Antony and Cleopatra
Fatal Flaws
In order for a character to be relatable, he or she must first be flawed. As humans, we are unnable to relate to perfect beings, as we ourselves are not perfect, we are flawed. In Antony and Celopatra, Antony's fragility is exploited as his Achrilles heel, Cleopatra, is dangeled infront of him, serving as the thread that ultimately leads to his unravveling. As high functioning members of society, this concept of fatal flaws, of our own fragility intrigues us and as such being able to bear witness to Antony's downfall from a safe distance creates appeal.
Throughout the play, Mark Antony can be seen as a tragic hero. While some of these tragedies are a dirrect result of his inner flaws, namely his impulsiveness, lack of political intrest and desire for Cleopatra, a larger portion originate from people or situations that are beyond his ability to control. This was not the ordinary for Shakespeare's plays, which usually feature a more prominant character flaw, characters that could be considered silly, or even psychotic by today's standards, whereas Antony and Cleopatra's flaws come from worldliness, traits we are able to relate to. The desire for happiness and success as well as the fear of boredom and failure are prominent here and these flaws do not lead to tragedy due to them being bizzare, or foreign, they lead to tragedy simply because the two are succesful enough for these traits to have drastic impacts.
The quote "Sir, sometimes, when he is not Antony, he comes too short of that great property, which still should go with Antony." Suggests that Antony is not himself in Egypt, or atleast not his former Roman self. His flaws have engulfed him to a point where his own people would no longer recognize him, as he no longer lives up to the namesake he has made for himself. This is in an example of defamiliarization and highlights how far Antony has allowed himself to unravvel in his persuit of happiness. This further establishes the 'ticking clock
In order for a character to be relatable, he or she must first be flawed. As humans, we are unnable to relate to perfect beings, as we ourselves are not perfect, we are flawed. In Antony and Celopatra, Antony's fragility is exploited as his Achrilles heel, Cleopatra, is dangeled infront of him, serving as the thread that ultimately leads to his unravveling. As high functioning members of society, this concept of fatal flaws, of our own fragility intrigues us and as such being able to bear witness to Antony's downfall from a safe distance creates appeal.
Throughout the play, Mark Antony can be seen as a tragic hero. While some of these tragedies are a dirrect result of his inner flaws, namely his impulsiveness, lack of political intrest and desire for Cleopatra, a larger portion originate from people or situations that are beyond his ability to control. This was not the ordinary for Shakespeare's plays, which usually feature a more prominant character flaw, characters that could be considered silly, or even psychotic by today's standards, whereas Antony and Cleopatra's flaws come from worldliness, traits we are able to relate to. The desire for happiness and success as well as the fear of boredom and failure are prominent here and these flaws do not lead to tragedy due to them being bizzare, or foreign, they lead to tragedy simply because the two are succesful enough for these traits to have drastic impacts.
The quote "Sir, sometimes, when he is not Antony, he comes too short of that great property, which still should go with Antony." Suggests that Antony is not himself in Egypt, or atleast not his former Roman self. His flaws have engulfed him to a point where his own people would no longer recognize him, as he no longer lives up to the namesake he has made for himself. This is in an example of defamiliarization and highlights how far Antony has allowed himself to unravvel in his persuit of happiness. This further establishes the 'ticking clock