Background of The Two Gentlemen of Verona

Shakespeare took this play's story from a long Spanish prose romance
called Diana, by Jorge
deMontemayor. He added new characters--including
alentine, one of the !"wo #entlemen,! whose
!ideal! friendship with $roteus is so
de%eloped that the plot is more than a lo%e story& indeed, the play glori'es
friendship to an e(tent that, by modern con%entions, is absurd. "he abrupt last
scene suggests that something has gone wrong with the te(t, and certainly
Shakespeare was ne%er again so ready to abandon common sense in moti%ating the
beha%iour of his lo%ers. )ut it is also clear that Shakespeare is here feeling his way
toward a new kind of high comedy, later to 'nd e(pression in "he Merchant of
enice and "welfth *ight.
Montemayor also spelled M+*",M+- .b. c. /012, Montemoro-
elho, 3oimbra,
$ort.--d. 4eb. 15, /05/, "urin, duchy of Sa%oy 67taly89, $ortuguese-born author
of romances and
poetry who wrote the 'rst Spanish pastoral no%el.Montemayor probably
came to Spain in /0:;
with $hilip 77's 'rst wife, Mary, as a musician. He later entered the household
of Joan, daughter-
in-law of John 777 of $ortugal, and he accompanied $hilip 77 to ,ngland in /0::.
He was
murdered in the $iedmont. His most famous literary work, the pastoral no%el
Diana ./00<9, was
inspired in part by Jacopo Sanna==aro's pastoral romance >rcadia. Diana
went through many
editions, was widely translated, and started a literary fashion in the
-enaissance that spread
also to 4rance, the ?ow 3ountries, and #ermany. 7n ,ngland, @illiam
Shakespeare used
)artholomew Aoung's translation of it as a source for his play "he "wo
#entlemen of erona.
Summary
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
@illiam Shakespeare
)osom buddies alentine and $roteus bid a tearful farewell on a street
in erona. alentine is oB to impro%e himself, %enturing out to see the world,
while $roteus stays home in erona, tied by his lo%e for Julia. >fter alentine
departs, his ser%ant, Speed, enters. $roteus inCuires whether or not Speed
deli%ered a letter to Julia, to which Speed replies aDrmati%ely. Julia,
meanwhile, asks her maid, ?ucetta, with which man she should fall in lo%e,
and ?ucetta recommends $roteus. ?ucetta admits that she has a letter for
Julia from $roteus. >fter much bickering, Julia tears up the letter, only to
regret this act an instant later. >ntonio decides to send $roteus, his son, to
the Duke's court in Milan, a decision with which neither $roteus nor Julia is
particularly happy. "hey e(change rings and promises to keep lo%ing each
other. Meanwhile, alentine has fallen in lo%e with the Duke's feisty
daughter, Sil%ia. @hen $roteus arri%es at court, he too falls in lo%e with
Sil%ia, and %ows to do anything he can to win her away from alentine. @hen
alentine confesses that he and Sil%ia plan to elope, $roteus noti'es the
Duke of their plans, gaining fa%or for himself and eBecting alentine's
banishment from court. )ack in erona, Julia has hatched a plan to disguise
herself as a man so that she can Eourney to Milan to be reunited with $roteus.
Fpon arri%ing at court, she witnesses $roteus and "hurio wooing Sil%ia.
"he banished alentine, while tra%eling to Mantua, is apprehended by
a group of outlaws. "he outlaws, all of whom are banished gentlemen as
well, demand alentine to become their king. Since they threaten to kill him
if he refuses, alentine accepts. Sil%ia and Julia, who is disguised as the page
Sebastian, meet when Julia deli%ers the ring $roteus had gi%en her to Sil%ia
on behalf of $roteus. Julia does not re%eal her identity. Sil%ia calls on her
friend Sir ,glamour to help her escape her father's oppressi%e will .he wants
her to marry "hurio9 and to 'nd alentine. Howe%er, while tra%eling through
the forest, she and ,glamour are o%ertaken by a band of outlaws. ,glamour
runs away, lea%ing Sil%ia to fend for herself against the outlaws. )y this time,
the Duke, $roteus, and "hurio, with SebastianGJulia in tow, ha%e organi=ed a
search party for Sil%ia.
$roteus wrests Sil%ia away from the outlaws. alentine watches the
interaction unseen. $roteus demands that Sil%ia gi%e him some sign of her
fa%or for freeing her, but she refuses. He tries to rape her for her resistance,
but alentine Eumps out and stops him. $roteus immediately apologi=es, and
alentine oBers to gi%e him Sil%ia as a token of their friendship. >t this
moment, Sebastian faints and his true identity becomes clear. $roteus
decides that he really lo%es Julia better than Sil%ia, and takes her instead.
"he Duke reali=es that "hurio is a thug and says that alentine is far nobler
and can marry Sil%ia. alentine asks for clemency for the outlaws, and
suggests that his marriage to Sil%ia and $roteus' marriage to Julia should take
place on the same day.
Characters and Characterization of The Two Gentlemen of
Verona
Valentine - > young gentleman of erona, he goes to Milan to broaden his
education and become familiar with courtly customs. alentine is the name
of two 7talian saints, one of whom is the patron saint of lo%ers. 7n The Two
Gentlemen of Verona, alentine tries to follow the rules traditionally set forth
for young men who are head o%er heels in lo%e. 7n se%eral scenes, he
demonstrates his familiarity with the language of lo%e, though it's
Cuestionable how much he understands about lo%e itself. "he other title
gentlemen of erona. He is $roteus' best friend, and Sil%ia's lo%e. )anished to
the forest after $roteus betrays his plan to elope with Sil%ia to the Duke,
alentine becomes king of the outlaws.
Silvia - Daughter to the Duke and belo%ed of alentine, also sought after by
$roteus and "hurio. Sil%ia commiserates with Sebastian o%er the wrong that
$roteus has done to Julia. She escapes her father's palace with the help of Sir
,glamour, who abandons her at the sight of the outlaws. "he duke's
daughter, she has spent her life at court and is thus familiar with the rules
and con%entions that go%ern daily life there. She acts as a referee in the !'ne
%olley of words! .77.i%.;;9 between alentine and "hurio, and coyly re%eals
her feelings to alentine by ha%ing him write a lo%e letter on her behalf. )ut
Sil%ia is more than a young woman with courtly accomplishments and 'ne
manners. She de'es her father and lea%es the security of Milan to seek out
her belo%ed alentine when he is banished. >nd she demonstrates poise and
self-control at critical moments.
Proteus -. > young gentlemen of erona, his father sends him to Milan to
gain worldly e(perience and knowledge of life at court. $roteus has the same
name as a sea god in #reek and -oman mythology who could alter his shape
and assume %arious forms whene%er he wanted. alentine's supposed best
friend and one of the title gentleman of erona, though he beha%es in a most
ungentlemanly fashion. He is Julia's sweetheart at the beginning of the play,
but when he Eoins alentine at the Duke's palace, he falls in lo%e with Sil%ia
and attempts to steal her away from alentine and "hurio"he adEecti%e
''protean! is deri%ed from the name of this sea god& it means a changing,
%ariable, or inconstant person. 7n the play, $roteus is as changeable and
unfaithful as his name suggests. He abruptly switches his aBections from
Julia to Sil%ia soon after arri%ing in Milan
Julia - $roteus' belo%ed, and mistress to the ser%ant ?ucetta. Desiring to
tra%el to Milan to %isit $roteus, Julia disguises herself as a high-class male
page in order to a%oid lecherous ad%ances along the Eourney. 3alling herself
Sebastian, she does $roteus' bidding, deli%ering the ring she had earlier
gi%en him to his new belo%ed, Sil%ia.> young woman of erona, she lo%es
$roteus and remains constant, e%en when he betrays her. Julia is alternately
resourceful and %ulnerable, charming and petulant, courageous and foolish.
3ommentators generally regard her as the most authentic, true to life
character in the play. Se%eral of them ha%e noted an interesting parado(H
Julia disguises herself and assumes a male role as the page Sebastian, yet
she remains true to herself through the period of her transformation.
Duke of ilan - Sil%ia's father, the Duke wants her to marry the boorish
but wealthy suitor Sir "hurio. Fpon hearing of alentine's plot to elope with
Sil%ia, the Duke banishes alentine.
!ucetta - Julia's ser%ant, who considers lo%e from a practical point of %iew.
?ucetta helps Julia disguise herself as a man.
!aunce - $roteus' humorous ser%ant, and master to a poorly-trained mutt
named 3rab. His de%otion to his dog knows no bounds. He falls in lo%e with
an ugly but wealthy maid. He is $roteus's ser%ant. ?aunce's natural wit and
nati%e intelligence are concealed beneath the facade of a rustic buBoon.
?aunce's realistic appraisals of lo%e and friendship pro%ide insights into the
principal themes and characters in the play. Sometimes his commentary is
direct. 4or e(ample, when he obser%es $roteus hypocritically oBering to help
alentineIafter he has repeatedly betrayed himI?aunce remarks, !my
master is a kind of kna%e! .777.i.15:9. More often his commentary is indirect or
implicit.
S"eed - alentine's page, though at the beginning of the play he does
$roteus' bidding as well. He is friendly with ?aunce.
Thurio - > foolish ri%al to alentine for Sil%ia's hand. "hurio is %ery rich, but
does not make for pleasant company.
Sir #glamour - "he gentleman upon whom Sil%ia calls to help her escape
from the Duke's court, in order to 'nd her lo%e, alentine, and to a%oid
marrying "hurio.
$ntonio - 4ather to $roteus and master to the ser%ant $anthino.
%ost - Houses Julia while she searches for $roteus.
&utlaws - @hen alentine is banished from Milan, the outlaws intercept
him during his Eourney to Mantua and make him the king of their crew of
gentlemen bandits.
Cra' - ?aunce's dog.
Panthino - >ntonio's ser%ant.
$($!)S*S $(D T%##S
"he primary theme addressed in Shakespeare's The Two Gentlemen of
Verona is the conJict between loyalty to friends and submission to passion.
@hile the play ultimately aligns itself with the tradition of espousing one side
of the debate .the reestablishment of the friendship between alentine and
$roteus leads to a resolution of the non-platonic relationships9, the moral
twists and turns that each character takes in order to reach the drama's
unlikely conclusion in%ol%e a host of other themes. >dditionally, by writing a
play about friendship %ersus lo%e, the young bard was entering into a debate
with writers who, at the time, were more established than he--namely,
3haucer, ?yly and 4rancis )acon. )y oBering a %iew that challenged the
works of these household names, Shakespeare presented himself as a
competitor to the moral and narrati%e stance proposed by the great writers
of his time.
"he ser%ants ?aunce, Speed, and ?ucetta act as foils to their respecti%e
masters $roteus, alentine, and Julia. )y e(amining the ser%ants'
characteristics and beha%ior, the reader comes to understand their masters
better as well. ?aunce's pragmatic reasoning about lo%e illuminates the
hunger for status and money permeating the aristocrats' staid romances.
?ucetta, by ad%ising Julia in the practical matter of disguising herself as a
man, demonstrates her knowledge of socially-accepted gender roles. ?ucetta
understands that while it is e(pected that a young man will stray from his
lo%e, it is socially unacceptable for a young woman to be wanton. Since the
higher status characters cannot honestly confront the social inJuences that
guide their choices .and limit their options9, the discussion of weighty issues
.se(uality, money, class9 falls to the ser%ants.
"he forest, signi'cant throughout Shakespeare's plays, is important as
a setting in which social norms are suspended. >s in the fairy-infested
thickets of A Midsummer Night's Dream , social status dissol%es when
characters are plucked from the rigidity of their traditional social settings and
transplanted into the ambiguous realm of the forest. 7ndi%iduals are Eudged
as indi%iduals in this setting, and the breakdown of traditional structure
permits the Jow of currents of beha%ior .homose(uality, merit-based social
mobility, etc.9 that run counter to established norms.
"he Cuick and somewhat pu==ling simplicity of The Two Gentlemen of
Verona's conclusion allows thematic ambiguities to linger. 7n $roteus' feeling
that Julia, still appearing male, is more attracti%e than Sil%ia and alentine's
deep de%otion to $roteus, both se(ual and gender identities are blurred.
Julia's assumption of maleness gi%es her access to the male world, testing
the boundaries of socially-percei%ed gender roles& that she maintains her
outward maleness challenges ,li=abethan se(ual mores. ?ikewise, alentine's
willingness to yield his belo%ed, Sil%ia, to $roteus, hints at latent homose(ual
desires. "hough Shakespeare resol%es the play's outward tensions, he lea%es
the e(ploration of deeper issues, which resurface throughout his works,
incomplete.
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
+ne of the $lays of @illiam Shakespeare
Submitted by:
$gao+$mera $,
BS#d -.J##S
Submitted byH
$Prof,#nrico a, #ugenio