Catharsis in As You Like It Essay

Literature is meant to teach. Its purpose is to shed light upon the soul and offer up the best and worst of humanity. All the stories we read, all the characters we relate to and begin to understand, they all have a tale to tell and a lesson to be learned. This is precisely what makes literature so vital to the human spirit. It is here that we enter the world of William Shakespeare’s As You Like It , a story set in a fantastical forest. As we follow the true love of Orlando and Rosalind and the brotherly betrayal by Oliver and Duke Frederick, readers begin to have a spiritual renewal, a cleansing of their spirit, while observing the conflicts that take place. As You Like It is a play where characters seek out truth and simplicity in the Forest of Arden, a mystical place that offers a chance for time to stop and the mind to mend. We come to believe, through the text, that there is an element of evil, but that it only exists in the court and society outside the forest. William Shakespeare involves â€Å"his characters in issues and events which force decisions literally touching the emotional strings of tragedy† (Champion 447) but without the death, destruction, and despair typical of that genre. The characters are safe to experience a new type of living while in the confines and safety of the wood and hopefully restore a balance they all so dearly strive for. The concept of catharsis was first discussed by Aristotle in his treatise Poetics , which was primarily a work on the aesthetics of poetry. He believed that â€Å"the poet’s aim is to produce pleasure in the spectator by eliciting from the representation the emotions of pity (for others) and fear (for oneself)† (â€Å"oetics†). He was in firm disagreement with his teacher Plato on the validity of catharsis, believing that the purging of emotions is beneficial. Although most readers associate catharsis with tragedy, especially works like Macbeth and King Lear , it is easily found in Shakespeare’s comedies. William Thompson, in his essay â€Å"Freedom and Comedy†, explains the differences between these two genres: â€Å"Comedy offers a way out, a rebirth; tragedy also offers a way out, but it is a way through evil, through death. Comedy avoids evil; tragedy confronts it† (216). Tragedy is a necessary element in a comedy; without out it there would be no conflict, thus no harmonious resolution for the end of the play. The moral lessons are not always as clear in As You Like It , as compared with the tragedies, but the same cathartic process takes place nevertheless. It is precisely through the mishaps and misfortunes of comedic characters, and the optimistic end they all experience, that gives the reader a â€Å"purification of †¦ emotions by vicarious experience† (â€Å"Catharsis†). The themes and actions of As You Like It reinforce, in a cathartic process, that evil, hate, and wrong-doing can be overcome with love, simplicity, and the generous nature of the human spirit. HBO’s As You Like It A fine example of the night and day relationship between brothers, and the spiritual renewal with both character and audience, is exemplified with the Dukes. At the beginning of the play the reader is informed that Duke Senior, the rightful ruler, has been usurped by his brother, Duke Frederick, and banished to the woods. Charles, a wrestler within the court, says that Duke Senior has â€Å"many young men flock to him every day and / fleet the time carelessly, as they did in the golden / world† (13; I. i. 116-118). We are given a comparison between the evils represented within the new court and the timelessness of the Forest. Duke Frederick, the usurper, continues his path of paranoia and wickedness when accusing his niece, Rosalind, of being her father’s spy. He commands: â€Å"Mistress, dispatch you with your safest haste, / and get you from our court† (37; I. iii. 40-41). Frederick not only wants his wronged niece out of court for fear of spying, but also because Rosalind is pitied by the people, and is a constant reminder of Frederick’s actions against his beloved brother. He rightfully wants to lead without his â€Å"good† brother overshadowing him in his subject’s eyes. All of the action up to this point is showing conflict and tragedy to the audience in preparation for the happy resolution of these events, giving a realistic depth to the problems faced, and allowing the audience to relate on a personal level. On the other hand, in the forest, Duke Senior is happy and content. He opens Act Two with a rousing speech championing simplicity and joy: Now, my co-mates and brothers in exile, Hath not old custom made this life for sweet Than that of painted pomp? Are not these woods More free from peril than the envious court? Here we feel not the penalty of Adam, (49; II. i. 1-5) How striking it is that after being overthrown and having his life shattered, Duke Senior finds joy, happiness, and freedom within the Forest of Arden – that the â€Å"penalty of Adam† does not touch him there. It gives hope to the readers – which changes in circumstances, that evil done by intimates, can still transform into something more valuable. To be cliche, yet appropriate, as one door closes, another opens. William Thompson theorizes that â€Å"comedy is a play about freedom, a play in which evil is mastered† (218). Here is the first instance of comedic catharsis, of evil being faced head on and destroyed – it is the spiritual renewal of Duke Senior’s soul after seemingly tragic events that would and does break other men. Another instance of the cathartic elements between brotherly conflicts occurs with Oliver and Orlando. The play opens with Orlando bemoaning his current affairs to his faithful family servant – â€Å"He [Oliver] keeps me rustically at home †¦ for call you / that keeping for a gentlemen of my birth that / differs not from the stalling of an ox† (7;I. i. 6-9). He is angered by the Elizabethan tradition that gives the eldest son the whole inheritance, and offers nothing to the siblings. While speaking with Oliver, during a physical altercation, Orlando accuses: My father charged you in his will to give me good education. You have trained me like a peasant, obscuring and hiding from me all gentlemanlike qualities (11; I. i. 65-69) Orlando simply wants to feel worthy of others, to have the confidence and ability of interacting at the upper echelons of society, something that a great majority of reader’s relate to. Themes of insecurity echo throughout the character arc of Orlando. Larry Champion explains that â€Å"the comic experience is frequently one of self revelation† (429) which can not occur until the brothers find themselves in the safety of the Forest. Oliver is commanded to enter the forest and find his brother, one who he tried to kill and admittedly one who he has â€Å"never loved my brother in my life† (91; III. 1. 13-14). With both brothers in the forest the concept of healing enters the audience’s mind, who understands that all will have to be well in the end, for this is still a comedy in nature. Oliver, while sleeping in the woods, is threatened by a snake and lioness. Orlando comes upon the scene and â€Å"twice did he turn his back and purposed so, / but kindness, nobler ever than revenge / †¦ made him give battle to the lioness† (165; IV. iii. 134-137). Oliver continues the tale saying that â€Å"When from the first to last betwixt us two / Tears our recountments hand most kindly bathed† (165; IV. iii. 148-149). The brothers have reconciled in the face of danger, their angers forced upon the beast within the magical forest. The healing in the play must cure the brothers de Boys for this comedy to make sense. If it did not, then Orlando and Oliver would simply be shallow impersonations of Edmund and Edgar from King Lear , offering little hope, little renewal to the audience, who would no doubt see pieces of themselves and their kin in Orlando and Oliver. It is the revelation of how the conflicts resolve themselves that offer up the cathartic healing. Perhaps the most optimistic cathartic elements of As You Like It occur during Orlando’s quest for â€Å"worthiness† of Rosalind. There first meeting offers hope against the backdrop of a courtly wrestling match. Orlando is fighting to save his honor and win from his brother the right to be educated as a gentleman, for he is very aware of his status. After winning the match Rosalind gives Orlando a token of her love, â€Å"Wear this for me – one out of suits with fortune, / That could give more but that her hand lacks / means† (32; I. ii. 244-245) for which Orlando is unable to respond. He is not, in his own mind, educated and worthy of her. This predicament will cause distress and drive the comedy in the following scenes, for â€Å"the comic hero recognizes a restraint upon his freedom, but he is no reforming philosopher †¦ and the closest evil †¦ is his own impotent and limited body† (Thompson 219). The reader is now set upon a course where the progress and growth of Orlando, as a worthy man, will meet head on with his true love in Rosalind. Deeper into the play we find Orlando caring for his elderly manservant Adam. They are fleeing the wrath of Oliver, in an unknown forest, hungry and tired. Orlando comes upon Duke Senior, and his men, brandishing a sword, commanding â€Å"Forbear, and eat no more† (79; II. vii. 92). Adam is dying of hunger and Orlando is desperate, he explains that â€Å"The thorny point / Of bare distress hath ta’en from me the show / Of smooth civility† (79; II. vii. 99-101). Orlando can not contemplate a world where this show of force would be inappropriate – he is in survival mode, having released his primal nature in the woods. Duke Senior, being entirely at ease in the magical forest, speaks lainly: â€Å"Your gentleness shall force / More that your force move us to gentleness† (79; II. vii. 107-108) and asks Orlando to â€Å"sit down and feed, and welcome to our table† (79; II. vii. 110). His lack of worldly knowledge coupled with the devastating effect of betrayal from his kin, leads Orlando to a world that he believes is savage, dark, and treacherous. What we all hope for is the shedding of his guard an d the reconciliation with Rosalind in true love giving the audience and reader a strong sense of faith. His acceptance of Duke Senior’s kindness is a first step to renewing a new faith in man. It is through the next three acts that the reader will watch the growth of Orlando. From his interactions with Jaques, to the practice wooing of â€Å"Ganymede†, Orlando gains the confidence needed to properly wed Rosalind. The audience finds this story of true love inspiring, proving that gentleness and persistence will be rewarded. By the end of Act Five all conflict has been resolved. The Dukes are reconciled, with Frederick entering the wood to find a religious monk. Oliver is married to Cecilia, being a changed man, and the better for it. The two young lovers Phebe and Silvious are forever wed, although immature in love. And of course Orlando, through his trials and tribulations, becomes worthy of Rosalind’s hand. Although we know that comedies end with happiness and we expect no sharp plot deviations, it is within the journey a character takes, and the manner in which adversity is handled, that a catharsis takes place. We are left with lessons learned, stored in the collective memory bank of experience what may ensue when you take, or don’t take, action. Put simply, catharsis is the emotional understanding of what may transpire at any given moment. Through the vicarious experience with a character, the shared feeling of their passion and pain, we are given the opportunity for growth without any of the real world consequences that may follow – this is the benefit, genius, and grace of a cathartic moment with literature.