As seen in the first few sentences Shakespeare displays how shocked and confused Cleopatra is that the love of her life and the warrior and protector of so many has been defeated. It could be said that she feels that for this to happen the world must be changed, and for the worst as ‘young boys and girls are equal to men’ which in those times age came with experience and you had to earn your place. There is a sense of resentment towards Caesar as he is young himself and for him to be equal to the great men of the world, she believes there must be a malfunction in the world and reality. Antony resembled a symbol of war and without him the ‘glory’ has faded for her and the flags have fallen as she has nothing left to fight for. Cleopatras feelings may be summed up perfectly by this statement ‘there is nothing distinctive, nothing remarkable left in the world’, this powerful and saddening sentiment, makes the audience understand her feelings of loss and grief, showing how the only thing she found ‘remarkable’ in the world was Antony and for him to be described in such a way shows his importance.
Shakespeare presents a woman experiencing grief who is moved by her love for Antony and is determined to end her own life now that the ‘gods’ have ‘stol’n’ its ‘jewel’, Antony. The audience sees a vulnerable Cleopatra, which demonstrates, using a metaphor, how much Antony meant to her and how she believed it wasn’t his time to pass as his life has been ‘stol’n’ not from just her but from the people as she states he was ‘our jewel’. The imagery used to portray her feelings of anger, as she feels something has been stolen from her is particularly important as she blames the gods and wants to ‘throw (her) sceptre’ at them ‘to tell them that this world did equal theirs’ the emotion comes through clearly as Cleopatra believes earth is good enough for Antony just as their world and therefore, he should have stayed. Although there is a devotion to Antony through Cleopatra, devotion is also shown from Iris and Charmain to Cleopatra as they are willing to die with her as she is their whole world, their ‘empress’ as stated in the play.
Save your time!
We can take care of your essay
- Proper editing and formatting
- Free revision, title page, and bibliography
- Flexible prices and money-back guarantee
Shakespeare is showing her mixed emotions through her determination to end her life and how she believes waiting for death to happen is ‘sottish’ so therefore they shall ‘rush into death’ even though it may be seen as a sin. As seen throughout the play, Cleopatra is a woman with great expectations and as a ruler when she sets her sights on things, she is stubborn to change direction, therefore this decision to die alongside her ‘ladies’ may display how throughout this passage the message of self-worth and the honourable ‘brave’ thing to do is being recognised as dying and not being paraded as a trophy at Caesar’s expense. As a women ruler and symbol of the goddess Iris, to Iris and Charmain she is inspirational and, in this passage, it could be said that she speaks from a place of devotion as well as power by inspiring the people she is willing to die with and bringing up their spirits telling them to ‘be brave’, this is displayed through the endearing phrase 'my noblest girls’. She prizes her honour over her life and this is reflected on the people around her.
The end of the extract gives a sense of loneliness and powerlessness as Cleopatra claims that they have ‘no friend but resolution and the briefest end’. The personification of ‘resolution’ and the ‘end’ as friends emphasises how they are left with no one and how they must scheme against their enemies to get the resolution and the quick death they so desperately need. The audience may find it shocking how they believe this is the only way out and Shakespeare uses Cleopatras exaggerative, explosive personality to present an iconic death. Although Cleopatra embodies charm, beauty and is the leader of Egypt she is prepared to give that up and resign from the fight as she no longer has the love of her life.
In conclusion Shakespeare presents Cleopatras feelings remarkably well as when experiencing grief and pain a person can be obstructed from seeing in a rational way and therefore the different elements of anger, love, sorrow and loneliness are all displayed in the passage.
Stuck on your essay?
