Looking back on the major works of any writer, it is nearly impossible to find a single one who is not a formula writer. Perhaps the greatest of all formula writers is none other than the Bard of Stratford-on-Avon, William Shakespeare. When examining Shakespeare’s canon, it becomes apparent that many of his plot devices are used and reused numerous times throughout his works. One of the major plot devices used is that of a woman disguising herself as a man. Shakespeare utilizes this device with the female lead characters in three of his major comedies: Rosalind in As You Like It, Julia in Two Gentlemen of Verona, and Viola in Twelfth Night. All three of the circumstances which these women are placed in are strikingly different, but the situation that results is the same. Entering an unknown and dangerous new place, each of these women decides to place herself in the guise of a man for her own safety, and by doing so break out of their societally dictated roles of submission.
Through these three strong female characters, Shakespeare offers an intriguing examination of gender roles in his era, and the nature of sexuality. The imminent danger of Rosalind’s situation is what forces her into her masculine apparel, while Julia is driven by overwhelming love of her betrothed Proteus to follow him (dressed as a man) to the court of Milan. Out of these three characters, perhaps the most interesting is Viola, because of the unique volatility of her situation. Viola’s original reasons for attiring herself like a man are more similar to Rosalind than Julia, but her experiences and character seem to be an interesting blend of both Rosalind and Julia. It becomes apparent that Viola’s character seems to be a synthesis of these two other major Shakespearean characters. Through this synthesis, Viola seems to become Shakespeare’s ultimate figure of female empowerment in a society dominated by men. Viola uses her intelligence and cleverness to integrate herself into a foreign court, then subtly wins the object of her affection, Duke Orsino, to the point that he marries her as soon as he discovers that she is, in fact, a woman. As powerful Elizabethan heroines, it seems at times that the characters of Rosalind and Julia leave aspects to be desired. Viola offers an interesting completion to the empowered woman, transforming her into Shakespeare’s ultimate heroine. Twelfth Night is believed to have been written well after both As You Like It and Two Gentlemen of Verona. So essentially, Shakespeare’s third use of this device is his perfection of its use, manifested in Twelfth Night, and the character of Viola.
The parallels between Viola and Rosalind are quite evident. At the opening of Twelfth Night, Viola has arrived in the land of Illyria after a violent tempestuous shipwreck that – she believes – has killed her twin brother, Sebastian. Already, Viola is placed in a difficult situation. Being unable to prove her noble upbringing to Orsino, there is little chance that she – as a foreign woman with no identity – will be able to return to her home and regain her estate. Thankfully, she has been rescued from the shipwreck by a ship with a captain who is sympathetic to her situation, and who pledges to help her. Viola immediately formulates her course of action, plotting with the captain: “Conceal me what I am; and be my aid / For such disguise as, haply, shall become / The form of my intent. I’ll serve this duke; / Thou shalt present me as an eunuch to him…” (Twelfth Night, I, ii). By integrating herself into the court as a servant, Viola places herself in a position to be close to Orsino until she is able to sufficiently prove her identity. It is a truly brilliant plan, that Viola formulates almost instantly after learning the nature of her situation.
An similarly dangerous and foreign situation is thrust upon the female protagonist of the pastoral comedy, As You Like It. Rosalind, in the opening act of As You Like It, is living in a noble court under the rule of Duke Frederick, her uncle. Frederick has recently usurped the throne, and banished Rosalind’s father to the savage forest of Arden. Rosalind has chosen to remain behind at the request of her cousin, Celia. However, when she bestows her favor upon young Orlando, who has defeated Frederick’s prime wrestler, she invokes the anger and suspicion of her uncle. He confronts her shortly afterwards.
FREDERICK: Mistress, dispatch you with your safest haste,
and get you from our court.
ROSALIND: Me, uncle?
FREDERICK: You, cousin.
Within these ten days if thou be’st found
So near our public court as twenty miles,
Thou diest for it. (As You Like It, I, iii)
Frederick’s ultimatum places Rosalind in a dire situation. There is only one place she can go, and that is to seek out her banished father in the wild and untamed forest. For a woman, braving the forest is a daunting and dangerous task. She is traveling with Celia and the fool Touchstone, but even a trio of that nature would be vulnerable, as Rosalind wisely points out the true danger to herself and Celia. “Beauty provokth thieves sooner than gold” (As You Like It, I, iii). Rosalind chooses to clothe herself in men’s garb in order to dissuade the barbarous inhabitants of the forest from causing them any trouble, and she and her companions venture into the forest to escape the vengeful duke.
Each of these situations offers two women placed in difficult situations. Because of the nature of their society and the belief that women are inherently weak, they are forced to disguise their femininity in order to survive. While these two stories are inherently the same, Viola’s story seems to offer more complete justification for the disguise. Rosalind’s choice to disguise herself as a man is certainly a viable option for her situation, and ends up working out well for her, but there is little true justification for why she chooses the disguise over another option. As Duke Frederick describes Rosalind: “…her patience / Speaks to the people, and they pity her” (As You Like It, I, iii). If Frederick is correct, it is likely that Rosalind could find protectors to accompany her into the forest. Instead, she chooses to rely on her ability to portray a convincing man. In Viola’s case, dressing as a man becomes the most practical – and perhaps the only – option, allowing her to ensure her personal safety while placing her in a position to regain her identity as soon as possible. While Shakespeare has certainly offered enough justification for Rosalind’s actions, it feels as if Viola’s motivations are conveyed more clearly, and are perfectly appropriate to the situation. This is not necessarily a deficiency in As You Like It, but it seems as if this plot device flows better within the context of Twelfth Night. This simply shows that Viola’s story seems to complete and streamline what Shakespeare originally experimented with in As You Like It.
The third of these three heroines is actually the original – Two Gentlemen of Verona is almost certainly one of Shakespeare’s first plays – and is not placed in a situation of imminent doom. In this early comedy, the role of Julia is not as central of a character as Rosalind or Viola. She is certainly a principal character (and one of the female protagonists), but unlike the others, is often overshadowed by her male counterparts – her love interest Proteus and his close friend Valentine. Whereas the later two characters were motivated into their disguises out of fear, Julia does not experience any impending danger other than a prolonged absence from her lover. She decides on a whim to follow her betrothed, with the help of her waiting-woman, Lucetta.
LUCETTA: But in what habit will you go along?
JULIA: Not like a woman; for I would prevent
The loose encounters of lascivious men. (Two Gentlemen, II, vii)
This seems to be the least developed of the three justifications, but it is certainly legitimate. Traveling from Verona to Milan alone, Julia would certainly be safer in the guise of a man. However, it is the parallels to the love stories that truly connect Julia and Viola. Julia arrives in Milan to find Proteus, only to watch on as he falls for another woman. Viola is in a similar position, watching on (and even aiding) as Orsino longs for Olivia. Each of these men fails in their venture to woo the other women, and when Julia and Viola reveal their true selves, these men jump at the chance to marry them. Two Gentlemen seems to complicate the issue, however. Proteus has fallen out of love with Julia once, and there is no guarantee at the end that he will not falter again. Arguably, the romance between Orsino and Viola is more pure because there is no prior infidelity. While Orsino had previously courted Olivia, that was before he had discovered that Viola was a woman. Twelfth Night seems to offer a purer, cleaner ending to the complicated love triangle that is intricate to both plays, simply because Orsino and Viola’s love is newly discovered.
Examining all three of these great comedies, it is important to note that while they all share a number of plot devices and similarities, they all are inherently different. Each of these three characters are powerful heroines in their own right, and each offers a different perspective in their self-empowerment. However, the result is the same, with each putting on the guise of a man in the quest for their goals.When looking at all three, it does seem to appear that Shakespeare continued to develop the plot device as his career progressed, streamlining and adjusting the circumstances to finally result in what many consider his greatest comedy, Twelfth Night, and the role that many consider his greatest heroine, Viola.
