The characters in ‘Measure for Measure’ initially appear to be simple however, as the play unfolds the audience discovers that they are anything but simple. In some ways the characters mirror the play, which is often categorised as a simple comedy but this would be to overlook the un-nerving sense of disquiet at the end of the play and the complex themes of justice, purity, human frailty that Shakespeare explores in the play. In fact, the term ‘problem play’ has become a widely accepted description for ‘Measure for Measure’.
Simple characters are one dimensional but the four major characters, Duke Vincentio, Angelo, Isabella and Lucio, in this play are not in any way simple. They are deeply complex and in this essay I will attempt to show evidence of this. Shakespeare presents Duke Vincentio in ‘Measure for Measure’ as an authoritative figure, as he is highly respected and referred to as “my lord”. In the first instance, we get the impression that the Duke is portrayed as public figure.
He seems very connected to his people and comes across as a very superior leader. He is also generally aware of the situation of his city, indicated by the fact that he mentions, “of government the properties to unfold would seem in me t’affect speech and discourse,” – Act I, Scene I. These are one of his very first words in the play and gives us the impression that he does not use this authority very wisely, his language and manner towards his people in the opening scene confirms this.
The Duke then falls into the dilemma of who should be in charge, whilst he is away, and comes to a conclusion that it should be Angelo, instead of the older and wiser Escalus, “For you must know, we have with special soul elected him our absence, to supply lent him our terror, dressed him with our love and given his deputation all organs” – Act I Scene I. The Duke then leaves the City of Vienna in the capable hands of Angelo, perhaps to test if his “worth is able” or, as he explains to Friar Thomas later on, to see the long-ignored laws of morality enforced, without himself appearing as a tyrant.
Overall, Vincentio is kind and lenient to his subjects, although he nonetheless wants to dispense justice in its due. He practices restraint as a leader, knowing that some of the insults and slander that he encounters come with the territory and are nothing personal. Although Lucio insults the Duke to his face and is consistently rude, the Duke only punishes him for his adultery, not for his ignorant jabs. An all around fair and gentle ruler is Vincentio. So from the above outline the Duke appears at first to be a ruler that is authoritative but compassionate.
However, as I explained above none of these major characters are simple and therefore the Duke could be interpreted in an entirely different way: as an evil manipulator. For instance, from the outset, the Duke uses Escalus and Angelo as pawns to re-establish control over his liberal subjects. The Duke also manipulates Isabella and Mariana into performing “the bedtrick” with Angelo, he even decides that it will be good for Isabella not to be told that her brother, Claudio, has escaped execution “I will keep her ignorant of her good, To make her heavenly comforts of despair When it is least expected. – Act IV Scene III. When the Duke assumes a disguise, he demonstrates his need to know accurate information; the Duke must always be right. With this information, the Duke (in the guise of a friar) is able to solicit lies from the mouth of Angelo. The following parade of “discoveries,” however, is just a show for the Duke to flaunt his superiority over his subjects. When the Duke is too soft to enforce the laws against morality he puts the character, Angelo, in his place to rule with an iron fist.
Once again this character could be interpreted in two different ways: a malicious man or a man fallen from virtue. Therefore, the Angelo whom the audience sees at the end of Measure for Measure is very different from the man whom they encounter at the start. The first time we see Angelo he is summoned before the Duke, and told that he is going to be his deputy whilst he is away, “For you must know, we have with special soul, Elected him our absence to supply. ” At first, as a reader, this gave me the impression that Angelo is well trusted and responsible.
This sudden promotion surprises Angelo, he replies with, “Let there be some more test of my metal,” Perhaps this quote suggests that he isn’t totally confident in his own ability however, the more popular view is that this would have been the appropriate and courteous answer. As the Duke’s deputy, Angelo is a controlled and conservative leader, he is described as a “a man of stricture and firm abstinence” and “a man whose blood Is very snow-broth; one who never feels The wanton stings and motions of the sense. – Act I Scene III, Act I Scene IV.
He believes himself to be of the strongest moral convictions, “tis one thing to be tempted, Escalus, Another thing to fall” (Act II Scene I) but this falls apart when he is tempted by the beautiful Isabella. Angelo then uses his power to achieve his own goals, not the state’s. We see that Angelo undergoes a fall from grace, perhaps implying he is wound too tightly at the beginning of the play to go on as a model of self-control and prudence.
Despite this it could still be argued that Angelo is a somewhat moral character, for example: the Duke clearly trusts him, he is disheartened enough by the end of the play to offer an apology, and he does try to resist the temptation that Isabella presents, seeking aid through prayer. On the other hand, it is important to point out his treacherous and heartless desertion of Mariana, prior to the action of this play, showing a history of immorality. Angelo then proceeds to convict Claudio of a human crime and is deaf to Isabella’s pleas for mercy unless she will have sexual intercourse with him.
Believing that Isabella he has taken her virginity, Angelo compounds his crime and cruelty by ordering Claudio’s execution. Therefore, at the end, he is punished by the Duke as his actions are so that they justify a response, which is measured and not in excess of his crime. To sum up, at the start of the play Angelo is presented as having almost super-human virtue, highlighted by his name which links him with angels (the messengers of God), and the right person to be in charge.
However, through the course of the play he makes several decisions that are immoral, promising Claudio’s liberty in exchange for Isabella’s virginity, and ends up being punished. Therefore, once again, he could be interpreted as a “tyrannous” and hypocritical man or a complex character deserving of sympathy. Isabella is another major character in the play who Shakespeare portrays as very pure and strictly moral but could also be interpreted as far more complex in that her morality masks a self righteous and hypocritical hidden side.
The audience first hears of her from her brother, who tells Lucio that she has “a prone and speechless dialect, /Such as move men; beside, she hath prosperous art, When she will play with reason and discourse, And well she can persuade” – Act I Scene I. She is perhaps one of Shakespeare’s strongest and best female characters, a woman of great virtue and magnificent purity, for example she is so devout that she us asking for the rules to be stricter, ‘have you nuns’ no further privileges? ” Act I Scene IV.
Her brilliant speeches with Angelo on Christianity, power, and mercy, and her fiery condemnation of Angelo’s treachery and her brother’s cowardice consolidate this. She is seen as the symbol of goodness and mercy set against a background of moral decay but as mentioned above she, herself, is not entirely perfect. For instance, it is important to point out that she seems little concerned by her brother’s crime but is too horrified of committing the same transgression herself – even to save her brother’s life.
She apparently suffers no qualms, however, in asking Mariana to share Angelo’s bed. She could therefore be perceived as self-righteous and hypocritical, for example, her seeming lack of sympathy for Claudio when he pleads with her to save him by giving in to Angelo’s desire. She turns upon him violently, revolted by his weakness and after a scathing speech in which she tells Claudio that he is no true son of their father, she leaves him in a rage, never to speak to him again in the play.
Some critics have accordingly compared her to Angelo as they are both proud yet hypocritical characters who do not see any wrong in their own actions but are quick to blame others, for example when Claudio asked Isabella to give up her virginity to save him she was outraged, “O you beast! , O faithless coward! O, dishonest wretch! ” Nonetheless, she expected Marianna to do the exact things she refused to do. In much the same way as the Duke, Angelo and Isabella, Lucio may at first seem straightforward – lewd, crude and a liar, but one who introduces a good deal of humour into the play.
However, like many of the characters in Measure for Measure, he has another shadow side to him. When we first meet Lucio we are introduced to his idea that fornication is not wrong, instead he refers to lust as if it were something beyond the control of human will. However, Shakespeare also depicts Lucio as the friend of Claudio (a young man had a sexual encounter with woman called Juliet, whom he regards as ‘fast my wife’). In doing this, Shakespeare is able to introduce another side of Lucio’s character, quite different from that we see when he is with his ‘low-life’ friends.
This is shown when Lucio is immediately keen to help Claudio; when Claudio asks for ‘a word with you’, Lucio’s response is, ‘A hundred – if they’ll do you any good’. He also readily agrees to find Isabella and to enlist her help. Then, once in the presence of Isabella (Act I Scene IV), Lucio behaves with respect and acknowledges the seriousness of the situation, as is implied through his passage of poetic language which is dramatically different from his gross sexual puns in the previous scenes, “Your brother and his lover have embrac’d…. expresseth his full tilth and husbandry.
It could be argued that these words are euphemistic, and are Lucio’s way of introducing to Isabella a topic which he feels may shock her; he does, after all, want to persuade her to plead for Claudio. Nevertheless, the fact that Shakespeare gives Lucio the capacity for such thoughts, words and imagery shows that he is not merely a jester and a ‘lapwing’. In conclusion, just as there is nothing simple about the ‘problem play’, ‘Measure for Measure’ there is nothing simple about its characters. None of the memorable major characters are one dimensional. They are multi faceted, complex and very human.
