust in his plays.
- Love takes different forms in Shakespeare's plays, just as it does in real life, but amplified.
Working Thesis (from conclusions):
Shakespeare, while drawing instances of love from his own life, tries to capture the essence of what true love is in each of his plays (and sonnets), while differentiating each situation with varying circumstances.
Clearly this needs a little help. Any suggestions? New directions?
