Twelfth Night - Context - CCEA

In your controlled assessment, it is important you consider the context of Twelfth Night. References to context should be relevant both to the play and to the argument/theme of your essay. Context should be explored throughout your essay and not simply ‘stuck on’ at the beginning or the end.

Below are several aspects of context which you may wish to consider in the preparation of your essay.

Shakespeare lived from 1564-1616.

He went to a grammar school – a privilege not afforded to all. Here he would have learned about classical literature – evidence of which we can see in the play such as the mythological imagery of Cupid and Roman comedic structures (twins, disguise and trickery).

Twelfth Night was written around 1601-1602, during the final years of Queen Elizabeth I’s reign. By this stage Shakespeare was an established and well-known playwright. He wrote plays for the Lord Chamberlain’s Men and his plays would have been performed in the royal court. Given that his audiences would have included the Queen and other wealthy patrons, Shakespeare had to be mindful of his content. He wanted to entertain his audience but also flatter and not offend!

This play was written around 1601-1602; at this time there were strict gender roles and men held most of the power. Women were expected to be obedient, modest and silent in public life. Viola’s disguise as Cesario allowed her more freedom in the society of the play. This challenged the norms of the times, as the audience would have been aware that Cesario was a female character who was a close companion to the Duke. However, to add to the confusion, all female roles at the time were played by young men before their voices had broken!

Viola proves herself to be a resilient and capable heroine – could the strong female character be a nod to the Queen Elizabeth I at the time?

Marriage was seen as a social contract and often based on social status rather than love. Shakespeare’s Comedies often conclude with marriage – in Twelfth Night there are three marriages at the end: Duke Orsino and Viola, Olivia and Sebastian, and Sir Toby Belch and Maria. This would have been pleasing to the audiences of the time as the marriages represented a return to social order after the chaos of the play.

Society adhered to a hierarchy at the time where the class system is clearly defined. Shakespeare’s play contains nobility, including Duke Orsino, Olivia, Viola and Sebastian. This class represented social order and expectation as well as authority.

Another class is the Lower Gentry/Knightly Class represented by Sir Toby Belch and Sir Andrew Aguecheek. These characters are titled but don’t have much wealth, intelligence, or influence. Shakespeare uses these characters to satirise the idle gentry.

The play also has a class of characters which could be defined as the courtly servants. These include Malvolio, Maria, Fabian and Feste. These characters work for the nobility but unlike the lower gentry they have influence and are intelligent.

A final class of characters are the lower class, represented in the play by the captain, servants, officers and attendants. These have minor roles and limited power but often have the most common sense.

By including different classes in his play, Shakespeare is representing society at that time. Notably, Malvolio, who tries to raise his social position in his attempt to woo Olivia, is mocked which reinforces the strict social order. However, this would have been enjoyable to audiences of the time who enjoyed seeing the norms overturned or questioned in comedy.

Elizabethan era

Twelfth Night was written during the Elizabethan era, a time which was strictly order with clear expectations about class, gender, and behaviour. This was a time of relative peace and prosperity which helped theatre thrive.

The Twelfth Night of Christmas

The title of the play refers to the Twelfth Night of Christmas (5 January). This was traditionally a time of celebration, revelry, role-reversal and breaking rules! This is reflected in the play through the themes of disguise, mistaken identity and challenging social norms.

The Great Chain of Being

This was a belief held by the contemporary society. They believed that everything in the universe had a specific place in a hierarchy. This fixation with social order is reflected in the play, where after the chaos of the play, there are three marriages and everyone resumes their rightful place.

Twelfth Night is a Comedy. Unlike a modern understanding of comedy, this was a genre of play which was lighter in nature (compared to a Tragedyor History). Shakespeare’s comedies show a change from confusion to clarity, conflict to harmony, and social disorder to social order. They usually have a happy ending which was satisfying to the audience at the time – in this case, characters return to their original roles and there are three marriages. Comedy was a major part of Shakespeare’s repertoire, and Twelfth Night is considered one of his most festive and playful comedies.

Twelfth Night blends the comic traditions of Roman playwrights like Plautusand Terence (who write about twins, disguises, and clever servants) as well as the themes of transformation and irrational love found in Ovid. Shakespeare also shows influences of Italian Renaissance comedy and chaos during the festive period – in Twelfth Night identity, desire and social order are turned upside down!

Theatre was a popular form of entertainment during Shakespeare’s time. All classes of society attended plays. Twelfth Night contains a mix of society so audience members could identify with different characters and it contains themes such as disguise, mistaken identity and humour which were of great interest to the audience of the time. Audiences of the time would have been lively and enjoyed the chaotic nature of the situation and the humour in the subplot (think about Malvolio appearing in yellow cross-gartered stockings with a permanent grin on his face).

At the time, theatres were open-aired (see The Globe Theatre) and contained a mixture of seating and standing areas. Scenery and props were minimal so the language had to communicate a strong sense of setting. This is evident in the play where Shakespeare uses strong visual imagery. An example of this is the description of Olivia’s grief “Like a cloistress she will veiled walk.” (Act 1, Scene 1).

It is interesting to note that females were not allowed to act on stage during the Jacobean era. Female roles were played by young males whose voices had not yet broken! Imagine the confusion and the costumes needed, especially for Cesario – a boy playing a girl dressed as a boy!