1) What does
Ventidius think of Antony? How does this character generate the initial motion
of the play?
or
2) What do you
think of Cleopatra in the opening action? Take, for example, one of her early
lines, “Is this to be a queen, to be besieged / By yon insulting Roman, and to
wait / Each hour the victor’s chain?” (2.11-12). Or, a bit later,
I have refused a kingdom;
That’s a trifle:
For I could part with life, with anything
But only you. (2.463-466)
That’s a trifle:
For I could part with life, with anything
But only you. (2.463-466)
How do you react to these lines? … Or, what sort of
Cleopatra do they seem designed to sketch out?
or
3) Take a look
at Dryden’s lengthy dedication and preface to the play, using the link below.
What do you think of his statements about his dramatic art? For example, what
do you think of his commentary on the meeting between Octavia and Cleopatra? Or
his statements about the character of Ventidius? Or, in the prologue, Antony is
called “somewhat lewd; but a well-meaning mind; / Weeps much; fights little;
but is wond'rous kind. / In short, a pattern, and companion
fit, / For all the keeping Tonies of the pit.” [Tonies = simpletons.]
What do you think of this description of Antony?
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2062
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2062
or
4) Discuss another part of today’s reading that
seems to be in need of exploration, elucidation, or comment.
At least in the opening action, Cleopatra is a far more noble and compelling character than Antony. She’s proud, strong and passionate, unlike Antony who is driven almost mad by his troubles even at the beginning of the play. Of the two, it would almost seem as though Antony is the more traditionally feminine, in the sense that he is weak and easily manipulated. Cleopatra, on the other hand, is noble despite the impending doom, and carries herself with grace. However, one’s opinion of Cleopatra can’t help but be tainted by Ventidius’ view of her as a “siren,” a self-serving temptress who will lead Antony to his doom. It becomes hard to reject his opinion, since in essence, he’s kind of right. During Antony’s lengthy description of all the ways Cleopatra wronged him, we discover (at least, those of us who don’t know the story) that Cleopatra’s actions certainly support Ventidius’ opinion. And ones opinion of her is tweaked again when we see her desperate love for Antony – as strange as it is to say, her love feminizes her, although the effect is less pathetic than it is with Antony. Yet overall, one still can’t help but get a good impression of Cleopatra. She comes across as a noble queen instead of a temptress, which is quite a feat on the part of the playwright, and which adds more depth to the play, since Antony can’t simply blame her for all his problems. She is not cast in the role of a wicked woman who leads a man to his downfall; like him, she is caught up in this star crossed love, and is therefore a victim of circumstances rather than a perpetrator.
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ReplyDeleteBeing a woman in an era that is engaged in war (in which women are considered to be inherently unwarlike) is difficult. Cleopatra finds herself apart from her lover, unable to access him both literally and emotionally. When he agrees to see her, she is quieted every time she tries to defend herself. Cleopatra is not a suffering woman, but rather an equal partner in this love affair. She has given up a lot to be with Antony, “here he offers Egypt, And joins all Syria to it as a present…” Cleopatra was offered a part of the kingdom and turned it down, b out of pure love for Antony. She will do anything to be with him, and this of course makes her a danger to the ongoing war. This is an interesting conundrum that reminded me a lot of one of the eternal questions, “who are we when we have lost a person we staked a part of our identity in?” Is a mother still a mother when she loses her child? Are lovers still lovers when one of them is gone? Cleopatra answers this, “Go leave me, soldier (for you’re no more a lover)…” signifying that he cannot be both at once. But where does that leave her?
ReplyDeleteHowever, both Antony and Cleopatra are consumed by a very unhealthy kind of love. Perhaps this is what Ventidius and Antony mean when they claim that she will be his ruin. Their love is obsessive, it overwhelms them, and makes them forget about their duties (including apparently a wife and two daughters. How like men to blame the ruin of a realm on a woman being too charming?? Temptress whose very smile is enough to make a man forget his soldiers and run away from battle thinking he is only running to and not from (although I call bluff). So I think that Cleopatra here is depicted as both an unhealthy obsession but is given enough of her own identity to ensure that she is sympathetic.
What is interesting about this particular romance is that in a time where women are not valued members of society, Cleopatra is an equal to Antony. There is a certain mutual respect given that both of them are powerful rulers. A theme that I picked up on was the tension between individual interests and the interests of the greater whole. On the one hand this story is personal, its about the romantic relationship between two people, its intimate. One the other hand this story is so much greater than just two people. All relationships have ups and downs and trials and obstacles along the way but this romance is distinctive because of the stakes. Antony and Cleopatra are bound by responsibility to their respective countries and peoples. The characters are torn and I find their conflict fascinating. Antony is being advised by his trusted army general, Ventidius, that it would be best not to fight alongside Cleopatra's army and he is devastated by this suggestion. When Cleopatra receives the news that he plans to desert her, she is devastated. There are two parts to this betrayal, there is the military alliance that she is counting on, but then there is the deeper betrayal of her lover abandoning her. When she expresses her hurt, Alexas tells her, "you see through love and that deludes your sight, as what is strange seems crooked through the water". The reality is that lovers are irrational but she and Antony cannot afford to lose their senses. Huge populations rely upon their sanity and acting in the best interest of the State. As rulers, they are required to act selflessly, but their attachment is making that impossible. The story is zoomed in, magnifying the two characters at the center of everything. At the same time it is zoomed out, depicting the consequences of a love affair between two leaders and how much damage it can cause...
ReplyDeleteRespect: real, faked, misrepresented, the list goes on. It's on the different plays of this virtue - or is it?- that the plot appears to be turning. From the various relationships, with characters at varying levels of power and influence, they all seem to be playing at some sort of confidence game-like thing; how each thinks of the other, and how each chooses to the represent him/herself in the language are two very incongruous matters. Ventidius is brazenly, unapologetically critical and reprimanding of Anthony, his Emperor. But his language on the side is even harsher, as Ventidius outrightly states in asides that he sees his monarch as failing, quite dumbly, at his duty; great as the general may be, his frank talk to and take on his leader is pretty remarkable. Is such unabashed dialogue aimed at a king a product of the play's times, perhaps? Maybe, post-Revolution, the untouchable mystique of monarchy is touched? Or would it be considered entirely run-o-the-mill for anyone to speak to an Emperor with the language that Ventidius lobs at Anthony in the first scene. Anthony and Cleopatra's own relationship is predicated on strange multi-level standards: they each seem to be deeply connected to the other, they are self-effacing about their affections, and they both express themselves, at differing moments, as the more domineering one in the relationship. Though Cleopatra's language is the most explicitly subservient, her self-minimizing tone utilizes statements about women versus men as a general class (her heart/stamina/energy is not as strong, she is not as good/strong/smart, whatever it may be). However, Anthony also appears to be in her debt, under her control. His people surely seem to think so, as do Cleopatra's and the Queen herself. His self-deprecation reads un a way that is different than the standard "boy meets girl, fall in love (instantaneously), serenades her with promises of being her eternal slave." No, this is a relationship with the power, but, more precisely the respect, swings on both sides, towards both. And, of course, that is what is so bothersome about Cleopatra's blustery comment about how she doesn't care for Anthony's "respect," but wants his desires. Yes, her (somewhat ludicrous) statement in understood for what she's saying: she is/was different than 'the wife' and she provides different services, cares for another element of Anthony than some detached, box-cut respect that he tries to get away with. However, it is still pretty jarring, especially today, to read a woman - especially one of the Cleopatra lore variety - dismissing, indeed, rejecting the offering of a man's respect.
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ReplyDeleteVentidius appears much more clear minded and rational than Antony is. Because Antony is in love with Cleopatra, naturally, she becomes a distraction. Ventidius seems to believe that Cleopatra is nothing but trouble for Antony, and that she does more harm than good. He tries to talk some sense into Antony and convince him that the reason he lost his battle is because he was distracted by her. Although Ventidius isn't supportive of the woman Antony loves, he still seems to be acting like a good friend. As a general in the army, Antony's prime focus should be fighting in battle and emerging victorious. He himself proves that Ventidius is true to think this when he becomes so depressed and upset about losing the battle, and especially when he admits that Cleopatra might have had something to do with his loss. Ventidius does try to help Antony and doesn't abandon him, he's simply doing what a good friend would do. He thinks Antony is too caught up in his love affair with Cleopatra and that his behavior too clearly portrays that. Ventidius is what seems to encourage Antony to win his second battle, although it still doesn't remove Cleopatra from his life like Ventidius would have wanted it to.
ReplyDeleteEven though Ventidius isn't supportive of the most important thing to Antony, Antony doesn't openly speak out about his hurt feelings. This shows that Antony does regard Ventidius as a good friend, and does appreciate his input and his opinion. This led me to assume that Ventidius might really be acting out of genuine and sincere concern for Antony's well-being, and that although he disagrees with Antony's infatuation with Cleopatra, he really is just trying to help Antony by sending him back to battle with the troops he brings him.