Shakespeare: The Winter's Tale - Thesis Example

?The concepts which are presented through “The Winter’s Tale” are able to create different understandings of human attributes. A reoccurring theme which is associated with the story is based on Leontes’ jealousy that he creates against his family and friends. It is through the jealousy that Leontes goes through suffering and experiences which could have been avoided in the play. The jealousy of Leontes is one which causes him to take blind actions and to hold a cold nature throughout the play instead of recognizing the reality of the situation. Defining the different points of jealousy that are a part of the character of Leontes as well as the resolution which occurs by the end of the play leads into the concepts not only of jealousy but also how forgiveness and reconciliation are as important as the other attributes from characters that are in the play. The character of Leontes is what first describes the concept of winter as well as how this is attributed to jealousy. This begins when Leontes can’t convince Polixenes to stay but which is persuaded by Hermoine. The reason for this particular problem is based on the character and nature of Leontes which is what creates his jealousy. He is referred to as being cold and not having the right approach to offer the friend a space to stay. “You had drawn oaths for him to stay. You, sir, charge him too coldly: tell him, you are sure All in Bohemia’s well: this satisfaction the by gone day proclaimed; say this to him, He’s beat from his best ward” (Shakespeare, Act 1, Scene 2). This particular statement is one which is associated with the coldness of Leontes character and the winter. It also is alluded to the winter characteristics that are a part of Leontes, specifically with the jealousy and unfairness that he shows to others throughout the play. It is this main attribute of jealousy and coldness that leads Leontes to the actions of jealousy and which creates the main problems and painful experiences from Leontes. The first area of pain is based on the illusions which Leontes has toward the situation and what is occurring. He finds fault in things which are natural or which don’t add in logically, causing him to lose reason with his family and his place in the kingdom. The different areas which he finds pain are ones which are based on illusions he creates toward circumstances. An example of this is when he refers to his son being sick as a direct sign that the son isn’t his child. “To see His nobleness! Conceiving the dishonor of his mother, He straight declined, drooped, took it deeply; fastened and fixed the shame on it himself; threw off his spirit, his appetite, his sleep, and downright languished” (Act 2, Scene 4). This particular statement shows how Leontes creates his own pain through jealousy and with the belief that his wife and child don’t belong to him. The pain is created through his own illusions and the blindness which he shows toward the given situation. The pain which is caused with Leontes is one which is furthered with the way in which he approaches the situation, specifically which leads to him banishing his wife. The problems come from his continuous blindness by jealousy. This is first attributed to his belief in the oracle, which doesn’t create the right response because of the jealousy which he holds. This is followed by his decisions to banish his wife and son. This is not only one which leads to pain but also comes from the decision on how to approach the situation, specifically by holding a public trial to prove that his wife has had an affair and that he has a bastard son. “This good speed foretells The great Apollo suddenly will have the truth of this appear. Prepare you, Lords; summon a session that we may arraign our most disloyal lady; for, as she hath been publicly accused, so shall she have a just and open trial” (Act 2, Scene 4). While Leontes makes a decision based on saving his dignity, the decision to banish his son and hold a public trial with his wife is what leads to the strife that he feels throughout the rest of the play. These specific actions, because they were taken out of jealousy, lead to his blindness and cold nature until the end. The change which occurs with the character of Leontes occurs when there is recognition that all actions were taken out of jealousy and because of the wrong approach which he took. The recognition of this comes after Leontes recognizes the separation from his family and the kingdom becoming empty from his family. The recognition of the jealousy is the main character attribute which is described and which changes the character of Leontes. The ability for him to recognize this is what creates the concept of forgiveness which he asks for with the family which he banished before. Camillo alludes to this before Florizel decides to go back to the court to visit his father. “Sent by the king your father to greet him, and to give him comforts. Sir, the manner of your bearing towards him, with what you, as from your father, shall deliver” (Act 4, Scene 3). This particular concept is one which is associated with the ideology of creating a different approach to the ideology of jealousy. The tears from the father are based on the recognition of the jealousy which led to the wrong choices. This is followed by the pain which Leontes feels for taking the actions. The response is then one to recognize the pain which the king has suffered and to respond with forgiveness from the situation. The concept of forgiveness and reconciliation by Hermoine, Polixenes and Florizel then become the main focus with the second half of the play. This is attributed to recognizing the pain which Leontes was in without having the family and noting that the jealousy had created a different sense of judgment. This doesn’t begin with the family, but instead starts with the ideology that Leontes has to recognize how the jealousy and coldness has taken over and what this has caused. Cleomenes notes this by stating “Sir, you have done enough and you have performed a saint – like sorrow: at the last, do, as the heavens have done; forget your evil; with them, forgive yourself” (Act 5, Scene 1). The concept which Cleomenes states in this act is one which is first designed with the ideology that Leontes can’t have forgiveness until he forgives himself. At this point, it isn’t the wrongness that his wife or family committed, but instead what he has done. He states in response “Whilst I remember Her, and her virtues, I cannot forget my blemishes in them; and so still think of the wrong I did myself: which was so much, that heirless it hath made my kingdom; and destroyed the sweetest companion that ever a man bred his hopes out of” (Act 5, Scene 1). This statement shows the amount of suffering which Leontes has gone through with his kingdom and with his family as well as how the forgiveness of himself becomes the main concern first. The concept of the forgiveness which Leontes eventually is able to create then leads to the reconciliation and forgiveness that is offered by others. This particular ideology is one which is found when he sees his son and his wife and is able to overcome the pain which he has gone through, specifically because of the forgiveness for himself. After this, the family is able to show the same forgiveness and to show that there shouldn’t be betrayal because of the past jealousy that Leontes was blinded by. The recognition, as stated by Cleomenes, is that Leontes knew the blindness which he acted upon and was able to change when seeing the changes which had happened with his family while allowing him to regain his family (Act 5, Scene 2). The concept of jealousy, as demonstrated by Leontes in “The Winter’s Tale” is one which becomes the main feature of the character. It is this particular attribute that has to be overcome by Leontes and altered in order for the ending to turn in favor. The jealousy is one which causes the most pain and problems for Leontes, first because of his decision to publicly banish his family, followed by the coldness which he has because of the decision. Living with this then leads to pain because of his belief in his character not being corrected. The concept changes when Leontes is able to forgive himself, followed by the return of the family and the restoration that occurs in the kingdom. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. The Winter’s Tale. Penguin Books: New York, 2001. Read More