The Duchess of Malfi Essay - 2618 Words

The principal characters and their roles We follow after bubbles, blown in thair. Pleasure of life, what ist? Only the good hours of an ague The Jacobean age was one of questioning and uncertainty about many issues, such as religion, politics and law. At the same time it was rediscovering the potency of Classical texts of Rome and Greece, and reinterpreting tragic form to suit its own ends. The Duchess of Malfi is a revenge tragedy, but Webster has used the form for much more than just its entertainment value; he has used it as a vehicle for the exploration of some themes relevant to the society of his time. Webster based his plot on a true story set in Italy, and kept the Italian setting because like Shakespeare and other†¦show more content†¦He is a good man, but has been no match for the situation in which Webster placed him. Antonio is introduced into the play as an outsider to Amalfi, returning home along with his confidant Delio. Delio can be perceived as a more intelligent character than Antonio; almost the counsellors counsellor, and more down-to-earth than his friend. Their dialogue serves to introduce the audience to the theme of how a well-governed court could be run, which will contrast dramatically to the corrupt Antonio will find at Amalfi. At the court they encounter Bosola, the malcontent, who later likens the virtuous Antonio to a cedar planted by a spring, an image which contrasts to Bololas view of the Aragon brothers (The Duchesss brothers: The Cardinal and Ferdinand) as, plum trees, that grow crooked [Act 1, Scene i] Being of lower social status, Antonio is perhaps an unlikely match for the scheming Duchess, and being an honest man he is uncomfortable with the plotting and deceit in which he becomes involved. Antonio is considered to be equal to the Duchess in that he has acquired the level of education necessary to be a counsellor; he has gained status, in terms of the Renaissance humanist tradition, by absorbing scholarship in order to improve himself, but as he well knows himself, he can never equal The Duchess in blood. His predicament shows that as well as creating him as a character in his own right, Webster is using him as aShow MoreRelatedThe Duchess of Malfi1313 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿The princely powers of the Duchess of Malfi The Tragedy of the Dutchesse of Malfy, originally published under this name in 1623, is a Jacobean drama written by John Webster in 1612-13. The play starts off as a love story with the Duchess secretly marrying the steward of the household Antonio; a man beneath her class who she has fallen in love with. This marriage immediately shows the Duchess’ â€Å"princely powers† by defying the wishes of her brothers, Ferdinand and the Cardinal, to not marry againRead MoreConnotation Of The Duchess Of Malfi1536 Words   |  7 PagesWidow in â€Å"The Duchess of Malfi† In Webster’s play, â€Å"The Duchess of Malfi†, the Duchess of Malfi is not trusted by her two brothers. The Cardinal and Ferdinand are worried that the Duchess will marry someone when they leave to go to Rome, which could jeopardize their ties to the Duchess’s inheritance when she dies. Although the Duchess reassures them both that she will not remarry, Ferdinand and The Cardinal continually to threaten the Duchess. 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The Duchess inherited her political power from her dead husband, whom was the former duke of Malfi. The duchess has two brothers, the Cardinal and Ferdinand, they are both perversely corrupt, refusing to allow the duchess to remarry. The whole play The DuchessRead MoreThe Duchess Of Malfi, By William Shakespeare1161 Words   |  5 PagesIn Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi, the forces of good and evil seem to be constantly at war. From the beginning of Act I to the end of Act V, the audience witnesses these two elements struggle against one another through each character’s actions or intentions as well as through various points of imagery. Despite the fact that the Duchess is murdered at the end of Act IV, Act V reveals that even in times of immense tragedy and evil-doing, good ultimately conquers all. Evil is easily sighted in theRead MoreThe Princely Powers of the Duchess of Malfi849 Words   |  3 Pages1612-13. The play starts off as a love story with the Duchess secretly marrying the steward of the household Antonio; a man beneath her class who she has fallen in love with. This marriage immediately shows the Duchess’ â€Å"princely powers† by defying the wishes of her brothers, Ferdinand and the Cardinal, to not marry again after being widowed. Webster portrays her brother Ferdinand’s power as a corrupted duplicate of an ideal. An ideal that the Duchess reaches through the drag of patriarchy. However theRead MoreThe princely powers of the Duchess of Malfi1040 Words   |  4 PagesJacobean drama written by John Webster in 1612-13. The play starts off as a love story with the Duchess secretly marrying the steward of the household Antonio; a man beneath her class who she has fallen in love with. This marriage immediately shows the Duchess’ â€Å"pr incely powers† by defying the wishes of her brothers, Ferdinand and the Cardinal, to not marry again after being widowed. â€Å"The Duchess of Malfi is ostensibly a story of resistance of a wilful widow who actively defies her brothers’ wishesRead MoreComparing Hamlet And The Duchess Of Malfi2373 Words   |  10 PagesCompare the depictions of Madness in Hamlet and The Duchess of Malfi. What is the significance of madness in each play? During the late sixteenth century, dramas an plays became a big role in entertainment and madness became one of the major themes, as Salkeld recognises that the use of madness as a metaphor for subversion became increasingly marked throughout the first half of the seventeenth century . (Salkeld, 1994, pg.144)This madness created a spark within the Elizabethan era and causedRead MoreThe Duchess Of Malfi By John Webster1260 Words   |  6 PagesWritten by John Webster, The Duchess of Malfi is an exquisite play filled with plot-twists, tragic moments, and stupendous actors who have studied under some of the greats. One actress in particular, playing the Duchess of Malfi is Ms. Julie Granata-Hunicutt , studied the works of Ms. Uta Hagen. She successfully demonstrated some of these magnificent techniques in the show tonight; I very much urge others to go and see the well-executed work for themselves. For the purpose of this analysis essayRead More`` Duchess Of Malfi `` : The Life And Times Essay1410 Words   |  6 PagesBosola, the life and times. In John Webster’s Duchess of Malfi, much of the play revolves around themes of social status and class, and within this construct, relationships and honor that result from these statuses. However, one character shines through though they are far from royalty. He’s far from front and center- rather, you’re much more likely to see him sneaking around the perimeters and eavesdropping on any conversations he can hear. Bosola seems to have been dealt a rough hand by his