Twelfth Night
"Twelfth Night, or What You Will," is a whimsical romantic comedy by Shakespeare, believed to have been penned around 1601–1602 as a festive treat for the end of the Christmas season. The story revolves around Viola and Sebastian, a pair of twins separated in a shipwreck. Viola, disguised as Cesario, develops affection for Duke Orsino, who pines for Countess Olivia. However, upon encountering Viola, Olivia becomes infatuated with her, mistakenly thinking she's a man.
Viola, parted from her twin Sebastian, adopts a male guise and enters the service of Duke Orsino, gradually falling for him. But there's a twist – Orsino has a crush on Countess Olivia and dispatches Viola to woo Olivia on his behalf. Yet, Olivia ends up falling for Viola, believing her to be a young man.
As the tale unfolds, Sebastian resurfaces, triggering a whirlwind of identity mix-ups. He unexpectedly ties the knot with Olivia. In a delightful twist, Viola discloses her true identity as a woman and exchanges vows with Orsino, bringing the story to a joyful conclusion.
Major Characters
Viola – a shipwrecked young woman who disguises herself as a page named Cesario
Sebastian – Viola's twin brother
Duke Orsino – Duke of Illyria
Olivia – a wealthy countess
Malvolio – steward in Olivia's household
Maria – Olivia's gentlewoman
Sir Toby Belch – Olivia's uncle
Sir Andrew Aguecheek – a friend of Sir Toby
Feste – Olivia's servant, a jester
Fabian – a servant in Olivia's household
Antonio – a sea captain and friend to Sebastian
Valentine and Curio – gentlemen attending on the Duke
A Servant of Olivia
A Sea Captain – a friend to Viola
Summary
Act I
So, there's this Duke in Illyria named Orsino, and he's totally smitten with Countess Olivia. But guess what? Olivia's not into him or any dude, for that matter. She's been in her own world of mourning for years. Then, boom, a shipwreck brings Viola to the scene. She's lost her twin brother, Sebastian, and decides to play it cool by dressing up as a dude named Cesario and working for Duke Orsino.
Orsino sends Cesario (Viola in disguise) to woo Olivia, but things get tricky because Olivia starts to fall for Cesario instead of Orsino. And hey, Cesario's got a soft spot for Orsino. So, we've got a triangle of confused feelings going on.
Act II
Now, inside Olivia's house, there's a bunch of mischief happening. Her uncle Toby, her servant Maria, and Toby's buddy Andrew are playing some sneaky tricks. They make Malvolio, Olivia's steward, think she's in love with him. They even get him to strut around in ridiculous yellow stockings. Olivia's like, "What in the world?" and decides to lock up Malvolio for acting cray-cray. Also, Viola's twin bro Sebastian is alive and kicking, hanging out with his pirate pal Antonio.
Act III
Sir Andrew's got the hots for Olivia, but he's not too thrilled about Cesario getting all the attention. So, he challenges Cesario to a duel, but it turns out to be a comedy of errors. Antonio, thinking Cesario is Sebastian, jumps in to defend him and ends up getting arrested. Later, the real Sebastian shows up and Olivia's like, "Hey, you look like Cesario!" So, they get hitched in a hurry.
Act IV
Malvolio's locked up and being messed with by Toby and his crew. They convince him he's gone nuts. Then, they let him write a letter to Olivia, but it just makes things worse.
Act V
Antonio's brought to Orsino and thinks Cesario (Viola) has betrayed him. But surprise, Sebastian shows up and clears the confusion. Malvolio's set free, and it's revealed that Maria and Toby got married in the middle of all the chaos. Orsino realizes he's got the hots for Viola, who's actually a girl, and they all get ready for a big ol' wedding celebration.
And that's a wrap on the love-filled mess of Twelfth Night!
Themes
Viola is not alone among Shakespeare's cross-dressing heroines; in Shakespeare's theatre, convention dictated that adolescent boys play the roles of female characters, creating humor in the diversity of disguise found in a female character who for a while pretended at masculine. Her cross-dressing enables Viola to usually fulfill male roles, such as acting as a messenger between Orsino and Olivia and being Orsino's confidant.
Shakespeare explores how the complications of loving someone often arise from confusion and concealment about identity. Another theme is the close connection between madness and love and how the irrational pursuit of love can lead to destruction.
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