Richard III - Tragedy In Isolation Essays (1137 words) -

Richard III - Tragedy in Isolation Richard III - Tragedy in Isolation "The tragedy of Richard III lies in the progressive isolation of its protagonist". Discuss. From the very opening of the play when Richard III enters "solus", the protagonist's isolation is made clear. Richard's isolation progresses as he separates himself from the other characters and breaks the natural bonds between Man and nature through his efforts to gain power. The first scene of the play begins with a soliloquy, which emphasizes Richard's physical isolation as he appears alone as he speaks to the audience. This idea of physical isolation is heightened by his references to his deformity, such as "rudely stamp'd...Cheated of feature by Dissembling Nature, deformed, unfinished. This deformity would be an outward indication to the audience of the disharmony from Nature and viciousness of his spirit. As he hates "the idle pleasures of these days" and speaks of his plots to set one brother against another, Richard seems socially apart from the figures around him, and perhaps regarded as an outsider or ostracized because of his deformity. His separation from is family is emphasized when he says "Dive, thought's down to my soul" when he sees his brother approaching. He is unable to share his thought with his own family as he is plotting against them. Thus, we are given hints of his physical, social and spiritual isolation which is developed throughout the play. But despite these hints, he still refers to himself as part of the House of York, shown in the repeated use of "Our". The concept of Richard's physical isolation is reinforced in his dealings with Anne in Act I scene ii. She calls him"thou lump of foul deformity" and "fouler toad" during their exchange. Despite these insults, she still makes time to talk to Richard, and by the end of their exchange, she has taken his ring and been "woo'd" by him. After Richard has successfully gained the throne, he isolates himself when he asks the crowd to "stand all apart" in Act IV scene ii. And later, when Richard dreams, he is completely alone. Physical isolation in Richard's deformity wins sympathy from the audience as we pity his condition. But Richard uses his deformity as a tool against the other characters, to portray them as victimizing Richard. Thus the sense of tragedy is lessened by his own actions, even though his isolation may become greater as the play progresses. Richard's psychological isolation is conveyed through his lack of conscience in his murderous acts. Nowhere does he feel remorse for his murders, until Act V scene iii when he exclaims "Have mercy Jesu!" and "O coward conscience, how dost thou afflict me!". In this turning point, Richard's division from his own self is made clear from "I and I", and "Is there a murderer here? No. Yes, I am!" He has conflicting views of himself and realizes that "no creature" loves him, not even himself. We also never the "real" mind of Richard, for he is always playing a role, of a loving brother to Clarence, a lover to Anne or a victim to the others. We feel sympathy for Richard as he awakes in a vulnerable position and for the first time acknowledges the evil that he has done. But as he only reveals his feelings of guilt in the last act of the play, we do not see him in internal turmoil and thus the sense of psychological tragedy cannot be built upon. Socially, Richard is isolated from both the upper and lower classes of society. In Act I scene iii, Richard sarcastically calls Elizabeth "sister", and she contemptuously calls him "Brother of Gloucester" making a mockery of familial bonds. Margaret calls him "cacodemon" and "devil", and any unity that the characters have on stage is temporary and superficial. In act III, the citizens are said to be "mum" and "deadly pale", which gives a sense of quiet opposition to Richard's activities. Richard is thus separated from all around him. Temporarily, we see Richard and Buckingham share a kind of bond, as Richard calls him "My other self", "My Oracle" and "My prophet". But they part when Buckingham hesitates to kill the young princes when Richard says "I wish the bastards dead". This is the only time the audience sees Richard act with any other man, but we realize that it is for purely political purposes and that the union exists only while Buckingham remains useful to him. Our sympathy for Richard is limited as we see that he has no true friendships, and does not genuinely care

Look, See, and Watch Related Verb ESL Exercise

Look, See, and Watch Related Verb ESL Exercise Look, See and Watch are three related verbs that are easily confused. English learners can use this page to understand the differences between these three verbs. Example sentences for look, see and watch will help you understand how to use these verbs. Finally, theres an exercise to help you test your understanding of these key verbs. Look (At) Use the verb look (at) to say that you or someone else looks with concentration. In other words, you look to see something specific. Look refers to seeing something specific one time, rather than over time as with the verb watch (see below). I looked at the trees in the distance.Tom looked at the picture and smiled.Sarah looked at her sister and smiled. Look is usually used with the preposition at. However, when using look as an imperative at is not used when there is no object. Look over there!Look! Its Tom. Use look as an imperative with at when followed by an object. Look at those people.Look at me when I speak to you! See See is used to make simple statements. In other words, use see to note that you saw someone or something. I saw Tom at school yesterday.Did you see the beautiful sunset yesterday?Mary saw an interesting man while she was in Chicago. On the other hand look at and watch are used to state that you see something with particular attention. You look at something specific, and you watch something over time. Compare: I saw Jim at the party. (simple statement)I looked at Jims shirt. It was strange! (focus on a specific item)I watched Jim speaking to Tom for five minutes. He seemed nervous. (watching the movements and actions of someone or something over time) Do not use see in the progressive form as see is used to express a fact, not an action. I saw Tom at the party. (fact, not an action)We saw an interesting car on the road. (statement of an interesting story, not recounting a specific action at a specific time) The verb see is also used to express that an experience is completed. For example, you can watch a film and see a film. If you see a film, you refer to the complete act. If you watch a film you speak about the action of watching the film at a specific moment. Compare: I saw a good film yesterday. (referring to the complete film)I was watching TV when you called. (referring to the action that was interrupted) See Visit The verb see can also be used to mean to visit, or have an appointment with someone. Janice saw a doctor yesterday.Peter will see the marketing manager tomorrow.Have you seen a specialist? Watch Watch is used to express that you watch something in progress, something that changes over time. I watched the children playing in the park.She has been watching those birds over there for the past thirty minutes.What are you watching on TV? Watch is similar to look at, but it refers to an action that takes place over time. Look at is used to refer to a single instance when someone looks for something specific. Compare: I looked at the message on the billboard. (referring to looking at something once to understand)I watched the debate on TV. (referring to a show that takes place over time on TV) Practice What You've Learned For this exercise, youll choose between look (at), see or watch to complete the following sentences. Remember to conjugate the verb in the correct tense. _______ that dog over there. Its so cute!Have you ________ the new film by Spielberg?I was _______ the children play in the park when I met Alice.Im going to ________ the doctor tomorrow afternoon.Did you ________ the amount on the check carefully?Peter ________ Andrew yesterday.Alice is ___________ a show at the moment.The students __________ the information on the whiteboard.I havent ________ Susan in a long time.