act 2 : scene 1 Flashcards
who speaks the most? why? what does this suggest about that character and their relationship with the other characters in the extract?
Escalus speaks the most - Angelo left him to sort out a problem
is the extract in blank verse or rhyming couplets or prose? is this consistent throughout? if not, where does it change and why?
Blank verse but changes to prose when Elbow and the others join - less proper - state of Vienna is not top notch
are imperatives used?
yes
word placement
malapropisms from Elbow - comic relief, also shows state of Vienna : shambles
repetition of a word/phrase - is the repetition from the same character or does one character repeat another character’s words?
Elbow repeats words he says as well as other characters to understand what he means - shows Elbow can not be depended upon
how does the extract connect to the themes of the play? - disguise, power, religion, appearance/reality etc?
power
sentence length
varied but long
asides
none
contrasts/opposites
Malapropisms from Elbow
is there a soliloquy?
no
what is the tone of the extract? does the tone change? if so, what words indicate the change?
Tone changes from serious at the beginning to still being serious but with a bit of humour
imagery - simile, metaphor, personification
scarecrow and birds of prey - law and citizens of Vienna
sibilance, alliteration
come back to
what is happening in the scene:
- Escalus tries to suggest leniency towards Claudio but Angelo will hear none of it, and orders Claudio’s execution for the next morning
- Elbow the constable brings before them the garbled case of immorality against Pompey and Froth
- Angelo impatiently leaves the matter to Escalus who dismisses them with a warning to reform
key point of this scene: 1
Angelo’s comparison of the law to ‘a scarecrow’ is a measure of his wisdom. If it is not actively enforced, it will defeat the purpose for which it was designed and make a mockery of itself - he must kill Claudio to prove this
key point of this scene: 2
Escalus is a man of even wider ethical vision and points out that the law exists both to deter and to exact retribution
key point of this scene: 3
Escalus points out that Angelo might have once ‘erred in this point,’ in which Angelo says lines 17-18 and that he would want to be punished in the same way if he committed the same crime
key point of this scene: 4
Angelo makes allowances for the Original Sin and recognises that if justice is to be done to all, they will have to put up with a thief or two - people might have done the same thing and got away with it, but it doesn’t make them less guilty
key point of this scene: 5
Angelo has no problems about working within an imperfect legal system if it will bring about the kind of justice he wants to see
key point of this scene: 6
The inadvertent oxymoron ‘notorious benefactors’ and Elbow’s use of ‘benefactors’ highlight the situation in Angelo’s Vienna: a state in which those who do good (Claudio) can become ‘notorious’ wrong-doers - Angelo himself cannot tell benefactors from malefactors
key point of this scene: 7
Angelo resembles Duke Vincentio when he delegates responsibility to Escalus . This shows that even he can not be bothered to discipline Pompey and prepares the audience for his (Angelo’s) fall into temptation
key point of this scene: 8
Which is wiser here, Justice or Iniquity? - jurisprudence lies at the heart of the play: what is just? what is iniquitous?
key point of this scene: 9
Man makes up his laws as he goes along
key point of this scene: 10
Lines 195-200 - people will still want to have sex and have sex whether it is legal or not
key point of this scene: 11
Escalus tries to see it from Angelo’s point of view - only option to make a statement. His remark confirms that Angelo is a man of reason and prepares us for the following scene in which this man of pure reason is shown to be inadequate
points to include: 1
Does the Duke know that Escalus is too soft and that’s why he didn’t appoint him as the next Duke? - we can see why Escalus is not the next Duke as he is too lenient
points to include: 2
The ‘confessor’ is the Duke disguised as a friar
points to include: 3
Lines 37-40 : Some always do the right thing, some do the wrong thing. Wrong place, wrong time
points to include: 4
Lines 216-217 : Law is a joke - will not change human behaviour nor cure human weakness
points to include: 5
Escalus tries to find a reason to replace Elbow as he is inept and therefore, not a reliable source of information
points to include: 6
First time seeing Angelo since his few words in the first scene - we can see how he is set in his opinion
points to include: 7
Using an image of animals to refer to the populace could be seen as demonstrating a lack of human concern for the people
points to include: 8
Elbow and prisoners bring in prose comedy as opposed to bank verse
