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Shakespeare's plays were the absolute delight of Ms. Gomez, English Professor to my Grandmother at Fathima College at Madurai during the 1960's. Her portrayal of Shakespeare's characters in "As You Like It" are interesting to read even today. CONTENTS * Another Overview of the Play * Importance of the Opening Scene * First Meeting between Orlando & Rosalind * Character Sketch - Jaques * Character Sketch - Touchstone * Character Sketch - Duke Senior “As You Like It” is exactly as we like it. For in this dram, the Sun shines and the wind blows; and there is no thunder and lightning. It is the drama of the happiness and joy of youth, and the beauty of the forests. “As You Like It” presents to us a world where time cannot plant its everlasting identity. It is the world where happiness is the essence of life; and love is the law of living. It is one of Shakespeare’s most beautiful and most colorful plays. Youth is the prevailing atmosphere where joy and song are necessary qualifications for entrance into a world like “As You Like It.” This drama is a study of young people who love to live. An another paramount significance of the drama is that every character in the dram is able to attain a thing which he or she wants. There are of course some obstacles in the achievement of the goals. But all the obstacles and impediments are only there to enhance the romance and beauty of the drama. Another aspect of this drama is that we have plenty of songs and lots of music. It is the story of the banished Duke and his lords. It is a romance of four young men and four young women, There are few cruel characters; but their cruelty only unites a father and his daughter; and a lover with his sweet heart. Time and place have nothing to do in “As You Like It.” Trees and brooks, flowers and leaves, streams and rivers, deer and harmless snake, young men and women, song and music, winter and spring are the dominant characteristics of this drama. They are all united and blended harmoniously wit the master’s touch to produce the effect of innocent happiness and a happy ending. Every character in the dram is contented; and life to them is a plain holiday and eternal sunshine. They like it and we like it; and so Shakespeare calls it “As You Like It.”
“As You Like It” is a mixture of comedy and romance with occasional touches of seriousness. The poet seems to forestall objection by saying, “Here is the piece, interpret it in any spirit you like.” So in the epilogue, Rosalind regrets that it is not a “good play”, but charges the ladies “to like it” as much of it as pleases them; and the men to imitate the indulgence. The title is a glance of the careless ease of forest life, which the play pictures in a life unfettered by the artificial restraints of society; and untainted by its graver evils. But Shakespeare referred to the character of the piece itself, and meant the title and the epilogue to be a sort of playful plea for its acceptance. “As You Like It” is the happiest and sweetest of all of Shakespeare’s comedies. No one suffers, no one lives an eager, intense life; there is no tragic interest in it. It is mirthful; but the mirth is sprightly, graceful and exquisite. The wit of Touchstone is not mere clownage; nor has it any indirect significances. It is a dainty kind of absurdity, worthy to hold comparison with the melancholy of Jaques. Shakespeare, when he wrote this idyllic play was for himself in his Forest of Arden. It was a resting place. There is an open air feeling throughout the play. The dialogue catches freedom and freshness from the atmosphere. Selfishness, envy, and ambition have been left in the city behind them. Of all the passions, love has found an entrance into this wilderness. We hear of past troubles, but only as a memory, beside which the pleasure of the present stands out.
Importance of the Opening Scene The ingenious unfolding of the action at the outset is always a signal test of a playwright’s skill. The opening scene is a bigobstacle for a dramatist. But Shakespeare with his great dramatic skill has very successfully overcome this initial difficulty by revealing the enmity between the two brothers Oliver and Orlando. The relationship between the two brothers and the meeting between Oliver and Charles; and Oliver’s plan to do away with Orlando sets the story in motion. It gives us an inkling into the principal events going to take place. The clue to the character of Orlando that he is not an effeminate and sentimental young man is evident from the spirit he shows against the humiliating attitude of his elder brother. Oliver’s envy makes him hate the virtues of his younger brother, and he is malicious, for he bribes Charles to do away with Orlando. Oliver’s conversation with Charles, the court wrestles, reveals the other parallel action in the play. The old Duke has been banished by his younger brother, the new Duke. Some loyal Lords have gone into exile with the old Duke to the Forest of Arden. Oliver then asks about the Duke’s daughter. Charles says that the new Duke’s daughter Celia’s affection for Rosalind, the old Duke’s daughter has made her stay at the court. Thus the two princesses are introduced. Shakespeare then reveals his marvelous dramatic skill in introducing the the main characters. He whets the curiosity of the audience by referring to them. We are introduced to the relationship between the characters. We learn about the rivalry between the two brothers Orlando and Oliver; and how Oliver ill treated his younger brother. Regarding the Dukes’, we learn that the Senior Duke is much loved; for his faithful followers have voluntarily accompanied him into exile. The relationship between the two cousins, Rosalind and Celia, is so strong that one would die without the other. In conclusion, Shakespeare has introduced the opening scene with no trace of artificiality. Shakespeare is mostly indolent. He does not use much effort. In all his plays, he introduces the opening scene in the most inartistic and mechanical way. In “As You Like It,” Shakespeare has overcome the initial difficulty of every dramatist, and has gone on to overcome his initial difficulty in success. In “As You Like It,” he introduces the opening scene artistically and within dramatic probability.
First Meeting between Orlando & Rosalind The first meeting between Orlando and Rosalind takes place at a wrestling match. The wrestling between Charles, the court wrestles, and Orlando was an unequal contest. Charles was very strong and hefty, who broke the ribs of three younger brothers; while Orlando was young and tender. Duke Fredrick to sympathized with inexperienced Orlando, and asked Rosalind and Celia to dissuade him from the contest. Rosalind and Celia pleaded with Orlando to withdraw from the combat. Orlando was unwilling to disoblige the two princesses; but he could not alter his decision. So he requested them to give their good wishes, which they willingly did, and prayed for his success. Orland met the taunting remarks of Charles with cool confidence. The wrestling became inevitable. Rosalind and Celia were the most excited spectators. There was a shout, and Charles was thrown. Charles could even speak and was carried away. Thus Orlando won the wrestling match, and announced that he was the son of the late Sir Rowland. Duke Fredrick at once showed his displeasure; for Sir Rowland was a good friend of the banished Duke, and had left the place without even a good word for Orlando. Rosalind felt pity for Orlando immediately on seeing him. Now on knowing that he was the son of father’s friend, she fell in love with him. She praised him and rewarded him with her chain. Orlando could not even thank her for it; since she immediately departed with Celia. Orlando too was moved in a similar way by the tall and graceful princess who gave him the chain. He learnt from Le Beau, the courtier about the young lady’s name and parentage. Le Beau even warned him of the Duke’s dislike toward him, and asked him to leave the place immediately. With a heavy heart, Orlando returned from the tyrant Duke to the tyrant brother with the only thought of “heavenly Rosalind” shining on his bleak and barren sky. “Thus must I from the smoke into the smother From tyrant Duke unto a tyrant brother. But heavenly Rosalind !”
Silvius and Phebe are not rustics, but shepherds of the conventional pastoral type; and their relationship follows a stock pattern. The whole episode is a parody on a conventional pastoral comedy. Phebe and Silvius are characterized in accordance with the whole spirit of the episode, of which they are the central figures. Shakespeare touches the love of Silvius in reality. The Phebe of Shakespeare’s creation is more like a glamour girl of the modern world. Silvius excites the contempt of the reader by his nervous infatuation. He tells Phebe that her love is holy and perfect, and that she lives upon the scattered smile of Phebe, and begs her not to scorn at his love. He loses all his human dignity for his love for Phebe, and asks Phebe to pity him. Silvius is capable of ardent love. He says that his love is holy and perfect, and as a result, he feels the wounds of unreciprocated love. He thinks that some day, Pheb would realize the wound’s of love’s keen arrows, and fall in love with him. It is because of his earnestness of love that Rosalind takes his side, and secures for him the hand of Phebe, if not her heart. Phebe is incapable of seeing these wounds of love and spurns Silvius with the words, “Now counterfeit to swoon, why, now fall down.” Phebe has no reason to be contemptuous because she belongs to the ordinary of nature’s sale-work. In the words of Rosalind : “Foul is most foul, being foul to a scoffer.” Silvius falls in love with Rosalind, whose contempt for Phebe is the first lesson which Phebe learns of unreciprocated love. Only on meeting Ganymede does Phebe become soft in her attitude toward Silvius. She learns of Silvius’ ardent love for her and feels sorry for her past attitude towards Silvius. Thus the Silvius Phebe love story which was threatened even before it was born, ended with a happy note : “Dead Shepherd, now I find thy saw of might, Who ever loved that loved was not a first sight.” Rosalind is one of the best creations of Shakespeare. Rosalind’s wit is gaiety without a string, the gloom in it is sweet radiance, her sportive nature marks the depth of her love. We are introduced to Rosalind as a poor bird with a dropping wing. Her father is banished, and she is living on sufferance as companion to the usurper’s daughter being indeed half a prisoner in the palace, where till lately she reigned as princess. Rosalind is always happy. O sort of unhappiness can stay in her company. It is a joy to stand even her chiding for “faster than her tongue did make offence, her eye did heal it up.” Rosalind is as sensitive as she is intelligent. She gets the better of Jaques in her conversation with him and tells him that it would be better to have a fool to make merry, than a companion to make her sad. Even Touchstone is impressed by Rosalind’s wit and remarks, “You will never find her without an answer, unless you find her without a tongue.” She skillfully contrives to bring Silvius and Phebe together. Rosalind is gentle and patient. She is unswerving in her love with Celia. The two cousins are inseparable like Juno’s swans. As Hazlith remarks, “nothing can be better conceived or more beautifully described than the mutual affection between the two cousins.” Though Rosalind is gentle, she does not submit tamely to insult. When Duke Fredrick banishes her from his kingdom, she boldly questions him on the cause of her banishment. When the Duke describes her father as a tyrant, she replies that even he was a tyrant when he usurped the Dukedom. The curiosity of a woman is also strong in her. When she reads the verses written by Orlando, she is curious to know about the author. True to being a woman, she faints at the sight of blood. Rosalind is like a compound of essences, so volatile in their nature, and so exquisitely blended, that on any attempt to analyze them, they seem to escape.
One is apt to overlook Shakespeare’s secondary characters. Their lesser lights are lost in the greater. Thus Celia is somewhat eclipsed by Rosalind and gets lesser attention than she merits. For hers is really a charming character. She is portrayed as a picture of love, gentleness and self-sacrifice. In spite of being the daughter of the envious Duke, she does not possess the qualities of her father. She is unswerving in her love with Rosalind, for whom she sacrifices everything and faces unknown perils. The two cousins are inseparable like Juno’s swans. As Hazlith remarks, “Nothing can be better conceived or more beautifully described than the mutual affection between the two cousins.” To keep Rosalind happy and cheerful seems to be her only concern. The manner in which she pleads with her father to revoke the sentence of banishment pronounced upon Rosalind and her consent to accompany Rosalind to the Forest of Arden show how devoted she was to her cousin. She is less impulsive than her companion and conventional, for she seems to think that Rosalind is a bit too frank towards Orlando after the wrestling match and gently cuts short the interview. There is a touch of seriousness in her She has less sense of humor than her cousin, and therefore looks at a situation more from its serious side. She has an alert and resourceful brain. The scheme to escape to the Forest of Arden was planned by her. The real charm of her nature may be inferred from Rosalind’s devotion her influence over Touchstone, and her conquest of Oliver. Celia’s influence over Touchstone is great, for he readily agrees to accompany her to the Forest of Arden. She marvels at the possibility of “love at first sight”, smiles at love’s alarms and holds “the oath of a lover” very cheap indeed, and finally falls into love with Oliver.
Orlando is a chivalrous young man – healthy, strong, brave, modest, gentle and generous. He is too manly to cherish a grudge, too generous to envy the happiness of others, too sensible also , and also too modest, idly to rail against the world. In spite of being ill treated by his brother, and his lack of education, he contained all the virtues inherited from his father, Sir Roland De Boys. There is a breath of fresh air about him, and the energy of a healthy, active life, which carries one away to the country out of the artificial life of the court. The bravery and strength of Orlando is in evidence throughout the play. Rather than bear with treatment which he regards not merely as an injustice to himself, but a sham to his noble lineage and his father’s memory, he will go forth and seek his fortunes in the spirit of self reliance and adventure. He is more than a match for his brother Oliver, who tries to subdue him by force. Even though Orlando is brave, he is not boastful, but modest. When Adam was hungry, he carried him to shelter and went in search of food. Kindness nobler than revenge got the better of him, and he gave battle to the lioness and risked his own life to save Oliver. The strong men of Shakespeare’s plays are no talkers, though they may speak and write powerfully when need be. Orlando is not only capable of wrestling with hands, but also with words. In spite of his lack of schooling, he was able to get the better of Rosalind and outwit Jaques in the “Battle of Wits.” Jaques regards Orlando as a “nimble wit with Atlanta’s heels.” Orlando is loved by all, but the wicked. To Adam, Orlando is gentle, strong and valiant. The old servant is ready to give up everything for his sake. Rosalind loved him, for she had felt from the first that “he was a man likely to support her through life.” The Senior Duke also approves of the marriage between Orlando and Rosalind. Duke Fredrick who praises Orlando for winning the wrestling match shows his dislike immediately on knowing that he is the son of the Sir Roland De Boys, a good friend of the Senior Duke, and wishes that Orlando had been son to someone else. The best tribute that can be given to a man should be by the one who hates him. Oliver, his unworthy brother is shamed by Orlando’s generosity into repentance and amendment and remarks, “he is gentle, never schooled and yet learned, full of noble device and of all sorts enchantingly beloved.
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