An entire paragraph that hangs on the analysis of one word - 'we' - and darts back and forth between the two texts, and contextual knowledge. (Could be more technical, if I'm being picky!)
Both Marvell and Ford depict the afterlife as the home of true justice. This is affirmed in Tis Pity by Richardetto's assertion that "we must obey, but heaven will judge them for't another day", as this suggests that heaven is where true justice is given. However, perhaps this is also an attempt to break the fourth wall, as 'we' suggests an elements of unity, which he may have intended to extend to include the audience of his 1633 play. This is plausible due to the fact that there was immense political unrest at the time, as Charles I's attempt to reign as an absolute monarch meant that there was also a lack of justice in reality. Therefore is it is possible to that Ford was encouraging his audience to resist revolt and perhaps even fear during this time of political chaos, by bearing in mind the notion that true justice will be served by God in Heaven. This concept of a just afterlife is also echoed in Marvell's poem The Nymph Complaining' where the speaker affirms that 'Heaven's King keeps register of everything', suggesting that justice does indeed lie in heaven, like Ford, but more specifically with Christ - a fitting interpretation because like Ford, Marvell was raised as a Christian. This concept of justice in the afterlife is further reflected in Tis Pity by the notion that hell is where 'there is the murderer for ever stabbed, yet can never die' (according to the Friar). Therefore, whilst one may perceive this to be a clear allusion to the hell illustrated in the Divine Comedy in Inferno, another may take this to mean that Ford is trying to suggest that the afterlife is a place of equality, as each will endure the sin which they did to thers, presenting life after death to be the ultimate purveyor of justice.
Excellent AO4 understanding when writing about the relationship between sin and knowledge:
"When the Friar cries '"O ignorance in knowledge!" he is (unwittingly perhaps) referring to the old-fashioned use of the word 'know' to mean 'have sex with'. The idea of knowledge as sinful in itself is also explored in reactions to the Bible. Eve and Adam fall because they gain knowledge of good and evil, they are no longer innocents. The controversy of phyiscaly knowledge was at the time very topical, as a new school of philosophy, empiricsm, was forged. John Locke's focus on evidence and physical knowledge was scorned by the Neoplatonic tradition, which preferred theoretical notions of truth and beauty. Milton's descriptions of Eve (from the serpent's mouth) as "Mother of Science" was undoubtedly a dig at Renaissance, empiricist ideas. Marvell and Ford both question the role of knowledge in creating sin. It is Giovanni's flawed reasoning, his "faith not in the power of God, but in the power of reason" which leads him to death, in Schmidt's words. Likewise Marvell's soul solemnly reminds us that "none thither mounts [to heaven] by the degree of knowledge, but humility." There is recognition that knowledge must always in some way be sinful to a Christian God."
Lovely combo of argument, detail, critical reading and context (AO1, AO2, AO3, AO4):
Overall, as the statement suggests, the consequences of sin and temptation for the characters and speakers of the texts are negative ones. We see this presented in the speaker of 'The Mower's Song's cascade into pessimism, madness, and talk of death. The dactylic start to the third stanza, "unthankful", acts as a stark contrast to the previous two stanzas, which begin with the typical iamb. This expresses the speaker's sudden explosive anger and bitter attitude towards his rejected acts of temptation and desire. The speaker continues in this developed pessimistic tone as he informs the grass that it will mourn his death by becoming a 'heraldry' for his 'tomb'. Here Marvell perhaps demonstrates a fall into madness as a result of sinful lust, which has also caused him to lose everything and consider death. Consequently, the speaker's lust has satisfied his basic sexual appetite temporarily, but this ends in chaos and possible death. Similarly, as Donald K Anderson Jr writes, "Giovanni tears out Annabella's heart and brings it to Soranazo's feast, [a] spectacular action, [which] is foreshadowed thoughout the play." We see this manifested in various ways, namely through the use of blood as a motif from as early as Act II, where Annabella's illness is thought to be aresult of "a fullness of her blood", to the symbolic writing in her blood, again echoing Dr Faustus. However, the ultimate sacrifice is her death, which results in a bloodbath.
Both Marvell and Ford depict the afterlife as the home of true justice. This is affirmed in Tis Pity by Richardetto's assertion that "we must obey, but heaven will judge them for't another day", as this suggests that heaven is where true justice is given. However, perhaps this is also an attempt to break the fourth wall, as 'we' suggests an elements of unity, which he may have intended to extend to include the audience of his 1633 play. This is plausible due to the fact that there was immense political unrest at the time, as Charles I's attempt to reign as an absolute monarch meant that there was also a lack of justice in reality. Therefore is it is possible to that Ford was encouraging his audience to resist revolt and perhaps even fear during this time of political chaos, by bearing in mind the notion that true justice will be served by God in Heaven. This concept of a just afterlife is also echoed in Marvell's poem The Nymph Complaining' where the speaker affirms that 'Heaven's King keeps register of everything', suggesting that justice does indeed lie in heaven, like Ford, but more specifically with Christ - a fitting interpretation because like Ford, Marvell was raised as a Christian. This concept of justice in the afterlife is further reflected in Tis Pity by the notion that hell is where 'there is the murderer for ever stabbed, yet can never die' (according to the Friar). Therefore, whilst one may perceive this to be a clear allusion to the hell illustrated in the Divine Comedy in Inferno, another may take this to mean that Ford is trying to suggest that the afterlife is a place of equality, as each will endure the sin which they did to thers, presenting life after death to be the ultimate purveyor of justice.
Excellent AO4 understanding when writing about the relationship between sin and knowledge:
"When the Friar cries '"O ignorance in knowledge!" he is (unwittingly perhaps) referring to the old-fashioned use of the word 'know' to mean 'have sex with'. The idea of knowledge as sinful in itself is also explored in reactions to the Bible. Eve and Adam fall because they gain knowledge of good and evil, they are no longer innocents. The controversy of phyiscaly knowledge was at the time very topical, as a new school of philosophy, empiricsm, was forged. John Locke's focus on evidence and physical knowledge was scorned by the Neoplatonic tradition, which preferred theoretical notions of truth and beauty. Milton's descriptions of Eve (from the serpent's mouth) as "Mother of Science" was undoubtedly a dig at Renaissance, empiricist ideas. Marvell and Ford both question the role of knowledge in creating sin. It is Giovanni's flawed reasoning, his "faith not in the power of God, but in the power of reason" which leads him to death, in Schmidt's words. Likewise Marvell's soul solemnly reminds us that "none thither mounts [to heaven] by the degree of knowledge, but humility." There is recognition that knowledge must always in some way be sinful to a Christian God."
Lovely combo of argument, detail, critical reading and context (AO1, AO2, AO3, AO4):
Overall, as the statement suggests, the consequences of sin and temptation for the characters and speakers of the texts are negative ones. We see this presented in the speaker of 'The Mower's Song's cascade into pessimism, madness, and talk of death. The dactylic start to the third stanza, "unthankful", acts as a stark contrast to the previous two stanzas, which begin with the typical iamb. This expresses the speaker's sudden explosive anger and bitter attitude towards his rejected acts of temptation and desire. The speaker continues in this developed pessimistic tone as he informs the grass that it will mourn his death by becoming a 'heraldry' for his 'tomb'. Here Marvell perhaps demonstrates a fall into madness as a result of sinful lust, which has also caused him to lose everything and consider death. Consequently, the speaker's lust has satisfied his basic sexual appetite temporarily, but this ends in chaos and possible death. Similarly, as Donald K Anderson Jr writes, "Giovanni tears out Annabella's heart and brings it to Soranazo's feast, [a] spectacular action, [which] is foreshadowed thoughout the play." We see this manifested in various ways, namely through the use of blood as a motif from as early as Act II, where Annabella's illness is thought to be aresult of "a fullness of her blood", to the symbolic writing in her blood, again echoing Dr Faustus. However, the ultimate sacrifice is her death, which results in a bloodbath.
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