All the world's a stage

An essay on the genius of Shakespeare in"As you like it"

hakespeare is undoubtedly the world’s most

influential poet and dramatist leading Ben
Jonson to note, "He was not of an age, but for
all time!" Whether writing tragedy, history, or comedy,
Shakespeare's plays wouldn't be worth performing today—and
wouldn't have lasted—if people wouldn't be able to identify with
the characters and the emotions they experience.

Every moment of Shakespeare’s plays drips poetry, as characters

frequently speak in iambic pentameter (five sets of unstressed and
stressed syllables per line) and in sonnets.

Shakespeare understood the power of language—its ability to

paint landscapes, create atmospheres, and create compelling
characters.

Every generation continues to be in his debt. Shakespeare’s plots,

which are brilliantly polyvalent, continue to inspire ceaseless
adaptations and spin-offs. His unforgettable phrase-making recurs

Professor Tomus Anca ,Student Opreanu Elena Daniela

on the lips of millions who do not realise they are quoting
Shakespeare: “All the world's a stage “.

Shakespeare revolutionised the English language, and today, he is

credited with inventing over 1,700 words across all his plays. He
turned nouns into verbs, verbs into adjectives, and added suffixes
and prefixes to existing words.

He created words like cold-blooded, disgraceful, and ill-tempered

in order to convey emotions, humour and villainy.

A comedy is a form of drama which presents a major chunk of

events in a pleasant, joyous and light-hearted manner. It may
begin with some sad and serious happenings but in the end all the
conflicts are resolved and we have happy ending.

As You Like It is one of Shakespeare‘s most brilliant comedies

and offers tremendous entertainment and amusement to the
readers. As You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William
Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first
published in the First Folio in 1623. The playwright has
introduced the elements of wit and humour in characters and
incidents to make it one of the most lovable of his comedies.

The Healthy Wit of Rosalind and Celia: Rosalind and Celia shine
apart in As You Like It for their excellent wit and intelligent
remarks. Their comments are intelligent as well as amusing. Wit

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generally consists of making amusing remarks which may be
ironical, satirical, sarcastic or simply playful. Not only Rosalind
and Celia but almost all the characters of As You Like It make a
masterly use of this weapon of wit. Even the irony and satire do
not appear pungent because they are covered in the mask of wit.

Rosalind‘s dialogues with Orlando when she is disguised as

Ganymede are also finest examples of her wit and sense of
humour. Her detailed description of how time passes at different
speed with different people bear a testimony to her sharp mental
faculties. She says that with a maiden, time passes very slowly
between her betrothal and marriage. Contrary to this, time passes
easily and comfortably with a priest and also with a rich man. Her
description of a lover is also very amusing. A lover, she says, is
supposed to be lean and thin, with sunken eyes, and a neglected
beard. His sleeve buttons are untied, his shoe is untied and his
stockings are ungartered. When Orlando says that he will die if he
fails to win Rosalind, Rosalind wittily remarks that ―Men have
died from time to time and worms have eaten them, but not for
love.
Throughout the play are spread Touchstone’s ironical and satirical
remarks which he unsparingly passes on everybody. Towards the
end of the play we have his excellent comments on the behaviour
of the courtiers when he tries to assure Duke Senior that he
himself was at one time a courtier. In his second speech, he
describes that if is a very useful word and can be used to avoid a
quarrel between two persons. Duke Senior also compliments
Touchstone on his wisdom.

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Jaques too is a witty character but in a very different sense. His
wit is not a healthy wit as it is dominated by melancholy. Over
the years, he has developed a sense of disgust withmankind in
general. He regards Duke Senior as a usurper as he kills the deer
in the forest, their natural abode.
“All the World’s a Stage “Like several other phrases, this phrase
was coined by William Shakespeare. Jacques has spoken this
famous phrase in Act-II, Scene-VII. There are two major poetic
devices used in this poem – simile and metaphor. The two
opening sentences begin with a metaphor that declares the world a
“stage“ and life as a transition phase before death. According to
the Shakespeare character, Jaques , in the play, As You Like It,
Act II, Scene VII, a man's lifetime undergoes seven distinct ages
First Movement: A No-Accomplishment Baby. Naturally and
expectedly, the first age of a man's life is infancy. As a baby, a
man acquires no accomplishments. In fact, he does little more
than "mewl" and "puke" in the arms of a nurse. Second
Movement :A young pupil signifies how much almost every
young student complains about formal schooling. The next stage
is that of the lover. Furnace is significant here to denote the
feelings of passionate love. The next stage is that of a solider,
proud of his honour and quick in battle. Another important stage
is that of a powerful judge. The round belly signifies he is in a
comfortable stage. The sixth stage is that of old age that weakens
everyone. The last scene is that of death, where none od our six
senses work and we are left devoid of everything.
Songs in the Play: As You Like It contains a number of songs.
These songs are closely related to the action of the play. For

Professor Tomus Anca ,Student Opreanu Elena Daniela

instance, the two songs sung by Amiens clearly reflect the
condition of Duke Senior and his comrades in the forest.
On the whole, there is no loose thread in the play. All the
characters are placed where they are required at different times.
Shakespeare has also made use of another strategy of comparison
and contrast to lend the play a wholeness. Duke Senior and Duke
Frederick are antagonists to each other. Similarly, another pair of
brothers i.e. Oliver and his youngest brother Orlando , are also
found in a similar situation. They nurture strong dislike and
hatred for each other. Again, Oliver undergoes a change of heart
in the forest of Arden and becomes reconciled to Orlando.
Similarly, Duke Frederick also gets transformed in the forest of
Arden when he meets a saintly man. Love at first sight is again
another common feature of all the four pairs who fall in love with
each other. Then there are a number of contrasts in the play. The
most striking contrast is between Celia and Rosalind. Then there
is a contrast between the romantic love of Orlando and Rosalind
and the practical love of Touchstone and Audrey. The artificial
life of court serves as a contrast to the country life with its
simplicity and honest labour.
All these factors make As You Like It, a well-knit play from the
structural point of view. The presence of so many sub-plots does
not disturb the mity and beauty of the main plot of the Rosalind-
Orlando love affair. Shakespeare has added some other strategies
which contribute to strengthening the structure of the play on the
whole.
Shakespeare‘s greatness as a playwright is universally
acknowledged. Infact, his extreme diversity and multi-
dimensional talent are uniquely responsible for his superiority and

Professor Tomus Anca ,Student Opreanu Elena Daniela

popularity over other dramatists of his day. As you like it is the
best-known pastoral comedy.A play in which the romantic
elements are mingled with comic elements. While the romantic
elements delight, thrill and enchant us the comic elements make
us laugh. Thus a romantic comedy is a marvellous kind of play
which appeals greatly to our emotions, our imagination and which
at the same time also appeals to our faculty of laughter.

Bibliography

 A TEACHER’S GUIDE TO THE SIGNET CLASSIC EDITION OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S AS YOU

LIKE IT By JEANNE M. McGLINN, Ph.D., AND JAMES E. McGLINN, Ed.D.

 English Association Shakespeare Bookmarks Longer Commentaries Number 5 by Peter Cash

 Maharshi Dayanand University As you Like it Explanation with Reference to the Context

Professor Tomus Anca ,Student Opreanu Elena Daniela

  The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare on Stage

 Shakespeare In The New Europe Sokolova Boika, Roper Derek, Hattaway Michael

 William Shakespeare As You Like: A Dramatic Commentary by Peter Reynolds

Professor Tomus Anca ,Student Opreanu Elena Daniela

 English Literature

Essay

Professor: Anca Tomus

Student: Opreanu Elena Daniela

Chinese-English,First year

Professor Tomus Anca ,Student Opreanu Elena Daniela