'Cleopatra is often interpreted as the designing woman who brings down a worthy soldier and ruler, but this view is simplistic.' How do you, in the 21st century, respond to Shakespeare's dramatic presentation of Cleopatra?
'Cleopatra is often interpreted as the designing woman who brings down a worthy soldier and ruler, but this view is simplistic.' How do you, in the 21st century, respond to Shakespeare's dramatic presentation of Cleopatra? Cleopatra can only be described as 'designing' when her character is examined on an entirely superficial level. Beyond the obvious fluctuations in mood and volatile behaviour she exhibits throughout the play, there lies an intensely vulnerable and accessible woman, more so than ever to a modern audience. She is, in a sense, a woman well ahead of her times, both that of the Imperial Roman Empire and that of James I in which she was originally portrayed. Her volatility, particularly in the early stages of the play, is easily misconstrued as a Machiavellian tendency to manipulate for the satisfaction of her own whims. On first experience of the play, her request of Antony to 'tell me how much' he loves her seems foolish, even embarrassing, a public taunting of an important man. However, on subsequent re-examination, when the depth of her feeling for Antony (particularly in her anguish at his death) has been demonstrated, her 'taunting' gains another dimension. This question is more than trivial to her, however she might behave; she needs his reassurance. She is desperate to cling on to Antony's love, incredibly sensitive when it is threatened. Her first
