Madness, Chaos, and Laughter in Shakespeares Twelfth Night - Term Paper Example

The title of the play "Twelfth Night" itself is ambiguous and suggestive of chaos. There are two titles, either “Twelfth Night” or “What You Will. “Twelfth Night” is taken from the celebration of the Epiphany, which in Shakespeare’s time is celebrated by turning things upside down (Grosz and Wendler vi). Such is the situation in the play, in which everything is in chaos mainly because of the way characters feel for each other. The other title, that is, “What You Will” is also uncertain because it may refer to fulfilling the wish of the characters or it could be directed to the audience, as in asking them to name the title as they would want to.

Shakespeare suggests madness by showing contrast in the way characters look and the way they behave and express their feelings. I believe that every person who has experienced first love would admit doing crazy things for a girl or a boy but what if the person is as old as Duke Orsino? I am not so sure of his age and not sure if it was given in the play but the way he talks to Viola, saying, “Dear lad, believe it; For they shall yet belie thy happy years” (Act 1, Sc.4) it seems like he is twice Viola’s age. The age of the duke could two things. First, does Shakespeare intend to make an old character fall in love so passionately so as to show the credulity of the character such as a noble ruler like Orsino? Second, is age used as an element to effect comedy?

I do not wish to expound on the first question as that would spoil the essay, making it a social criticism of Shakespeare’s time. Rather, I prefer to think of age as an element to arouse comedy and laughter, a way to arouse the interest of the audience, making them see how an old man could fall victim to passionate love. As the audience in a stageplay sees Orsino with his old form and gesture, they are moved to see a different kind of passion expressed by an old man who happens to be a late bloomer.

Viola’s disguise contributes to the madness and chaos in the play. In fact, it can be considered another major theme in the play aside from love. Chaos is seen as Viola assumes a male identity, falls for Orsino and attracts Olivia. Unlike in other plays where disguise is used to find an answer or resolve an issue such as when Hamlet disguises as a madman, disguise in this play is used again to evoke laughter. In the midst of all its funniness, however, Shakespeare leaves us thinking whether it is really possible to have Olivia change her mind about love when she meets the young Cesario. We cannot help thinking how unfair it is for Orsino as we have witnessed the old man’s expression of love for her. In the end, the audience is made to conclude that Orsino deserves another woman, someone of better essence than Olivia.

The madness of the characters is explored throughout the play. Olivia, herself, experiences this as she falls for Cesario. In Act 3, she says that pity, which Cesario feels for her is “a degree to love” (Sc.4). This view illustrates how mad Olivia has fallen for Cesario instead of Orsino. As the audience realizes this mistake, they are bound to laugh about it and fail to realize the madness suggested in the play.

Madness for love is further shown in the way Malvolio behaves in Act 3. Seeing the letter that Maria made, he dresses up in a funny yellow outfit, which could spur more laughter among the audience. Again, this scene could be considered a jest about the way people could go mad about love but the fun that the whole act causes would lure the audience to set aside the seriousness of Malvolio’s illusion. Further to Malvolio’s act, Sir Andrew’s decision to challenge Cesario to a duel emphasizes the theme of mad love in the play. Again, Shakespeare resolves the conflict into laughter by having Sir Toby cover up the motive of the duel.

Doing crazy things for love is considered natural but looking at how insane people can be when they do things out of love, I doubt why people have come to accept the said idea. If we take Shakespeare's play seriously, we can say that mad love could cause chaos, insanity, and even death. If this is so, people should stop making love an excuse for doing crazy things because after all, life is not a Shakespearean comedy where mistakes are considered funny and feelings can easily change.