How much knowledge do the characters in Twelfth Night, show about what they are? How they think? What they do?

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How much knowledge do the characters in Twelfth Night, show about what they are? How they think? What they do?

The title “What you Will” is a perfect summary of the whole play.  This story is about deception in character, being something you are not; whether it being disguising gender, true feelings or beliefs.

        We never no the real to why Viola chose to disguise her gender.  We must assume that she wants to conceal her identity until she has gathered enough information about where she is and maybe feels safer dressed as a boy.  He is resourceful and does not take pity on herself, despite the fact she thinks she has lost her brother she quickly moves on and tries to make do with the situation.  

        Her brother describes her as “beautiful with a mind that envy could not call for.”   Sebastian is expressing that she is beautiful yet clever and level-headed.  Her eloquence and integrity in which she conducts herself catches Olivia’s attention, resulting into some seriously difficult situations.

        Viola is also selfless, accepting fate and the limitations it places upon her.  She knew she had fallen in love with Duke Orsino and had the perfect opportunity to come clean and express how she felt when he asked her about what she thought women should be like. She did not lie to him nor did she tell him the truth her ability to manipulate language saved her from revealing her true identity.  She even subtly hinted to the Duke how she felt but her clever language technique made it ambiguous.  

        She is also very aware of where she stands in many situations.  When she realises Olivia has fallen in love with her and that she is caught up in a love triangle, she knows there is little she can do, saying: “ O time thou must untangle this, not I!/ It is too hard a knot for me to untie.”  She admits it is out of her depth.

        Until her twin displays the same quality, Viola is the only character to be constant and unshakeable in the object of her love.  She has remained faithful into longing for Duke Orsino even though he is clearly infatuated with Olivia.  

        Twin of Viola, Sebastian has a high noble status but appears on stage very little until the final Act.  The purpose of Sebastian is to foil the misunderstandings in the plot.

        “Provident in peril,” Sebastian shares many of his qualities in addition to their physical similarities.

        Like Orsino, Sebastian is quick to respond to a beautiful woman.  He develops affection for Olivia without reservation although he knows something is odd I the way she was rushing things to claim him before he changes his mind.

        At the beginning of the play he thought he had lost his sister, but by the end of the play he finds his sister and gains a wife- with minimum effort.

        His character is largely defined by the way it mirrors that of his sisters; whom we get to know quite well and have a great deal of respect for.

        Sebastian is more of a device to drive the plot.  When he arrives in Illyria, all the confusion and misunderstandings are soon sorted out and most are happy.  Olivia got her young, strapping man.  Viola got the Duke she fell in love with while being his message boy.  

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        Orsino is the first character introduced in the play.  Wallowing in self indulgent melancholy mood, listening to music, he indulges in his passions for Olivia.  This makes him seem unemployed since he has time to think about her, instead of affairs in the state.  However there is evidence that he is a good ruler.  Further on in the play, the Sea Captain tells Viola about Illyria, explaining that Orsino is a noble Duke in both “nature and in name.”  This suggests that he did govern his country well.

        He is very fickle.  This is detected in the first scene.  While ...

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