Twelfth Night, Acts I, II, and III

Objective
In this lesson, you will examine the role of women in Shakespeare's England and identify key
plot elements of Twelfth Night, acts I, II, and III.

Women in Shakespeare’s England

highlight
The characters in William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night _______________________ some contradictory
(inconsistent) aspects of women’s social status in Shakespeare’s time.

ruled
It is a paradox of the time that while an intelligent and well-educated woman _________________ England,
most women had a/an superior inferior status in society.

A paradox is a seemingly
absurd statement that is true.

Even if they received a good education, women were were not allowed to take up professions such
paint
as medicine or law. They were permitted to ________________, and they could write, but only on
religious matters or matters related to women.

good
Society expected upper class women to make a _______________ marriage to a wealthy or titled man.

Though Elizabeth I chose to remain single all her life, her people respected their queen for her strong points,
intelligence
such as her _______________________ character
and strength of _____________________. These traits were
considered feminine masculine qualities by Elizabethan standards.

Despite the equal unequal status of women in the Elizabethan period, Shakespeare’s plays are full
of strong weak female characters. In many of his comedies, female characters cross-dress to take
actions
___________________ they would not otherwise be able to take.

In most plays, disguising themselves as males helps female characters

→ allows a female character to act as a lawyer and defend a loved one against another man’s claim.
→ pursue their goal of reuniting with a loved one

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 gender
The cross-dressing in Shakespeare’s plays blurred __________________ boundaries and allowed the
courages
playwright to portray women as intelligent and ________________________ individuals.

Literary Aspects of Twelfth Night

[video]

far
farce: in a farce, the comedy is _________-fetched and based on humorous, implausible
Key Term
(unbelievable) situations.

Examples of farce in Twelfth Night include:

➢ when Orsino Viola cross-dresses as Cesario

➢ when Viola/Cesario joins the court of Orsino Olivia
➢ when Olivia falls in love with Orsino Viola/Cesario

Literary Devices
Shakespeare frequently used puns and dramatic irony to achieve a comedic effect in Twelfth Night.

A pun is a play on words Dramatic irony is the

involving words with contrast
____________________
multiple
_____________________ between what a character
meanings or words that thinks to be true and what
sound the we
________ (the readers or
same
________________ but have audience) know to be true.
different meanings.

For example, the opening lines of
Twelfth Night include a pun on the
words hart (which means deer) and
heart.
For example, in the lines from act III,
scene I, Olivia professes her love for
Cesario. Yet the audience knows that
Cesario is actually Viola dressed as a
young man.

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Read act II of Twelfth Night. Then answer the question.

In act II, scene I, the audience finds out that Sebastian and Viola are twins and that they are identical, at least
when they are both dressed as men. In what ways do you predict this revelation will complicate matters as the
plot moves forward? (see “Sample Answer” for reference)
identity
The problem of mistaken ________________________ twists
will likely add new humorous ____________________
and turns to the plot.

Part A
Complete the chart to describe the characters in the play and their relationships with other characters. (see
“Sample Answer” for reference)

Character Description and Relationships with Other Characters

Orsino He is the ______________________

lovesick duke of Illyria.

Olivia Olivia is a countess. She is __________________

proud and dignified. She has gone into a
self-imposed seclusion of seven years to ______________
mourn her brother. She scorns
Duke ______________________,
Orsino but succumbs to the charms of
__________________
cesario (Viola in disguise). This situation creates a complicated
_______________
love triangle in which Orsino loves Olivia, Olivia loves Cesario (Viola),
and Viola loves Orsino.

Viola Viola, the play’s ____________________________,

protagonist is a young lady of noble birth
who finds herself in Illyria after a shipwreck. Viola must fend for herself, so she
decides to disguise herself as a ___________
man named Cesario and serves as a page
to Duke Orsino. Throughout the play, she handles difficult situations effectively
and emerges as an intelligent, resourceful, and _________________
strong woman.

Malvolio He is a puritan who abhors (hates; loathes) merrymaking, is vain, and is

__________-____________________.
salf absorbed People hate him for his condescending

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 ____________________
attitude toward them. Maria, Sir Toby, and Andrew Aguecheek
_______________
trick Malvolio into making a fool of himself in front of Olivia.

Andrew Aguecheek He is an aristocrat. He is not very __________________________

intelligent and is gullible
enough to be manipulated by Sir Toby. Sir Andrew Aguecheek also tries to woo
___________________,
Olivia but she rejects him.

Feste Feste is the __________________

clown in Olivia’s household. Feste is also the aloof
observer who makes precise _____________________
comments on the behavior of other
characters. He is the typical Shakespearean fool, with great insight into human
____________________.
nature

Part B
The title Twelfth Night is a reference to the Feast of the Epiphany. It was an occasion on which people
indulged in revelry and merry-making, and the social order was turned upside down. Explain how things are
similarly turned upside down in the first three acts of Shakespeare’s play. (see “Sample Answer” for
reference)
order
There is an inversion (reversal) of the social __________________ during Shakespeare’s time.

roles
One example is the inversion of gender _________________.

classes
The roles of social _________________________ also get inverted in Twelfth Night.

Summary
In what ways do Shakespeare’s female characters stand in stark contrast to the expectations of women in
Elizabethan times?
shakespere's females have had tow rok hard for freedom and overcome their struggles. theyre
usually very strong and intelligent women who got where they were wanting to go.

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