Cleopatra is described as someone with infinite variety. ‘age can not wither her, nor custom stale her infinite variety’. The way in which Antonys own friend describes Cleopatra this way implies the idea that even though she is incredibly beautiful; which firstly attracted Antony she is in fact hard to work out and determine, due to her constant changing moods and the amount of them that she does have. This change in attitude could be seen as one of the main reasons Antonys interest in her continues to grow so strong, as throughout the play he becomes utterly infatuated by the unique person she is and in some ways envies the freedom she has, due to Egypt offering the large parties and banquets which he hasn’t been exposed to before. He ultimately falls into Cleopatras trap as she continues to gain a lot of control over Antony having an impact on the decisions he makes, leading to the end of his honour within Rome. The false representation and feminisation of Antony due to Cleopatras overwhelming domination, ultimately results in the overall feminisation of Rome, leading to Antonys downfall as this is seen as dishonourable.
Throughout the first two acts of Antony and Cleopatra we see Cleopatras mood constantly changing to keep Antony interested in her and the way in which her mind works.
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We see her contradictory actions from the first time we are introduced to the characters as she questions ‘if it be love indeed. Tell me how much’. The use of this imperative sentence allows the audience to already have an understanding of the relationship between the two central characters being one of Cleopatras overall control and torment. The use of the emotive word ‘love’ should represent the passion between them but instead she uses it as a threat to Antony forcing him to prove his feelings are true. He evidently becomes aware of his lack of masculinity as he states ‘she stripped me of my sword’ indicating towards the dignity and honour which had been removed due to him abandoning Rome and battle for her.
This infinite variety she so strongly portrays could be seen as a disturbance of the Great Chain of Being as in the era everything had a set place, and if disturbed could cause on going effects. Cleopatra questioning Antonys masculinity effects his place on the chain as he is one of higher importance due to his role as well as his gender being more dominant then Cleopatras so for her to take control over both of these makes Antony evidently a lot weaker.
She continues to challenge his happiness as she beckons ‘when he is sad tell him I’m happy’ to constantly remind him that she is a part of his life even when he is mourning the death of his late wife. She enjoys mimicking Antony within situations where he shows his emotions to anyone but her, representing another change of her emotion being one of jealousy. This taunting behaviour reveals a side to Cleopatra that Antony may not have been aware of when he fell for her charm as she arrived in a barge like a ‘burnished throne’, emphasising her confidence and the power she believes she holds. It appears in the barge scene that Cleopatra used her entrance as a way to portray a certain image of government and force, whereas the lack of description of her may represent how she in fact is not how she seems and is actually a weaker character, who uses her appearance and presence as a distraction. This is further shown through her past relationship with Julia Ceasar as she arrived wrapped in a rug and was presented to him, also implying the idea that she sees her beauty as an advantage.
The way in which she wants to contradict his emotion within the quotation “when he is sad tell him I’m happy” explores her infinite variety as she believes this is a way to keep her love interest hooked on her and not allowing his focus to be on any other person or duties. Due to her being a woman of constantly changing moods she both enrages Antony as well as captures him as he can not resist her charm and persuasion and ultimately is backed into a corner by her. This infinite variety further indicates towards the characteristics of Egypt as a country, being erotic, passionate and hot headed. The difference in personality and morals within Cleopatra and Antony as individuals represents the difference of the countries they have control over, and their relationship becomes a heavy reflection of the issues the countries would face against each other.
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Characters of Antony and Cleopatra: Critical Analysis.
(2022, September 27). Edubirdie. Retrieved November 16, 2024, from https://edubirdie.com/examples/characters-of-antony-and-cleopatra-critical-analysis/
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Characters of Antony and Cleopatra: Critical Analysis [Internet]. Edubirdie.
2022 Sept 27 [cited 2024 Nov 16].
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