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The Puritan “Threat” in the “Twelfth Night”: A Study of Malvolio’s Character

Zhengqi Shao

Abstract


This essay examines the character of Malvolio in Shakespeare’s play “Twelfth Night” in relation to the historical and cultural context of Puritanism in Elizabethan England. Malvolio’s puritanical behaviour and ultimate downfall serve as a vehicle for Shakespeare to satirize the rigid moral code of Puritanism and its perceived threat to established themes. The essay discusses the defi nition of Puritanism and its opposition to theatre, as well as the historical background of Elizabethan England, which heavily infl uenced Shakespeare’s portrayal of Malvolio. In addition, it analyses how Malvolio’s character represents the Puritan threat to the themes of love and life attitude in the play. Ultimately, the essay argues that Malvolio serves as an icon throughout the play, refl ecting the puritanism confl ict against the play’s themes and values.

Keywords


“Twelfth Night”; Puritans; Malvolio

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References


[1] Simmons, J.L., “A Source for Shakespeare's Malvolio: The Elizabethan Controversy with the Puritans”, Huntington Library Quarterly , University of Pennsylvania Press,May, 1973, Vol. 36, No. 3, pp. 181- 201.

[2] Pearce, J. “Shakespeare vs. The Puritans: The Malevolence of Malvolio”, The Imaginative Conservative, March 2018. Accessed October 30. 2019.

[3] Yiqun,W."Research on Shakespeare's Religious concept" Foreign Literature Review, No.3,(1993):115-122.

[4] Cahill, E. "The Problem of Malvolio" College Literature, The Johns Hopkins University Press, Jun. 1996, Vol. 23, No. 2, pp. 62-82

[5] Hunt, M. “Malvolio, Viola, and the Question of Instrumentality: Defining Providence in ‘Twelfth Night’ “, Studies in Philology, University of North Carolina Press, Summer, 1993, Vol. 90, No. 3, pp. 277-297 .

[6] Yachnin, P. “Reversal of Fortune: Shakespeare, Middleton, and the Puritans” ELH, The Johns Hopkins University Press, Fall, 2003, Vol. 70, No. 3, pp. 757-786 .




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18686/ahe.v7i16.8916

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