SIR TOBY Past question. For thou seest it will not curl by nature.
(80-83)
When Sir Andrew says “arts,” he is referring to the liberal arts (which is the study of any non-scientific topic, including foreign languages). Sir Toby puns or plays on the word, for the word art also suggests artifice. Beauty is created either by nature or by art (artifice). Sir Toby is also punning on the word tongues, which sounds quite similar to the word tongs. During the Renaissance, many women used curling tongs to add curls to their otherwise straight hair. Thus, Sir Toby jokes about Sir Andrew’s long, thin, straight hair. Sir Andrew would have curly hair if he had put more time with the tongs to make his hair curl artificially. As to be expected, though, Sir Andrew does not get the joke.
The puns with the words tongues/tongs and art/artifice contribute to a language theme that is prevalent throughout most of the play. Shakespeare enjoyed puns and other forms of word play, and they appear frequently in his comedies. The theme is also evident in the various acts of misunderstanding that occur among the characters in the play.
Sir Andrew also does not understand Sir Toby’s bawdy joke that follows. The word bawdy means obscene or risqué, and such jokes were common in Renaissance comedies. When Sir Andrew asks about whether his hair is proper or suitable, Sir Toby responds with the following:
Excellent, it hangs like flax on a distaff, and I hope to see a housewife take thee between her legs and spin it off. (85-86)
Flax is a textile fiber used in making clothes. Women or housewives would hang the flax on poles (called distaffs), which they held between their knees, and spin it into cloth. The flax would hang in long, thin, yellowish strands (which also describes Sir Andrew’s not-so-excellent hair).
A polite interpretation of Sir Toby’s line would be that Sir Toby hopes to see a woman companion become close to Sir Andrew and play with his hair. But the bawdy interpretation comes from the word housewife, which was pronounced as huswife, a word that was used for a prostitute. Prostitutes were also frequently known for passing venereal diseases onto men, and the result of such a disease was often baldness. Thus, Sir Toby hopes that Sir Andrew will lose his unattractive hair – that it will be spun off of his head.
Yet, despite Sir Toby’s jokes, he wants Sir Andrew to stay at the estate and continue his attempts to win the Countess Olivia as his bride. When Sir Andrew informs Sir Toby that he is good at dancing (“cut a caper” at line 101), Sir Toby encourages him to reveal his skill to Olivia. Maybe that will help Sir Andrew win her affections.
The scene ends with Sir Andrew dancing or cutting a caper. Sir Andrew is nearly as drunk as Sir Toby, and his dance is a silly jig. A jig is a fast- paced, lively dance with plenty of high steps and kicks. Such jigs were funny and popular during the Renaissance, and many comedians in the theater found having skill in these types of comic dances would contribute to their fame.
The fourth scene takes place at the palace of Duke Orsino. Viola, disguised as a male and using the name Cesario, has been serving the Duke for three days. The Duke has taken a liking to Cesario, and already Cesario has become one of the Duke’s favorite servants. Of course, the Duke does not know that Cesario is actually a lady named Viola.
When another attendant on the Duke comments about the rapid popularity that Cesario has earned with the Duke, Cesario responds with the following:
Is he inconstant, sir, in his favours? (5-6)
The line has a double meaning. As a servant, Cesario would naturally wish to please his master and hope that his master appreciates his service. However, the word constant was frequently used to refer to love in the Renaissance. A constant lover was a true lover, one whose love would last forever. Viola, as a woman, may be wondering about Duke Orsino’s constancy toward the Countess Olivia. Viola may be wondering whether she can turn Orsino’s affection toward herself.
The Duke enters at this juncture and makes a request of his new but trusted servant. The Duke asks Cesario to go to the Countess and present his message of love to her. The Duke adds that Cesario should not leave the Countess’ estate until he has spoken to her; and, if Olivia refuses to admit him, then Cesario must be noisy and boisterous and do whatever it takes to gain admittance.
Viola, quite naturally, does not want this task; but the Duke believes that Cesario’s youthful charms may be successful where an older servant’s ability has failed. The Duke then catalogs the charms of Cesario:
… they shall belie thy happy years That say thou art a man. Diana’s lip
Is not more smooth and rubious; thy small pipe Is as the maiden’s organ, shrill and sound,
And all is semblative a woman’s part. (29-33)
Although the Duke does not know that Cesario is woman, he recognizes the feminine qualities that Cesario has. Orsino even compares Cesario to Diana, the beautiful Roman goddess of hunting and of virginity. The word shrill here is not a negative term: it simple means high-pitched, and the word sound is used to indicate that Cesario’s voice does not crack and break like many young men who are passing through puberty. The smooth skin and red lips were features much prized by men during the Renaissance.
The Duke finds Cesario to be attractive like a beautiful woman. But since the Duke believes him to be a male, he has no feelings for Cesario/Viola.
Viola reluctantly agrees to accept the task that the Duke has asked of her, but her aside reveals her true feelings in this matter: “myself would be his wife” (41). An aside was a conventional device often used in Renaissance drama. It is not intended to represent real speech. The actor would turn to the audience and in a loud whisper (a stage whisper) speak the lines that represent his thoughts or feelings. The other actors do not hear the line: they proceed as if the line had not been spoken. With this particular aside, the audience thus learns that Viola has already fallen in love with the Duke. But since she does not think that she could ever have a chance to win his love (because his love is constant for Olivia), she unenthusiastically agrees to do as the Duke asks.
The fifth scene takes place at the estate of the Countess. Maria is talking to Feste, the fool or clown, whose job it is to entertain Olivia. Since Olivia is in mourning and thus not receptive to jests of any sort, Feste has also been working in the service of the Duke.
Maria is scolding Feste for having been away for so long, and she warns the fool (in an exaggerated manner) that he will be hanged for his absence. A witty dialogue then follows between Feste and Maria. Feste’s responses are not only witty or humorous, but they are also often philosophical. For example, he informs Maria that “he that is well hanged in this world needs to fear no colours” (4-5). The expression “fear no colors” is a military one – indicating that a soldier should have no fear of the enemies’ flags (whatever color they might be). But the word colors also means deceptions. Thus, a man who is hanged (and is dead) not only (1) no longer has to fear his enemies; but he also (2) no longer has to fear the deceptiveness of the world. Some lines later Feste also states that “many a good hanging prevents a bad marriage” (17). A man who is hanged well (a good hanging) and thus has died then cannot get married. Feste is implying that bad men make for bad marriages, but he also could be suggesting that most marriages are bad and probably should be prevented.
Feste also recognizes that Maria is a rather witty person herself and suggests that she would not be a bad match for Sir Toby (lines 23-25). Of course, Maria is a servant and Sir Toby is an aristocrat. But Feste sees beyond the caste boundaries of his day. He is more open-minded about such matters.
At this point in the scene Olivia enters with her steward Malvolio (at line 27). A steward is the head servant who is in charge of all of the household affairs. The name Malvolio means ill-will (or evil volition). Malvolio is a negative and mean-spirited individual, and the other servants do not like him at all.
Knowing that Olivia has been feeling depressed and moody lately, Feste hopes to cheer her up. In an aside, Feste asserts the following:
Better a witty fool than a foolish wit. (31)
Feste is a witty fool (or clown). He is clever and funny, and he uses his humor to entertain and delight others. On the other hand, there are a great many men who believe themselves to be wise and witty, but they are actually silly or ridiculous individuals who do not realize what fools or nincompoops they really are. And because they believe themselves to be wise and clever, they assert their nonsensical notions upon others. Somehow, though, a large number of foolish wits attain positions of power and rank, and thus they bring much harm to others. Feste, perhaps, is specifically referring to Malvolio when he uses the expression “foolish wit.”
When Feste greets the mourning Countess, Olivia asks her other servants to “take the fool away” (33). She is feeling down, and has no desire for jokes of any sort. But Feste welcomes the challenge, for he does wish to make the Countess less gloomy. So, he jokes, “Do you not hear, fellows? Take away the lady.” He is, of course, implying that she is the fool.
Olivia, not yet ready for humor, criticizes Feste as “a dry fool” (35). The word dry in this context means wearisome or dull. But Feste wittily responds that “drink and good counsel will amend” or improve him (lines 37-38). If he gets something to drink, then his throat will no longer be dry; and if he gets some good counsel or advice, then he can act wisely instead of foolishly. The witty clown thus turns Olivia’s comment upside down.
Feste ends his comments on changing or improving with a syllogism:
As there is no true cuckold but calamity, so beauty’s a flower. (44-45)
A syllogism is a form of deductive reasoning, but the reasoning here may be difficult to decipher. In fact, some critics have even suggested that the first part of this is just nonsense. On the other hand, the line may make sense. A cuckold is a man whose wife is cheating on him (who is having a sexual relationship with some other man). The word cuckold was also sometimes used to mean fool since only a foolish man would allow his wife to cheat on him. Calamity is another word for misfortune. Feste could thus be implying that it is acceptable or honest to make a cuckold out of misfortune or calamity. That is, one should try to cheat on misfortune. Why? The word so above means because. Beauty is like a flower in the sense that it does not last for very long. A person should take advantage of their positive qualities (beauty or strength or speed) when they can because they will not last. Thus, Feste’s line – in direct reference to Olivia – indicates that she should cheat on or leave her misfortune (the death of her brother) because she is now young and beautiful. She should not squander or waste her beauty on her sadness or misfortune. Feste, then, is declaring Olivia to be a fool for she has wedded her calamity and is remaining true to it.
Feste then repeats his line to the servants to take Olivia away because she is the fool (lines 45- 46). However, Olivia protests that they should take Feste the fool away. But then Feste protests that he is not a fool: “I wear not motley in my brain” (49-50). A motley garment was one of many bright colors and was traditionally worn by a court jester or court fool. Feste is saying that although he may look like a fool on the outside, he is not a fool in his mind. Rather, he is wise and clever.
Feste then asks the Countess permission to prove that she is a fool. The Countess accepts, and so Feste proceeds using a question-and-answer technique that was commonly used in catechism or religious schools:
FESTE Good madonna, why mournest thou? OLIVIA Good fool, for my brother’s death.
FESTE I think his soul is in hell, madonna. OLIVIA I know his soul is in heaven, fool.
FESTE The more fool, Madonna, to mourn for your brother’s soul, being in heaven.
(57-62)
The choice of the catechism technique is a clever one because, in the religious schools, people were taught that the goal of all good Christians was to enter the
kingdom of heaven. They were also taught that afterlife in heaven was far more important than the transitory (short-termed) life one spends on earth. After all, life in heaven is for all eternity. Thus, Olivia is a fool to mourn her brother because he has achieved the ultimate goal of Christians. She should be rejoicing in his success.
Olivia finds the clever wit of Feste to be amusing. So, despite her pledge to mourn, she probably would smile (or even laugh) at this point in the scene.
The Countess asks Malvolio what he thinks of Feste, but the ill-willed steward has no sense of humor and thinks that all fools should be eliminated. Feste responds by implying that Malvolio himself is a fool.
Malvolio then tells the Countess that the other day he saw Feste exchanging quips (jokes or witty remarks) with an “ordinary” or common fool, and the ordinary fool was able to defeat Feste in the contest of wits. Malvolio notices that Feste is quiet at this remark and does not argue against it. So, Malvolio then asserts …
Unless you laugh and minister occasion to him, he is gagged. (74-75)
Malvolio is implying that if no one laughed at fools, they would just sit quietly and sulk. Incidentally, Feste does respond to the line at the end of the play (see Act V, Scene 1: 363-64) when Malvolio is proved to be the gagged fool.
Yet even in this scene, Malvolio’s pompous and foolish behavior becomes apparent. He does not need Feste to prove himself a fool. Malvolio does not know when to stop. He not only criticizes fools, but he also criticizes the aristocrats who laugh at them. He refers to these aristocrats as the “fools’ zanies” (line 76). The zany was the straight man in the theater – the witless character who exchanged dialogue with the witty fool and who became the target of his humor. Malvolio obviously has spoken without thinking. His employer, the Countess Olivia, has just laughed at Feste. That would make Olivia a zany as well.
Olivia scolds and criticizes Malvolio and defends fools:
To be generous, guiltless, and of free disposition is to take those things for birdbolts that you deem cannon bullets.
There is no slander in an allowed fool. (78-80)
A birdbolt was an arrow that had a pad instead of a pointed end. Such an arrow was used for hunting small birds because the arrow would stun or kill the bird without damaging it. Olivia is implying that the comments made by fools are like birdbolts shot at people: their quips or jokes cannot seriously harm people. Olivia indicates that Malvolio exaggerates the harm of fools by implying that their comments are as dangerous as cannonballs. Feste is pleased with Olivia’s defense of fools, and would most likely give a little smirk of delight in Malvolio’s direction at this time.
A few moments later, after the Countess has exchanged lines with her drunken uncle, Sir Toby, Malvolio informs Olivia that a young man bearing a message from the Duke has arrived. Moreover, the young man refuses to leave the estate until he has spoken with the Countess.
At first Olivia refuses to see him (line 129). But then Malvolio describes the messenger as a handsome youth not quite ripe in years: as “a codling when ‘tis almost an apple” (140-41). A codling here means an unripe apple – suggesting, perhaps, Cesario’s fresh and saucy appearance. Olivia, who is in need of diversion, agrees to allow Cesario to enter.
Viola (as Cesario) comes before the Countess and Maria with a speech she has memorized, which, in the typical Renaissance fashion, will praise the beauty of the lady before coming to the point. Olivia, who has heard all of this from the Duke before, tells Cesario to skip the praise and come to the point. Olivia does not wish to hear any more of the Duke’s words of praise. Cesario, however, is insistent:
VIOLA Alas, I took great pains to study it, and ‘tis poetical.
OLIVIA It is the more like to be feigned, I pray you keep it in. (172-73)
Shakespeare is playing a little joke regarding the craft of writing. Olivia’s declaration that people who speak poetically are speaking feign or fake words – the words are insincere and untrue. Obviously, the great poet Shakespeare knew that poetry contained many universal truths. Olivia, here, though, is implying that the Duke’s words of love are insincere or untrue. She does not believe them. Or, even if she did believe them, the words hold no truth for her; for she does not love the Duke.
Olivia then urges Cesario to be brief and get to the point:
If you be not mad, be gone. If you have reason, be brief. ‘Tis not that time of the moon with me to make one in so skipping a dialogue.
(175-77)
Olivia is telling Cesario that if he is mad, then he should go away. But if he is reasonable, then he should state his message briefly. The reference to the moon suggests the lunar effect on people. Even during the Renaissance some people believed that madness or lunacy was caused by the moon. Olivia is declaring that she is not mad, and she has no desire to engage in any mad or frivolous (“skipping”) dialogue. Shakespeare thus brings up the conflict of Rationality vs. Irrationality (or Madness), which is similar to the conflict of Reason vs. Emotion. Ironically, Olivia is mad – in her decision to mourn the death of her brother for seven years. She just does not realize it. However, her madness is different from that of the Duke’s, which is caused by love.
Cesario continues urging his message, declaring that the words he is to speak are “divinity,” words that are scared and holy (line 190). Of course, to Viola, the words are holy; for she would strongly like to hear the Duke declare such words to herself. But to Olivia, the words are “heresy,” words that are profane or sacrilegious (line 201). The words are vile or evil to Olivia, for they are words that she definitely does not wish to hear. When Olivia tells Cesario this, he becomes frustrated. Viola (as Cesario) has made her best effort to deliver the Duke’s message, but she realizes that she is not being successful.
So far in the conversation, the Countess Olivia has been wearing a veil. Since she is in mourning, she is covering her face. This was part of her pledge or vow in mourning her brother. She had promised not to allow any man to see her face.
Viola, though, wants to look into Olivia’s eyes. She perhaps believes that she will be more successful if she can look at the Countess directly. So, she asks the Countess if she may see her face:
Good madam, let me see your face. (202)
The Countess notes that the young messenger is overstepping his bounds by making such a request. However, Olivia is also charmed by the brash Cesario and agrees to unveil herself:
But we will draw the curtain and show you the picture. (204-05)
Olivia refers to her face as a picture or painting and the veil as a curtain. The Countess then asks Cesario what he thinks of the “picture.”
Cesario admits that Olivia is indeed quite beautiful, with the traditional Renaissance concept of beauty suggested by the words “red and white” (209). The ideal woman, according to Renaissance standards, was one who had fine white skin and red cheeks and lips. But after praising the beauty of Olivia, Cesario then adds the following:
Lady, you are the cruelest she alive
If you will leave these graces to the grave And leave the world no copy. (211-13)
A careful reader may note here that Shakespeare switches the dialogue of the scene from prose to poetry. The shift marks a point where the dialogue moves away from being a mere message and to being an emotional discussion or debate about love. Those familiar with Shakespeare’s other works will also note a connection between these lines and Shakespeare’s Sonnets. In those well-known poems, the speaker urges a beautiful young man to find a woman to marry and have children because the young man is so beautiful that the world would be deprived if later generations did not have the opportunity to view such beauty for themselves by seeing that beauty in his offspring. Cesario is stating the same idea to Olivia: the word copy refers to offspring or children.
Olivia, however, who has absolutely no feelings for the Duke at all, makes a joke concerning the word copy. She says she will copy out or make a list (or catalog) of her physical features: “two lips, indifferent red … two grey eyes, with lids to them
…” (216-18). Shakespeare briefly returns to prose at this juncture because the Countess is being insincere. Her words are neither emotional nor true.
Viola then sums up her own conclusion as to why the Countess refuses to love the Duke:
I see what you are, you are too proud. (219)
Shakespeare has keenly remarked both here and elsewhere (notably the comments made by Rosalind to Phebe in Act III, Scene 5 of As You Like It) that many people let pride get in the way of love. They think of themselves as being too good or special (or too beautiful). They think that they are superior to the men (or women) who woo them (who are attracted to them and wish to marry them). And, so, they miss out on an opportunity of finding love in their life. Cesario is suggesting that Olivia does not have any good reasons for rejecting the Duke. Of course, In Viola’s mind, the Duke is perfect: Olivia is not superior to him. And, so, Cesario asserts that Olivia should recompense the Duke’s love, that Olivia should love the Duke even if she were the most beautiful woman in the world (lines 222-23).
Cesario explains that the Duke’s love is full of passion and force. However, although the Countess admits that the Duke is full of noble qualities, she just does not love him (at line 231). Cesario then asserts that the Duke, because his love is so intense, cannot understand the Countess’ response. Cesario explains that if she were the Duke, she would express her love in numerous ways:
Make me a willow cabin at your gate And call upon my soul within the house Write loyal cantons of contemned love
And sing them loud even in the dead of night; Halloo your name to the reverberate hills, And make the babbling gossip of the air
Cry out ‘Olivia!’ O, you should not rest Between the elements of air and earth But you should pity me. (237-45)
Viola is attempting to reveal the depth of the Duke’s passion to the Countess. The speech here is exceptionally poetical and passionate. The willow tree is the symbol of the unrequited or rejected lover, and the “gossip of the air” is a metaphor for an echo. Cesario declares that the air would hold no peace, for the name of Olivia would be vibrating and echoing through the hills until he ran out of breath. This passage also is an allusion to the Greek tale of Narcissus and Echo. Echo was once a lovely nymph, a minor goddess of nature, who fell in love with Narcissus. But Narcissus loved only himself, and he rejected Echo. Echo, calling out the name of Narcissus in her grief, was transformed into just a mere voice and nothing else. Hence, Cesario is suggesting that if he were the Duke, he would waste away and die in his unrequited love for Olivia.
Although this passage has the primary purpose (1) of Cesario attempting to reveal the depth of the Duke’s love for Olivia, the lines serve two additional purposes as well: (2) The passage expresses Viola’s own desire for the Duke. She herself is Echo. Subconsciously, the depth of her passion is as great as that of the nymph, for this explains how she is able to express so well the thoughts and feelings of the unrequited lover. But,
(3) the passage has an unusual and unexpected consequence as well. Because Viola expresses these lines with such great passion and intensity, Olivia is moved by them – so much so that she does fall in love, but not with the Duke. Olivia falls in love with Cesario.
Olivia becomes quite interested in Cesario and asks him about his