Forwards and Exposition: Act III

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!

Exposition and Forwards – Act II Scenes 3 & 4

by Amy Szerlong

Act II, Scene 3

Exposition: (As categorized by who knows what€¦)

  • Duke is disguised as the friar (only audience knows this)
  • Claudio is to die tomorrow (only some know€¦Juliet actually finds out at the end of this scene)

Forward:

  • Everyone learns that the sex between Juliet and Claudio was consensual, and that they loved each other (This urges the Duke to clear Claudio's name, since this act is not as lecherous as once thought€¦)

Act II, Scene 4

Exposition:

  • Isabella goes to Angelo to plead for her brother's forgiveness (only she, her brother, and disguised duke know)

Forwards:

  • Angelo asks Isabella for her virginity in exchange for her brother's life
  • Isabella rejects Angelo's request; goes to ready her brother for his death

So I feel as though I’m running a bit short on exposition here, especially in scene 4. If anyone has anything I missed in either category, please feel free to comment!

Final Stasis

After the action of the play, as in comedies, we return to a similar stasis as where we began.  The Duke returns from his escapades as a friar, pardons Claudio, and proposes marriage to Isabella. His reestablishment as the ruler of Vienna is what brings the play back into the stasis of a functional society.

Although Vienna in the play will continue to exist with a morally-poor society, this is the stasis with which it can continue to exist. The establishment of Lord Angelo as the temporary ruler throws out of balance the delicate nature between the desperate pleasure seekers and the saint-like religious folk, leading to the action of the play. His removal from power brings back the delicate balance between the two morals and groups.

by Paul Kappel

But Do It Backwards-Act 1

By Eric Houdek 

-Isabella says she will leave to try to influence Angelo.

-Lucio continues to argue with Isabella, telling her that women have a degree of power over men.   

-Isabella tells Lucio that she has little power to do anything. 

-Lucio tells Isabella that Claudio has gotten Juliet pregnant, and has been sentenced to death.    

-Lucio calls out to Isabella at the nunnery. 

Scene 4

-The Duke says that crime has gotten out of control.  Additionally, the Duke establishes that he intends to see whether or not Angelo’s resolute appearance is false. 

-Friar Thomas inquires as to why the Duke wishes to be hidden.   

-The Duke asks Friar Thomas to hide him.   

-The Duke enters a monastary.

  Scene 3

-Claudio asks Lucio to find his sister so she can appeal on his behalf to Angelo. 

-Lucio visits Claudio in prison. 

-Claudio is imprisoned for lechery. 

 Scene 2

-The Duke tells Angelo that he must leave right away, and he is given control of the city of Vienna. 

-Angelo enters. 

-Escalus approves of Angelo.   

-The Duke tells Escalus that he must leave the city, and asks if Angelo would be the right person to choose to leave in control of the city. 

 -The Duke sends an attendant for Angelo.

Scene 1 

Main actions

By Eric Houdek

Alright, I think it might be a good idea to post some of the important actions that occured during the play, some of them coming directly from our discussion. 

-The Duke grants Angelo temporary leadership of Vienna. 

-Claudio is taken to prison for having sexual involvement outside of mariage. 

-Claudio asks Lucio to find his sister Isabella, so Isabella can appeal for him on Claudio’s behalf. 

-The Duke goes to a monastary and asks Friar Thomas to hide him so he can observe Angelo. 

-Isabella agrees to leave the monastery to help Claudio.

-Isabella goes to Angelo to beg for forgiveness.  Mentions that she wishes to bribe him. 

-Angelo realizes he has desire for Isabella.  Tells Isabella to return the next day.

-Angelo makes his proposal to Isabella-to have sexual relations with him to save Claudio’s life. 

-Isabella denies Claudio’s proposal. 

-Isabella visits Claudio in jail, tells him about Angelo’s proposal. 

-Angelo asks Isabella to follow the proposal, Isabella rebukes him.   

-Duke hatches plan involving Mariana, and tells Isabella about it. 

-Duke introduces Mariana to Isabella, the three discuss the plan. 

 * I still need to add more actions, feel free to ammend, add, or disagree.

Things Theatrical – Measure for Measure

By Glenn Things Theatrical are what “illicit a strong audience response”.  Following that definition Angelo’s desire of Isabella is certainly theatrical, because this behavior is so unexpected, coming from such a straight-laced deputy. Not only that, but the simple juxtaposition of the nobleman lusting after the soon-to-be nun is in and of itself, unusual, creating once again a strong response. A very strong “thing theatrical” occurs when Angelo demands Claudio be killed even after he thinks he’s slept with Isabella. I myself as a reader was not expecting that level of treachery from Angelo, making the surprise element of this action supremely theatrical. But perhaps one of the most theatrical moments occurs when the Provost enters with Ragozine’s chopped-off head to give Angelo in place of Claudio’s head. Freshly cut heads on stage seems pretty theatrical to me. However, one of the interesting variances in this scene is the almost lightheartedness that goes along with the dismembered head. Instead of it seeming gross or horrifying, the head is looked upon as God’s saving grace. This subtle inequity between what we expect the character’s reaction to be, and what it really is, is in and of itself, theatical.Finally the end scene is chockablock full of ‘things theatrical’. The Duke’s entrance, the Duke’s reveal, Angelo’s marriage and saved life, Claudio’s appearance, Lucio’s end, and the Duke’s proposal to Isabella are all exciting and surprising. Because of this, the audience responds very strongly to what can be considered the finale of “Measure for Measure”. 

Exposition and Forwards

Posted by Amy Szerlong

Group 3 (Erica, Sam and Amy) met during class period to begin discussing our analysis, and we ended up comparing our notes from Henry IV on these topics to help clarify. Here’s what we came up with as a culmination of handouts, our notes, and examples given in class.

Exposition

  • when/where is it delivered and how?
  • who knows what? who doesn’t?
  • what is it I need to know to move on?
  • what do we NEED to know in order to advance?
  • Example: In Act I Scene II of Henry IV, the audience learns the following: Falstaff is older and a drunkard. Hal foots the bill for his idiot and thieving friends.
  • So, exposition is basic facts about relationships, characters and the environment…

Forwards

  • what makes the play advance?
  • arouses audience interest in things to come
  • causes us to ask questions
  • again, moves play forward
  • Shakespeare dominated by forwards, (good plays and titles are dominated by forwards…)
  • Examples: In Henry IV – Robbery (tricking Falstaff), Mortimer’s plot to go against the king, initial line of play (exposition development…) war = who will win?, Hotspur called in front of king

This is as far as we got today. We are aware that these aren’t the most extensive series of notes, but since none of us have had the opportunity to finish reading Measure for Measure, we disbanded early to squeeze in some extra reading time! Additions are welcome!

Notes on Ball

Mary Beth’s Notes:

What Happens That Makes Something Else Happen?

-A play is a series of actions.
-A play is not about action, nor does it describe action.

-Action occurs when something happens that makes or permits something else to happen. Action is two “something happenings,” one leading to the other.

-The first thing to discover is how a play goes from one place to another. Find the first event of each action, then
the second, then the connection between the two. The play’s journey is contained within its actions. We must know every connection between every event, from the start of the play onwards.

-What happens that leads to something else happening?

-An event without a second, connected event, without effect or result, is either inadequate playwriting or, more
likely, inadequate play reading. In life and on stage unconnected events are irrelevant. Life aside, it is hard to make irrelevance theatrically viable.

The playwright crafts a series of actions: trigger and heap.

An event is anything that happens. When one event
causes or permits another event, the two events together
comprise an action. Actions are a play’s primary building
blocks.

And What Happens Next?

-Each trigger leads to a new heap. (Each event causes or permits a second event.) That is one action. The heap, the second event, becomes a trigger: a new first event of a new action.

If you can discover connections between events, you will be able to take us, step by step, event by connected event, action by action, right to the heap of bodies at play’s end.

But Do It Backwards

-Free will- Nothing predetermines that you will carry out an action just because somebody else triggers it.

Life goes on; it goes forward — but never predictably.

Only when we look at events in reverse order can we see, with certainty, how events took place.

Going forwards allows unpredictable possibility.

Going backwards exposes that which is required.

-From Backwards and Forwards by David Ball-