Theme's in 'Measure for Measure.'

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Alice Clark

In what ways does Shakespeare present the characters’ attitudes towards sex in Measure for Measure?

  ‘Sex’ is a particularly relevant theme in ‘Measure for Measure.’ It does not actually appear very often as a theme in itself, but it provides a background to most of the other important themes in the play, such as justice, ‘seeming,’ sin and morality. All of the separate story lines appear to involve a sexual theme, including Claudio and Juliet’s ‘crime,’ Angelo’s hypocrisy involving both Mariana and Isabella, and Mistress Overdone’s brothel.

 Shakespeare has assigned sexual attitudes to particular characters, and through these he presents sex as a theme. Characters with particular attitudes towards sex include Angelo, Isabella, Juliet and Claudio. Their principles only appear to be presented during the first three acts of the play, as the story line continues on a basis of what we already know about their attitudes towards sex.

 The individual views of these characters are set against a background of Vienna as a corrupt city; religious and moral principles; Mistress Overdone and Pompey’s professional interest, and Lucio’s promiscuity.

 Shakespeare has used Lucio as the representative promiscuous character. He banters bawdily with two gentlemen in Act I, Scene II, when they accuse each other of suffering from venereal disease, ‘I had as lief be a list of an English kersey, as be piled, as thou art pilled, for a French velvet.’ Shakespeare has used humour in this scene as this ‘gentleman’ is supposedly accusing Lucio of suffering from syphilis. The humour is presented through the use of imagery at this point, and there is a light-hearted tone amongst what the men are saying to one another. Shakespeare has used imagery in objects such as ‘English kersey’ and ‘French velvet’ to represent the idea of the French disease, syphilis, and a rough woollen cloth, which this gentleman would apparently rather be. He has also used alliteration on the words ‘piled’ and ‘pilled,’ implying the baldness brought by syphilis. Upon ‘Mistress Overdone’s’ entrance, we are already given an indication of her sexual attitudes through Shakespeare’s use of humour in her name.

 The character Pompey does not express a particular sexual attitude, but Shakespeare’s presentation of this character shows pessimism towards the corrupt Vienna, as Pompey makes a humorous comment that the brothel trade cannot be eliminated unless all of Vienna’s people are spayed, ‘Truly sir, in my poor opinion, they will to’t then.’ This could also be the harsh reality of the play, or in fact reality in general as a lot of cities today appear to contain degrees of promiscuity.

 The backgrounds that are used for the presentation of the characters’ sexual attitudes that I have mentioned appear to have been placed in order to make Claudio’s offence of sleeping with Juliet outside of marriage ridiculously innocent. Claudio’s sentence is, as most people would agree, unjustified owing to the fact that there are many brothels and people who generally sleep around as they please in Vienna; namely Lucio, and so the general question is: Why is Claudio arrested?

 Claudio is obviously outraged as he is taken to prison in Act I, Scene II as, owing to the general impression that he is a simple man, Shakespeare has presented him using notoriously difficult language, ‘But it chances the stealth of our most mutual entertainment with character too gross is writ on Juliet.’ This implies that Claudio is indeed outraged at his arrest. This is possibly what links in with his sexual attitudes. ‘We had to hide our love, till time had made them for us,’ there is an implication here that Claudio and Juliet were in a loving relationship, but were not married, although were planning to get married. The main theme of this idea is justice; however, I believe that there are traces in this quote of what we can assume are Claudio’s attitudes towards sex. Perhaps this character believes that there should be a loving commitment when sexual relations take place.

 Although Claudio himself is a minor character in the play, his arrest unleashes all of the main plot lines, including Angelo’s re-introduction of the old law and his hypocrisy involving Isabella. Shakespeare probably created Claudio in order to represent the theme of justice, but this also links in with sexual attitudes as a theme.

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 The character Angelo is possibly the main antagonist of the play, but does not actually have opposing sexual attitudes to Isabella, who is the closest character to a protagonist. He appears to have very strong feelings about the corrupt Vienna that the play is set in, as he re-introduces an old law that has been ignored for nineteen years, stating that no one must sleep with another outside of a marital bond. However, after Claudio is arrested for violating this law and getting Juliet pregnant, he and Lucio discuss the theory that Angelo is only upholding these laws for the ...

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