Pirandello, Shakespeare, and the Illusion of Identity in English Literature

Luigi Pirandello in Six Characters in Search of an Author and William Shakespeare in the Twelfth Night portray their characters as staccato existences who question the impression of self-consciousness within themselves every bit good as other characters. Pirandello does this by oppugning the bounds of conventional theatrical production and the enigma of human personality. Shakespeare uses camouflages to dispute perceptual experience of characters within each other. As a consequence, both dramas basically deal with concerns such as human individuality and the construct of world and semblance.

In this paper I will utilize Six Characters in Search of an Author as a foundation to discourse characters in both, this drama and the Twelfth Night, as disconnected existences who question the construct of uneasiness, individuality, world, and semblance.

The differentiation between what is existent and what is fanciful is established in the really beginning of both dramas. In Six Characters in Search of an Writer, this differentiation is developed when the characters enter the theater and attack the Director and the Actors as fellow human existences.

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`` Very good, allow 's start. Person losing? The Leading Lady. As usual! We 're 10 proceedingss late already. Fine her for that, would you, delight? Then she 'll larn to be on clip. No, no for Eden 's interest! I 'm here! I 'm here! '' ( 19-26 ) The set of the drama is created to confound the difference between phase semblance and existent life, therefore doing the drama more realistic ; in kernel, to do the drama within the drama seem more existent, as Pirandello has no purpose of doing Six characters in hunt of an writer a realistic drama.

Pirandello wants to dispute the audience position of world and semblance, both inside and outside the theater by showing a public presentation which is both realistic and absurd at the same clip. Pirandello is experimenting with the connexion between what people perceive to be world, which, obviously turns out to be an semblance.

In Twelfth Night, world from semblance is revealed clearly while discoursing individuality towards the beginning of the drama. The differentiation is presented in the duologue between Viola and the Captain, after the Captains crew has rescued her from a shipwreck. `` I pray thee and I 'll pay thee bounteously/ Conceal me what I am, and be my aid/ For such camouflage as haply shall become/ The signifier of my purpose. I 'll function this duke./ Thou shalt present me as an eunuch to him. '' ( I.II.48-52 ) Viola deliberately disguises herself, to gull her fellow characters, while the audience is still able to place her as a character through the semblance of function reversal. Shakespeare establishes the differentiation between world and semblance in the beginning of the drama to oppugn the human-like characteristic behind Viola and her interactions with other characters. The differentiation is a challenge where the audience must find and understand the self-voyage which Viola will confront straight in her new environment.

Pirandello farther inquiries the conventions of solidness and human individuality in his drama. This impression is chiefly conveyed through the Director and the Father. `` Just that, ladies and gentlemen. How should we have any other world? What for you is an semblance, to be created, it for us is our alone world. But non for usage alone of class think a minute. Can you state me who you are? '' ( 1198-1203 ) . The Director is outraged by this simple yet equivocal inquiry. He replies with, `` How make you intend, who I am? I am I. '' ( 1204 ) . Although a apparently simple inquiry, it is filled with complexnesss which confront truth. The Father 's logic is unquestionable on the surface when he suggests that the manager 's individuality is of all time altering, that the Director does non see himself the same manner as he had perceived during another clip in the yesteryear. The Father continues to name the Director a 'nobody ' because his world is invariably altering, ensuing in different perceptual experiences and alternate worlds in contrast to a character who has a life of his/her ain which is distinguished by alone features which do non alter overtime, which makes the character a 'somebody ' as opposed to a 'nobody ' . This impression presents an improbable paradox in which Pirandello is finally sketching the absurd nature of truth ; the hunt for intending where there is no significance. This is a representation of uncertainness because they are seeking for the truth that does non be because the impression of truth is comparative in itself.

Shakespeare, like Pirandello, seeks to oppugn the credibleness of individuality and world in the Twelfth Night. This thought is articulated through Viola ( Cesario ) and Olivia. `` Whither, my Godhead? Cesario, hubby, stay./ Husband? Ay, hubby ; can he that deny? / Her hubby, sirrah? / No, my Godhead, non I. '' ( V.I.138-143 ) Compared to Pirandello 's drama, the construct of misguided individuality and imitation of individuality is non wholly similar in both dramas. In our in-class treatments we have seen the device of misguided individuality and imitation of individuality ; where mistaken individuality is misconstruing of one or more characters for another, while, imitation of individuality, is a character who is supposed to be person other than himself by one or more of the other characters, can be of two different ways. Sometimes the mistake of misidentifying person for person else is purely inadvertent, and sometimes it is the consequence of knowing camouflage. In the Twelfth Night, Viola disguises herself as a adult male and takes the name Cesario. She besides has a twin brother, Sebastian, who towards the terminal of the drama is mistaken for Cesario. This represents world for the audience, because they know the misguided individualities are all knowing camouflages, while the characters are nescient to the existent individualities.

The Six Characters in Search of an Author public presentation starts with histrions copying histrions, copying characters in a dry run. `` We 're here in hunt of an writer. An writer? What writer? Any writer sir. There 's no writer here at all. It ' non a new drama we 're practising. Then so much the better, sir! We can be your new drama! Did you hear that? Surely, but if the writer 's non hereaˆ¦Unless you 'd wish to be the writer? '' ( 95-103 ) The unconventional attack to the drama prepares the audience for farther incredulity when fictional characters walk on the set and claim they are existent. The audience is certain that this is all a portion of the drama and the characters are besides histrions who are playing characters. Pirandello develops a calculated imitation of histrions copying histrion, copying characters. It is of import to understand that this is non a instance of mistaken individuality, instead, a different attack of dramatising the drama. On one manus, this imitation is an semblance for the audience, as they do non hold old cognition of this drama resembling a dry run, while on the other, it can besides stand for world in that the audience expected characters developed through pen and paper to come to life through human histrions on phase.

Comparable to Pirandello 's presentation of characters imitated by histrions, Shakespeare, in the Twelfth Night, presents characters imitated by fellow characters. Further, Pirandello has an unconventional attack to his drama, while, Shakespeare continues with his conventional attack of misguided identity. `` What gusto is in this? How runs the watercourse? / Or I am huffy, or else this is a dream./ Let illusion still my sense in Lethe steep./ If it be therefore to dream, still allow me kip. '' ( IV.I.59-62 ) Sebastian is oppugning is his ain individuality when confronted by Olivia. Within proceedingss of interacting with Olivia, Sebastian 's individuality is equivocal and his hereafter seems to be germinating with the same uncertainness. The mistake of misidentifying Sebastian for Cesario by other characters in the drama is strictly inadvertent on the portion of the characters. In add-on, Sebastian redefining his ain individuality is besides inadvertent, since he does non cognize that the confusion from those around him is a effect of Viola 's action. It is no semblance, nevertheless, to the audience since they hold cognition from Act I Scene II of Viola 's function reversal.

In both, Pirandello 's Six Characters in Search of an Writer and Shakespeare in the Twelfth Night, the characters are represented as disconnected and staccato existences. The characters are fragmented in Pirandello 's drama because they are the consequence of an writer 's creative activity who was responsible for conveying them to life. However, the writer did non develop the characters further and therefore, the characters are entangled in an imaginativeness with no terminal. They are the consequence of an writer 's vision and imaginativeness ; nevertheless, they are an uncomplete work of art. However, the characters in Shakespeare 's drama are besides fragmented but in an alternate manner. Through his usage of camouflages and function reversal, the characters in the Twelfth Night are disconnected internally within themselves, as some can non show their love suitably while others keep themselves from being happy due to decease. The disjunction besides affects characters externally with other characters, as for some the category system effects relationships while for others mockery leads to scores. Fictional characters from both dramas are challenged by the thought of individuality and the construct of world and semblance.