“Exeunt pursued by a bear” - more than comical relief?

I know the famous line “Exeunt pursued by a bear” is a comic sigh of relief within this play, but I think the bear has a lot more symbolism than a silly comic relief Shakespeare through in the play and I apologize in advance, because this post might seem like a stretch/random thoughts that are in cohesive. There is one important tempest (allude to another Shakespeare classic), which occurs when Antigonus sails to Bohemia. He leaves his ship taking Perdita who is to be exposed on the WILD shore. Tempests are associated with "creatures of prey" as is the bear in The Winter's Tale who eats Antigonus after he has abandoned Perdita. When the day 'frowns' on him, a well-worn image becomes strangely alive before the eyes of the audience. Here the bear ACTUALLY appears, destroying Antigonus while the other tempest drowns the sailors who have brought him to do his evil deed. I think the bear is much more than a silly laughter break but helps us deepen our understanding of the symbolizing of Leontes' savage authority over Antigonus, a somewhat innocent character. Call me crazy?

Fairy Tale elements in The Winter's Tale

I view The Winter’s Tale as an extraordinary example of a classic fairy tale piece. I think Professor Britland somewhat touched on it in the last lecture and how we are expecting something bad to happen (ex: Perdita is a lost daughter who is found in a rural community so something bad and groundbreaking to the play must happen… but… it doesn’t). I feel The Winter’s Tale is split into two plays; the first play ending in Act III, Scene II and the second play starting after that in a setting 16 years later and located in Bohemia. I just finished this play and while I was reading it I was noting all the fairy tale pieces I thought mirrored what defined a fairy tale classic. For example:
- Perdita, a baby what was in essence left exposed to die, and being found by ordinary rural people, is a very Classical theme and provides a link between the two separate “plays” within Winter’s Tale.
- The two “separate plays” are linked by a voyage across the sea, which can symbolize change.
- Bohemia and Siciliy are half-imaginary/half-distant= places for a setting.
- Perdita doesn’t know she is a princess (but we, the audience, does)
- There is an old man who gives advice and gives some sort of “magic aid” to help (Antigonus giving the scroll).
Did anyone else catch on any other fairy tale themes?

Elizabethan Period

Personally, I am really intrigued by the Elizabethan Period because it was such a changing, influential, molding period. The Elizabethan Period was the age of the Renaissance, of new ideas and new thinking. It was a period full of the greatest tools in increasing knowledge and learning, was responsible for the interest in the different sciences and inventions and perhaps factored in sparking the supernatural. The new ideas, information and increased knowledge about science, technology and astrology led to a renewed interest in the supernatural including witches, witchcraft and ghosts which led to belief in superstitions and the supernatural. I think these characteristics can be seen in both Othello and Macbeth. Othello is the spark of all new ideology; no one is used to such an influential and dominant African American man. Macbeth is clearly the definition of supernatural filled with their witches, double double toil and trouble spells, and prophesies. During the Renaissance period people blamed unexplainable events as the work of witches, an exact replica of what is protruding in Macbeth. Women were those most often accused of being witches. Any more thoughts on how this era is seeped into Shakespeare’s plays?

Paulina's Curious Role

The character in A Winter's Tale that intrigued me the most was Paulina. I was first intrigued by her blatant honesty and fiery words in her initial confrontation with Leontes. I found it extraordinary that a female character would be allowed to speak such harsh and direct words and go unpunished for it.
As the play went along, I started to question her relationships with both Leontes and Hermoine. After her first confrontation with Leontes, I found it curious that he punished her husband rather than her. Don't get me wrong, I understand that during that time husbands were responsible for keeping their women in line. This explains why Leontes burdens her husband Antigonus with the task of abandoning the baby. However, she is merely a gentlewoman, and she told off her King, whom she should respect perhaps even MORE so than her husband. Particularly looking at how she basically added fuel to the fire with her words and the showing of the baby, howcome Leontes didn't punish her, imprison her, or have her killed? He sure didn't show any mercy for his own wife, and Hermoine was nothing but respectful and obedient to him the whole time!
Later in the play, the relationship between Leontes and Paulina seems even weirder. Although they do not say this directly, you can tell that she has been harping him for the past 16 years. Howcome he puts up with it? He also swears to her that he will not marry another person, that the only person he would ever be with again would be Hermoine. Ummm... why is he swearing to her? What authority does she have? Howcome she has always had such a control over him?
The relationship between Paulina and Hermoine is also very strange. I noticed something suspicious in scene III of Act 5. If you look at the stage direction in italics, it says "Pauline draws a curtain, and discovers Hermoine standing like a statue." Since Shakespeare gives it away here that it is not really a statue, I think he is trying to point out that Paulina knew that what was behind the curtain was a real person. Even though she says things like "You'll mar it if you kiss it (V:iii:82)," I think she is merely playing along. The explanation that Paulina has been secretly harboring the Queen is the only one that makes sense to me. Initially, I had thought it was so stupid that a statue would just magically turn into a human out of nowhere when there have been no elements of magic in this play (and I didn't forget the Oracle but that person isn't so much magical as they are blessed by the higher power). If you look at the end of Scene III of Act 5 though, it would only make sense that she has known all along. Unless we went as far as saying that Paulina has magic powers (which I really don't think she does), she was pretending to have magic powers so that she wouldn't get in trouble for harboring the Queen for 16 years. Because if Leontes knew, he would probably feel pretty angry (and I wouldn't blame him) that this woman has been making him feel extremely guilty for the past 16 years while she's known all along that the Queen has been alive. Maybe my theory is radical, but I just think Paulina and the Queen plotted this whole thing, from the swoon in court, to the statue, to get revenge. (The only thing I can't really make sense of with this theory is the ghost of Hermoine that Antigonus saw on the ship)

Power in Macbeth/ other plays we have read

A common theme between the plays we have read is Power. Power intoxicates some of the characters we have read about to go so far as to intimidate, cheat, or even murder others in order to obtain authority or maintain the control they already have. In Macbeth, the theme of power presents itself in two distinct forms: the earthly and the supernatural. Characters such as Macbeth embody the earthly form of power by using murder and deception as tools, whereas the witches are more involved with the supernatural and merely foretell the future to utilize their power. Although both groups are in positions of power, each of the different forms of power has its advantages and disadvantages; however, ultimately the prowess of the supernatural rules over Macbeth’s tangible form of power lead the witches, in the long run, achieve what they desire.
…So what do you guys think about power in Macbeth or in the other plays we read?

Hermione's Use of Words

In The Winter’s Tale, I think Hermione’s use of words early in the play is very interesting. In Act I, Scene II, Hermione convinces Polixenes to stay using a threat, when she says, “Force me to keep you as a prisoner, / Not like a guest: so you shall pay your fees,” a statement that she will keep him prisoner and fine him if he does not stay willingly. It is interesting, then, that Leontes tells Hermione that she, “never spok’st / To better purpose,” except when she agreed to marry him, drawing a parallel between Hermione’s persuasive words and her acceptance of a marriage proposal. This is interesting because the first words (Hermione’s agreement to marry) mark the start of their marriage, while the second words (convincing of Polixenes) start its dissolution, as Leontes’ jealousy and irrationality spurs from Hermione’s persuasive words. In connecting the two, Leontes points out the start and end of his marriage by Hermione's words, and in this play, words do not always mean what they should.

Iago= The Devil

After reading Othello, and learning about the character, Iago, I have found a pretty interesting comparison. I feel that the character Iago can be compared to Satan. This sounds funny at first but the similarities are pretty intriguing. Iago is a main character of the play, but he isn't really part of the main plot. The main plot line of the play is Othello and Desdemona. Iago likes to sit on the side and almost tempt Othello into thinking or doing things. Iago tries to put out suspicions and tries to toy with Othello's mind. Although he does all this, Iago never directly does harm to Othello or anyone else. He simply allows or puts the characters into that position to see what would happen. It is almost a game to him. This seems to parallel the devil's goals, in which he doesn't directly do bad things, but he tempts people into doing wrong things. Iago gives another view of things, even if they are bad, and lets things play out. In the process, it is clear Iago is having fun and enjoying himself as he sees what will happen. Iago is clearly a terrible man, and he is evil. I think comparing him and these evil acts to the devil and the devils goals are similar.