Character of Touchstone in Shakespeares As You Like It :: Shakespeare As You Like It Essays

The Character of  cadence in As You Like It   As You Like It features, like so many of Shakespe bes plays, a master clown, Touchstone, and its worth paying some attention to his role for what it contributes towards establishing and maintaining the upbeat comic animation of the play. For the jester is the constant commentator on what is going on. His humour, pointed or otherwise, therefrom inevitably contributes to the audiences awareness of what is happening, and the way in which other characters treat him is lots a key indicator of their sensibilities. Touchstone is one of the gentlest and happiest clowns in both of Shakespeare. He comments on the action, makes jokes at other peoples expense, and offers ironic insights about their situation. unless throughout As You Like It, such traditional roles of the fool are offered and taken with a generosity of spirit so that his remarks never cause the firm comic energies of the play. When he ridicules Orlandos verses, Rosalind laughs along with him. When he points out to Corin (in 3.2) that the shepherd must be damned for never having lived at court, Corin takes it as thoroughly natured jesting (which it is). When Touchstone takes Audrey away from her rural swain, William, there are obviously no hard feelings (although much here depends on the staging). In this play, the professional jester participates in and contributes to a style of social interaction which is outright by any more sober and serious reflections. This makes Touchstone genuinely different from the bitter fool of King Lear or from the most compound fool of all, the sad Feste of Twelfth Night , both of whom offer comments that signifier either a shrewd, melancholy, or bitter irony on the proceedings.   Touchstone himself becomes the target of much humour by his immediate attraction to Audrey, the funky country lass. There is something richly comic here, seeing the staunch justifier for the sophistic ated life of the court fall so quickly to his fleshly lust. But the satire here is very good humoured. Touchstone himself acknowledges the feebleness of his vows and does not attempt to deceive anyone about his intentions.