Language Confusion in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night - Essay Example

The Character and Language Used By Feste in the Comedy the Twelve Nights by Shakespeare The comedy Twelve Night also termed what will you will was done by Shakespeare in the period around the 1601 and 1602, representing an entertainment for the Twelve Night to mark the close of the Christian season. The play involves language indirectness and randomness used by varied characters. The language used by Feste, a clown, serves as a proper example of the randomness and indirectness of the language in the play (Ford, 10).

Feste comes in play as a clown allowed by Olivia to say whatever he pleases. As a clown, Feste’s job includes entertaining the audience by singing, cracking jokes, and dancing disturbing the people around him. In literary critics, views that Feste has assumed the spirit of the Twelve Night festivities which involves having fun and tossing the bird towards authority figures (Ford, 145).Despite the belief by Caesario, the disguised Olivia, she believes that Feste remains one of the wisest cats in Illyria.

The description fits Feste through his expressed genius nature with words. Feste is endowed with the talent of punning, clever banter and word play. It is amazing how Feste utilizes his skills throughout the Twelfth Night (Ford, 148).Feste appears fond of amicably sizing up situations as they come and at the same time the characters around him allowing him to discern the foolishness of the individuals around him. The character not only tickles individuals but, at the same time ends up providing him with an opportunity to earn a few bucks.

Feste mocks the Olivia saying that she has over indulge in mourning which, he, Feste, views as a foolish behavior. Further, Feste mocks Duke Orsino’s moods as being excess. To emphasize the extent he compares Orsino’s mind with an ‘apal’ that constantly changes its color (Ford, 150).ReferencesFord, John R. Twelfth Night: A Guide to the Play. Westport: Greenwood Press, 2006. Print.