Twelfth Night Comedy Analysis Essay

Shakespeare's application of comedic conventions is integral as it enhances the plot resulting in an engaging play, in conjunction with maintaining relevance in the 21st century. Through disguise and love interests, Shakespeare composed an entertaining play that epitomises the dynamics of human interaction and how a disguise formulates as a façade. Luke Edley's quote, "complicated interaction between people", accurately encapsulates Shakespeare's predominant influence. Viola's disguise has compelled the audience, with many comedic events arise due to the confusion and mistaken identities. Viola's disguise causes her incapability to express her love for Orsino; on the contrary, Olivia falls in love with her male identity. A quote that utilises oblique reference in Act 2, Scene 4 portrays Viola's struggles to hide her emotions through this male disguise, as she feels jealous for not receiving Orsino's reciprocated love. "Say that some lady, as perhaps there is, hath for your love a great a pang of heart as you have for Olivia." This dialogue, communicated by Viola, refers to her feelings about Orsino's passion for getting Olivia to fall in love despite being rejected multiple times. This other persona Viola refers to is herself and articulating her emotions, as Orsino acts egocentric, striving for Olivia's adoration. Furthermore, Viola's disguise provokes comedy in Act 2, Scene 2, when Countess Olivia had openly expressed her undeniable love through the ring she delivered, and it escalates as Viola comprehends this epiphany. "O time! thou must untangle this, not I; It is too hard a knot for me t'untie!". Shakespeare's soliloquy utilises a rhymed couplet, which exhibits that Viola cannot win Orsino's love nor return Olivia's. Viola is aware of the betrayal Orsino would experience if Olivia love towards Cesario was revealed. She contemplates the complications and distresses her male identity has given her, hoping time will solve this entanglement. The ground-breaking usage of disguise to produce an engrossing romantic relationship is used in 21st-century texts. A modern-day example that incorporates disguise and love interest ingeniously to develop a comedic plot is Aladdin (2019). Jasmine and Aladdin disguise themselves as people they aspire to personify, initiating romantic interactions between the unidentified individuals. Modern-day movies demonstrate how Shakespeare had established the employment of disguise in comedic precedence related to love interest and reveals the role identity plays in human interactions. Without a doubt, Shakespeare's prestigious usage of comedic conventions in 'Twelfth Night' revolutionised 21st Century texts while remaining relevant to modern-day society.