by Amy Szerlong
Exposition and Forwards: Act III, Scene1
Exposition:
- Duke still dressed as friar (audience knows)
- Isabella tells Claudio of Angelo's proposition
- Duke reveals self and tells Claudio that REGARDLESS of Isabella's actions, Angelo is just exercising his power and influence, he still needs to ready himself for death (says a lot about Angelo as a character, and does not ensure Claudio's fate, though Duke willing to help)*
- Duke tells Isabella about Mariana and her relationship with Angelo (only Duke and Isabella know)
Forwards:
- Duke hides and eavesdrops on conversation between Isabella and Claudio (when she tells him of Angelo's proposition – encourages Duke to help them)
- Duke devises plan to involve Mariana and trick Angelo into sleeping with his former fiancée, restoring Mariana's virtue and ruin Angelo (saves Isabella from humiliation and might save Claudio from death)
*I am a bit confused on whether this would be an exposition or a forward, merely because I'm not sure why the Duke tells Claudio this. Although ultimately we discover that Angelo IS completely untrustworthy and sentences Claudio to death anyway, I am not sure that the Duke asks him to ready himself for death because he just wants to prepare him for the worst (if he can't come up with a plan to save him) or he is going a long with his role as the friar or if he just knows how well Angelo works, and he is revealing to the audience what a hypocritical and mean character Angelo is? Thoughts?
Act III, Scene 2
I am having a problem with this scene because a large portion of the scene seems to be taken up with sexual innuendo and ridiculous accusations. Due to the fact that so many sexual innuendos are made, it's confusing to know whether these accusations are serious and therefore what is exposition and what is a forward – aka what actually matters. Although all of it was written with intent, and it fits in with a play that focuses so largely on (to quote Walter) "sexual tension, sexual frustration, and ethical questions regarding sex" I just am not exactly sure what to pick out and what not to. SO I thought I'd ask the class? Has anyone found any other scenes with Pompey, Elbow, and Lucio that may help the understanding of this scene? What in their previous scenes impacts this scene? Please comment!