The real character of Isabelle in Measure for Measure of an irrational terror of sex. (Barton, 546), “an immature young woman” demonstrating “moral absurdity and cruelty” (Nicholls, 478), whose actions are barely defensible. One of my classmates asked me, "Why doesn't Isabella just sleep with Angelo? What's the problem?" These statements reveal that these people have no understanding or sympathy for Isabella's position: socially, morally, or physically. Perhaps I take the question of Isabella's character so seriously because I played the role of Isabella in our college's production of the play. Preparing for and performing a Shakespearean role on stage leads to a kind of understanding of that character that no other activity can match. When we teachers encourage our Shakespeare students to work on interpreting a play by imagining how they might play different roles, we are approaching this type of understanding. When we ask them to watch various productions or read about different actors' performances in the same role, we reinforce their perception of what the play means "from the inside." But especially when we ask them to read a scene aloud or, better yet, prepare for a class performance, they learn something of what Shakespearean actors know: the complete motivations, actions, thoughts and feelings of 'an individual character. Through these details, even amateur actors learn more about the conflicts and resolutions of the entire play. Therefore, in order to balance the still frequent condemnation of Isabella's thoughts and actions, I want to share with you part of the discovery..... .middle of paper ......ines. London: Bell, 1879. Kathleen McLuskie. “The Patriarchal Bard: Feminist Criticism and Shakespeare: King Lear and Measure for Measure” in Political Shakespeare: New Essays on Cultural Materialism, ed. Jonathan Dollimor and Alan Sinfield. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 1985, 88-108. Graham Nicholls. Measure for measure: text and performance. Houdmills: Macmillan Education Ltd., 1986. Carol Rutter. Loud voices. Shakespeare's Women Today. New York: Routledge, 1989. William Shakespeare. Measure for measure, ed. Brian Gibbons. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991.__________. Measure for measure, ed. Northwest of Bawcutt. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991.__________. Measure for Measure (The Arden Shakespeare), ed. JW lever. London and New York: Routledge, 1965. Cedric Watts. Measure for measure. London: Penguin, 1986.

Essay / The real character of Isabelle in Measure for Measure of an irrational terror of sex. (Barton, 546), “an immature young woman” demonstrating “moral absurdity and cruelty” (Nicholls, 478), whose actions are barely defensible. One of my classmates asked me, "Why doesn't Isabella just sleep with Angelo? What's the problem?" These statements reveal that these people have no understanding or sympathy for Isabella's position: socially, morally, or physically. Perhaps I take the question of Isabella's character so seriously because I played the role of Isabella in our college's production of the play. Preparing for and performing a Shakespearean role on stage leads to a kind of understanding of that character that no other activity can match. When we teachers encourage our Shakespeare students to work on interpreting a play by imagining how they might play different roles, we are approaching this type of understanding. When we ask them to watch various productions or read about different actors' performances in the same role, we reinforce their perception of what the play means "from the inside." But especially when we ask them to read a scene aloud or, better yet, prepare for a class performance, they learn something of what Shakespearean actors know: the complete motivations, actions, thoughts and feelings of 'an individual character. Through these details, even amateur actors learn more about the conflicts and resolutions of the entire play. Therefore, in order to balance the still frequent condemnation of Isabella's thoughts and actions, I want to share with you part of the discovery..... .middle of paper ......ines. London: Bell, 1879. Kathleen McLuskie. “The Patriarchal Bard: Feminist Criticism and Shakespeare: King Lear and Measure for Measure” in Political Shakespeare: New Essays on Cultural Materialism, ed. Jonathan Dollimor and Alan Sinfield. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 1985, 88-108. Graham Nicholls. Measure for measure: text and performance. Houdmills: Macmillan Education Ltd., 1986. Carol Rutter. Loud voices. Shakespeare's Women Today. New York: Routledge, 1989. William Shakespeare. Measure for measure, ed. Brian Gibbons. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991.__________. Measure for measure, ed. Northwest of Bawcutt. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991.__________. Measure for Measure (The Arden Shakespeare), ed. JW lever. London and New York: Routledge, 1965. Cedric Watts. Measure for measure. London: Penguin, 1986.

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