TWO DEVICES USED BY SHAKESPEARE IN TWELFTH NIGHT- READ

FOR EXAMS

1. DRAMATIC IRONY
2. SOLILOQUY

1ST YOU MUST EXPLAIN WHAT IT IS , AND THEN GIVE EXAMPLES FROM THE
PLAY

DRAMATIC IRONY- WHEN INFORMATION IS REVEALED ABOUT

characters in the play that only the audience knows NOT other
characters.
The Dramatic Irony in Twelfth Night
Dramatic irony is a very important element of literature. The proper use of
dramatic irony allows an audience to have a furthered understanding
of characters, by allowing the audience to know things that the
characters in the literature do not know. When used properly, this
knowledge is used to create feelings of humour and suspense for an
audience. Dramatic irony is therefore a very common literary element, and
many famous authors and playwrights have used it to dramatize their
works. Shakespeare for example, was known to use dramatic irony in
many of his plays. The play “Twelfth Night” which contains elements of
dramatic irony which are used to create a very engaging and funny
experience for the audience. He uses elements such as mistaken identity,
separated twins, and gender crossing disguise. The elements therefore
have a great impact on the amount of dramatic irony presented in the play.
This dramatic irony contributes to the comedic effect of the play. The
first example of dramatic irony disguise of Viola, who is saved after being
shipwrecked by a captain who puts in to shore on Illyria. After learning that
the captain knows the Duke of Illyria, Viola asks him to disguise her as a
eunuch so that she may work for the Duke. In this disguise, that only the
audience is aware of Viola is better able to perceive the true nature of the
characters as they confide in Cesario, her male disguise. While working for
the Duke, she is sent as a messenger to express Orsino’s love for Olivia.
However, Viola who is actually in love with the Duke, says in an aside after
telling the Duke;

The original love connection of the Duke has been skewered by the end of
this scene since there are two twists to the plot: Viola states her attraction
to the Duke Orsino; Olivia reveals a liking for Cesario. The effect of this
dramatic irony is to demonstrate the subjectivity of love to the
audience. When a person sees the person that they fell in love with, this
love is felt in the person who does the loving of another, and a person
cannot be forced to feel love simply by the attraction of the other for
him/her. Another example of dramatic irony in the play is seen when Viola
believes that her brother Sebastien is dead, and Sebastien believes that
Viola is dead. The audience however, knows that both of them are alive.
This situation becomes even funnier, when Viola decides to take on the
image of her twin brother, by disguising herself as Cesario. It is proven by
this in the play, that the characters are capable of getting themselves in
sticky situations without noticing or understanding it. This is seen in Act IV
when Olivia meets Sebastien for the first time. Olivia, has already fallen in
love with Viola, who is in the disguise of Cesario, who is identical to
Sebastien. In Olivia’s mind, she has already expressed her love to
Sebastien, who she thinks is Cesario, when the audience is fully aware
that they have never met. She therefore proclaims her love for Sebastian.
Sebastian, who is confused by her declaration of love, seems to enjoy the
sentiment, and takes part in the illusion;

This allows for their first meeting to now only be suspenseful, but also
hilarious for the audience. It also enlightens the audience to the fact that
some lovers delight in the illusions of love and often are satisfied with
someone else being in love with them. The final example of dramatic irony
is not seen amongst the major characters, but amongst the minor
characters, who also play an important role in the play, by having dramatic
irony mixed into their side story, which makes the play all the more
interesting. Malvolio, who Is the head servant of Olivia, has the meanest of
pranks played on him, and the prank is made even funnier due the
presence of dramatic irony. The dramatic irony is created when Malvolio
receives a note written in handwriting that appears to be Olivia’s. The
audience, however, knows that the note was instead written by Olivia’s
servant, but Malvolio believes it to be written by Olivia herself. The note
gives Malvolio specific instructions to earn Olivia’s love, and is full of
things that are out of character for Malvolio. He wears ridiculous clothes
and acts like someone that he isn’t, all in the hopes that Olivia will fall in
love with him. His actions instead have the opposite effect, because she is
concerned by his actions and has him treated like he’s insane instead. The
audience knows what’s up, and every one of Malvolio’s missteps is funnier
than the last, therefore also adding to the comedic element of the play.
The use of dramatic irony therefore helps to create one of the major
central themes of the play, the foolishness of mortals. Dramatic irony is
essential in the creation of this theme, because it allows an audience to
experience what it’s like to be omnipotent. This theme is backed by
happenings in the play. Every character makes decisions and judgments
without all of the knowledge necessary to make said judgment. Malvolio is
one example. Had he took the time to figure out who had written that
letter, he would have acted a lot differently.
Another central theme that is reinforced by the use of dramatic irony is
that visual proof is not always enough. Shakespeare tests the old saying
that you can believe what you see, by finding a situation in which what you
see is false. The Viola / Sebastian situation is the perfect example of this.
The characters in the play frequently trust their eyes, and are frequently
proven to be foolish because of this. This repeated ‘what you see isn’t
what you get’ states that what you see isn’t always the truth. The
characters see Cesario, therefore Cesario is who it is, even though who
they’re actually seeing is Sebastian himself. The dramatic irony allows the
audience to recognize this fact, intensifies the effect it has on them. The
audience can understand that just because something appears to be true,
it may not be true. The dramatic irony also helps to identify some of the
many motifs present in the play. One of the most important motifs in the
play is that of mistaken identity. Repeatedly Viola and Sebastian are
mistaken for one another. The repeated cases of mistaken identity help to
advance the storyline in a funny and suspenseful way, as the web that’s
being woven continues to become more entangled and complicated. The
further the story gets, the more the audience can’t wait for the finale,
which is the time when twins will be reunited and everything will become
resolved and the desire to see the revelation of the characters builds a ton
of suspense. Mistaken identity is closely linked to another major motif in
the play: disguises. Many of the major characters in the play assume
disguises during the play. Viola uses a disguise to convince everyone that
she’s a man. Malvolio uses a disguise to try to earn Olivia’s love.
In conclusion, it is evident that Shakespeare intended for dramatic irony to
play a major role in the play “Twelfth Night.” Without the presence of
dramatic irony, the plot of this theme would not have been as funny and
suspenseful, and the major themes would have been much harder to
recognize.

FUTHER EXAMPLES
Cesario's Appearance
When Orsino first meets Cesario (Viola in disguise), he launches into an
elaborate description of "his" face, focusing on the fact that he has rather
feminine features. This is one of the first examples of dramatic irony in the
play, as the audience is well aware that Cesario is really Viola and that the
allure Orsino feels for Cesario is really sexual attraction.

Olivia's Love
Despite swearing off men for seven years to mourn her brother's death, Olivia
almost immediately falls in love with Cesario. In another moment of dramatic
irony, the audience knows that Olivia is also attracted to Cesario's androgynous
appearance and behavior, like Orsino, and that she has actually upheld her vow
not to pursue a man because she is in actuality pursuing a woman.
Malvolio's Social Ascent
When Malvolio receives a letter from Olivia (forged by Maria) expressing her
affection for him, he immediately sees it as an opportunity to climb the social
ladder and better his station. He is not so much concerned with Olivia herself as
he is with the luxury and power that having her as a wife will bring to him. Of
course, the audience knows that the letter is simply part of Maria's plan to
humiliate Malvolio, who suffers a cruel fate at the end of the play.

2ND DEVICE SOLILOQUY

is a literary device, USED IN THE PLAY in which a character speaks to him
or herself, relating his or her innermost thoughts and feelings

In Act 2, Scene 2, Viola realizes that Olivia has fallen in love with her
masculine disguise and delivers a soliloquy lamenting the absurdity of her
situation. This complicated soliloquy is rich with literary devices, including
allusion, personification, and metaphor.
Having understood the meaning of Olivia's ring, Viola bemoans the impossibility
of Olivia's love for her, which can be read as a lament about the impossibility of
same-sex attraction as a whole:-

I left no ring with her: what means this lady?

Fortune forbid my outside have not charm’d her!
She made good view of me; indeed, so much,
That sure methought her eyes had lost her tongue,
For she did speak in starts distractedly.
She loves me, sure; the cunning of her passion
Invites me in this churlish messenger.
None of my lord’s ring! why, he sent her none.
I am the man: if it be so, as ’tis,
Poor lady, she were better love a dream.

2nd

The Comedy in Twelfth Night Is Largely Generated by Shakespeare's Use

of Disguise and Mistaken Identity. How Far Do You Agree?

The Comedy in Twelfth Night is largely generated by Shakespeare's use of disguise and
mistaken identity. How far do you agree?
Shakespeare's Twelfth Night is one of the best known comedies and is often well cited for its use
of disguise and mistaken identity as being the key factors in the play that cause humour and
make the play into the comedy that it is. However there are many other factors and comedic
effects that take place within the play and cause humour that do not directly tie to disguise and
mistaken identity. These include the use of standard comedic plot lines, the use of visual humour,
bare basic comedy and jokes alongside the use of comic servants. All of these play a part in the
comedy and humour of Twelfth Night but how prominent they are is the factor I shall be
examining.

The use of Viola (when disguised as Cesario) is a key point of humour throughout the play and is
a constant reminder of the humour based off visual comedy and mistaken identity that
Shakespeare intended to portray. A lot of the central plot within the play revolves around Viola
and Cesario and the many events within the play that directly stem from these characters. In Act
1 Scene 4 we get our first glimpse of disguise within the play when we are introduced to Cesario.
Here we learn that within a short space of time Viola has managed to become a favourite of
Orsino and as Valentine notes “if the Duke continue these favours towards you, Cesario, you are
likely to be much advanced”. This in itself is comedic if you relate it back to the fact that we
were told Orsino would even bear the presence of another woman due to his love for Olivia yet
with a simple disguise Viola has managed to not only gain entrance into his household and
service but also managed to become one of Orsino's favourites which within itself is comic.
Another key plot line that stems from Viola's use of disguise is the love triangle that starts to
develop between her, Orsino and Olivia. All three characters make many remarks to this effect
such as, Act 1 Scene 4 where Viola says “Whoe'er I woo, Myself would be his wife”. With this
remark Viola is admitting that she has developed a love for Orsino and would marry him if she
could and marks the beginning of the Triangle as a major plot line within the play. All of this
adds to the humour as not only is it a ludicrous triangle but it is one where the solution would, on
the face of it, be rather obvious however due to the disguise factor that is well ingrained into the
story this is not the case. This humour in general is a very visual form of humour and is aimed
directly at the Shakespearian audience, mostly using the play on the fact of only men play roles
within play during the time of Shakespeare so the humour stemmed from it was a Man dressing
as a Woman who was dressing as a Man, a theme common in many of Shakespeare's plays.

Shakespeare also uses the rile of mistaken identity within the play to create further humour,
mostly in regard to scenes where Viola is mistaken for Sebastian and vice versa. In Act 4 Scene
1 we get a clear example of this when Sebastian turns up at Olivia's household and is mistaken
by all those present for Cesario, this highlights the pure absurdity in the scene after Olivia,
supposedly being head over heals in love with Cesario yet is unable to distinguish between the
person she loves and her brother. It also goes further with the with Olivia being oblivious to the
sudden change of heart from “Cesario” but also jumps straight to the proposal of marriage which
is rather comic as Sebastian accepts the rather abrupt offer without a moments hesitation, all of
which stems from mistaken identity. While this is not significant within the play itself, since they
are meant to be sibling and look somewhat similar, but to the audience it was meant to appeal to
use more as the people watching the play due to our outside knowledge on the situation which
creates much dramatic irony. This is show furthermore in Act 5 Scene 1 where the assembled
cast witness both Viola and Sebastian at the same time in the same place, this is the pinnacle of
the theme of disguise and mistaken identity as even the two characters involved appear unable to
tell the other apart from each other, for as Sebastian says “Do I stand there?”. This goes back and
forth for a short time but it's only after in-depth questions about parenthood and family that
Sebastian and Viola finally both put the piece together and figure out who they really are.

However Viola and Sebastian are not Shakespeare's only use of mistaken identity within the
play. He spins a major part of the story through mistaken identity but this time in writing, when
Maria writes the letter in Olivia's handwriting. In Act 2 Scene 3 Maria herself remarks “I can
write very much like my lady... we can hardly makes distinction of our hands”, this is another
twist upon the humour created by mistaken identity as now it is in writing that shall create funny
scenarios and situations. This fact is proven in Act 2 Scene 5 when, upon finding the letter and
examining the writing, Malvolio says “This is my lady's hand.” thus creating an entirely new plot
line to emerge simply from Malvolio mistaking the writing for Olivia's. This new plot line spirals
off to create an almost independent storyline that is only loosely tied to the main arch of the play
and completely revolves around Malvolio's belief that the letter is truly from Olivia and this is
rather humorous to the audience and the characters within the play as this small fact causes such
a huge and noticeable change of character from Malvolio and gives him a new self-belief in what
he feels as it has been confirmed within the letter, although to a vague extent. This leads to many
scenes that the audience most likely will find amusing including another case of mistaken
identity, when Feste disguises himself as Sir Topaz to trick Malvolio in Act 4 Scene 2. This is
also a comic scene which ties in closely to the visual humour caused by the disguise as we, the
audience watching the play, can obviously see the difference in characters and the physical
resemblance they bear to each other which the characters within the play fail to do so. As we can
physically see the performers within the play we can easily note the similarities and with an
oversight of the general storyline we know the situation better than the characters themselves
causing us to see the absurdity that underpins some of the key actions made within the play.

Now this is not to say that Shakespeare does not use other forms of humour and comedy
conventions within Twelfth Night, he uses a great deal of them both. For example the comedy
conventions of intertwined love is a plot point that is one of the key driving points within the
play, most notably the love triangle that is formed between Viola/Cesario, Orsino and Olivia.
Indeed most of the story happens as is because of this factor. Viola goes to work for Orsino
because Olivia will “admit no kind of suit” (Act 1 Scene 2) and because of this she starts to fall
in love with Orsino. Orsino, being madly in love with Olivia, tasks Viola/Cesario with going and
delivering a message of his love to Olivia which sets in motion the final part of the Love
Triangle by creating the circumstances for Olivia to fall in love with Viola/Cesario and also
serves to bring Viola/Cesario closer to him, bolstering those feelings that exists between the two
of them. Also used within the play is comic servants, this is another comedic convention that is
used to a great extent within Twelfth Night surrounding Feste in particular. This is shown by his
introduction to the story in Act 1 Scene 5 as he is instantly thrown into a small battle of wits
between him and Olivia in which he promptly outwits Olivia and turns the entire situation on its
head while spinning her words back unto her “The more food, Madonna, to mourn for your
brother's soul being in Heaven.”. This shows us Feste's grasp of wit and humour as he is able to
twist Olivia's wording and reasoning for her mourning back upon her and revealing the folly in
her actions. This Convention is also displayed with Maria, Sir Toby, Sir Andrew and, to a lesser
extent, Fabian. All of these characters are central to the sub-plot that is going on during the later
half of the play surrounding Malvolio and the letter, supposedly from Olivia. This is regarded as
a rather important plot line as it makes Malvolio a key source of humour within the play, such as
when he appears before Olivia in yellow stockings, cross-gartered in Act 3 Scene 4 and the sheer
change of character and personality that occurs because of this. Furthermore within Act 4 Scene
2, when Feste is disguised as Sir Topaz and is tormenting Malvolio, the play takes a rather dark
turn with the treatment of Malvolio. Feste descends into personal insults and openly mocks and
degrades Malvolio using his personality as a religious authority which leads many to say that this
scene is not humorous at all but is undoubtedly harsh and cruel and it also plays a factor in the
humour of the play as a whole. All of these things tie into Shakespeare's repeated use of visual
humour and comedy which is undoubtedly a constant and underlying theme within this play.

In conclusion a large amount of the humour within Twelfth Night is created, directly and
indirectly, by the use of disguise and mistaken identity. Many of the key moments and scenes
within the play stem directly from Shakespeare's use of this such as the love triangle between
Orsino, Viola/Cesario and Olivia which could not have formed without the use of disguised,
Malvolio and the letter and Olivia's marriage to Sebastian, all of which are key moment within
the structure and flow of the play. While it is not solely disguise and mistaken identity that create
the humour within the play it does play the majority role and is the cause of a lot of the other
events and comedic moments within the play as events simply wouldn't have happened without
these factors. Therefore disguise and mistaken identity do the large amount of generating humour
and comedy within Twelfth Night.