A critical analysis of the introduction to Arcadia

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         A critical analysis of the introduction to Arcadia

                       Until the entrance of Jellaby                                                      

 

  In the opening of Arcadia we are introduced to two characters. The two characters are Thomasina Coverly; a pupil in her early teens and Septimus Hodge; her tutor in his early twenties. In this scene we understand the intelligence of Thomasina and the wit of Septimus.The interaction of the two characters displays Tom Stoppards clever use of language and also gives the audience an excellent introduction to the sort of

humour they will be open to during the play.

Scene is set and we are given a description of the house. We understand two time frames are taking place; the past and the present. He refers to objects and that they would be ‘collectable’ pieces nowadays. This indicates to the director and the reader there are two different perspectives. He introduces an eccentric detail of the tortoise acting as a paperweight, which symbolises time, an important theme in the play.

  The setting shows us tutor and pupil. This invites the audience to make assumptions about the type of relationship they are likely to have. We may expect a formality in the way that they speak to each other; however Thomasina and Septimus contradict the audiences’ expectations as soon as they speak.

The plays opening words come from Thomasina.She asks Septimus the meaning of ‘carnal embrace’. In reply Septimus tells Thomasina ‘carnal embrace is the practice of throwing ones arms around a side of beef ’. This creates a humorous situation of dramatic irony because the audience knows that carnal embrace means sexual intercourse whereas Thomasina does not. Through these opening exchanges we also notice Tom Stoppard’s ability to play with words. The Latin for ‘carnal’ is ‘carnis’and ‘carnis’ means meat and human flesh in English. This creates a ridiculous image for sake of humour.

   Much of the humour comes from sexual innuendo and the contrast between Septimus’s elegant, educated language and the crude subject matter.

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The relationship between Septimus and Thomasina is a sexual undercurrent, which runs throughout the play, although it always remains unfulfilled. Thomasina’s response about the sin of Onan shows her knowledge of the bible but also shows that she has only a partial understanding of what Septimus means. This also contributes to humour as her innocence makes her ask questions, which gives Septimus a cue make further jokes.

      Thomasina: ‘That was the sin of Onan, wasn’t it, Septimus?’

      Septimus: ‘Yes. He was given his brothers wife a Latin lesson and she was hardly the wiser ...

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