Putting Jane Austen's novel Persuasion and William Shakespeare's play Antony and Cleopatra side by side, we observe a interesting parallelism in the way the protagonists are portrayed. Although the views and opinions of Austen's Anne Elliot and Shakespeare's Antony are expressed directly and repeatedly, these unwavering expressions of feeling in their Romantic counterparts seem empty. Readers must characterize Austen's Captain Wentworth and Shakespeare's Cleopatra indirectly. Purposefully left without considering the internal thoughts and feelings of these characters, readers reserve judgment on the characters until the conclusion of both works. This method that Austen and Shakespeare use of keeping a definitive view of a character until the end of a work ultimately creates immense success - it allows for varied interpretations among readers and simultaneously creates a sense of suspense, allowing for intense feelings. of anticipation to an eventual catharsis in which these initially hidden inner feelings of Captain Wentworth and Cleopatra "burst out", resolving the differences between the characters and also providing readers with a shared experience of this cathartic feeling. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay By seeing this analogous effect that Persuasion and Antony and Cleopatra have on readers, readers can also better understand Virginia Woolf's assertions about the connection between Austen and Shakespeare in her essay “A Room of One's Own”. In this essay, Woolf expresses the "incandescence" that both authors possess and highlights the shared ability of Austen and Shakespeare to write without "any obstacle", or to write in a way that does not reflect opinions, prejudices, the prejudices inherent in the authors. or prejudices. It is this talent, according to Woolf, that makes the writings of both authors have such a brilliant effect on their readers. Woolf states: “. . . the spirit of an artist, to accomplish the prodigious effort of liberating the entire work within him, must be incandescent. . . there must be no obstacles. . . » (Woolf 56). Because readers of Persuasion and Antony and Cleopatra are left to their own devices to interpret two of the works' protagonists, this ultimately adds to the works' overall success, creating a sense of drama and anxiety until the climax: a reader becomes directly involved. in anticipation of which feelings will be affirmed or denied – until each author offers a final expression of the “silent” inner voices of Captain Wentworth and Cleopatra that have remained latent throughout both works. This, says Woolf, is a strength of both Austen and Shakespeare: each speaks not through their characters, but simultaneously allowing for varied interpretation that leads to the final expression of a character's once-hidden voice, each work achieved literary success in its meaning. conclusion: readers see the characters in relation to the direct form of the work in question, rather than the form that an author wants to push or endorse. To begin to show this difference between how a lover's feelings are expressed in contrast to the "restrained" "inner feelings" of another, readers must first recognize the clear statements of feelings that Anne expresses Elliot and Mark Antony. For example, throughout Shakespeare's play Antony and Cleopatra, readers are offered definitive views onwhat Antoine feels towards his lover. There is no doubt about his inner feelings, and he makes his love for Cleopatra, a woman he believes to be "the armorer of [his] heart" (Shakespeare IV.iv. 10) known through various short speeches throughout the play. Lamenting his love and desire to follow Cleopatra regardless of circumstances, Antony states: "Egypt, you knew it too well / My heart was for you. rudder tied by the ropes, / And you should tow me after" (Shakespeare II .xii 60-63). Through statements like this, Antoine makes his inner feelings known throughout the play. Antony's clear descriptive statements about his love for Cleopatra help give readers an interpretation of his inner feelings for her. His love language for Cleopatra absorbs all doubts, as his emotions towards his queen remain unwavering throughout the play. Readers see these same expressions of Anne Elliot's inner feelings throughout Persuasion. Although the genre of Persuasion is obviously different from that of Antony and Cleopatra, Austen uses additional techniques to ensure that her readers gain insight into her characters' internal thoughts and emotions through the use of free indirect speech . Through this method, readers can gain an “inner glimpse” of what Anne feels about Captain Wentworth as expressed by the narrator. For example, readers can immediately understand Anne's lingering romantic feelings for Captain Wentworth when the narrator states early in the novel: "No one had ever come into Kellynch's circle, who could bear a comparison with Frederick Wentworth as that he stood in his memory. . . .” (Austen 28). Through Austen's use of free indirect speech here, readers learn that Anne still has feelings for Wentworth even after their engagement ended seven years previously. The narrator leaves no doubt about what Anne feels, because this method allows her inner feelings to be clearly expressed. Readers are thus constantly aware of her feelings and emotions, particularly towards her ex-lover. This is an important insight, as the novel focuses on the ongoing chain of events that ultimately leads to the two reuniting at the conclusion of the novel. Through the clear expressions of love portrayed by Antony and Anne Elliot, a contrast begins to emerge in characterization. from their Romantic counterparts: Readers are neither given these similar declarations of feelings nor allowed to enter into the inner thought patterns of Captain Wentworth and Cleopatra, making their true emotions difficult for both readers and viewers to decipher. characters. Throughout Persuasion, Austen's use of free indirect speech allows her readers to "put themselves inside the heads" of a multitude of characters. However, it is striking that she does not apply this method to her protagonist, Captain Wentworth. Rather than viewing passages that allow readers to see what Wentworth is feeling or thinking, Wentworth's inner voice remains hidden from readers until the end of the novel. In doing so, Austen allows for a build-up of emotion throughout the novel, pushing readers to decipher Wentworth in other ways: either through Anne's opinions on what he may be feeling, or through his words and his external actions. This ultimately allows for a reader-based interpretation of what Wentworth may be feeling to drive the novel, ending with an ultimate realization of catharsis when Austen finally allows Wentworth's true inner feelings to bedefinitively revealed at the end of the book. Wentworth, readers must also judge what he may be thinking or feeling based on interpretations through Anne's eyes. For example, when Anne discovers that Wentworth is in Bath, readers already know, via the narrator, that she wishes to see him. However, everyone is left with their own opinion as to whether or not Wentworth shares this sentiment. The narrator speculates: She would have liked to know how he felt about meeting. Perhaps indifferent, if indifference could exist in such circumstances. He must be either indifferent or reluctant. If he had wanted to see her again one day, he wouldn't have needed to wait until then; he would have done what she would not believe that in his place she should have done a long time ago… (Austen 51). Once again, readers are left in the dark as to Wentworth's opinion on a meeting and must make their own judgments based on Anne's opinion on the subject. “He seemed [emphasis added] to be interested in her” (Austen 155), the narrator says at one point. However, nothing is definitive. Captain Wentworth seems to appear in various ways, and without insight into his own mind, all doors and interpretations must remain open. Readers can see examples of this throughout the text of the book, as there is a constant tone of uncertainty about interpreting Wentworth's true feelings or motivations. “Now how do you read his feelings? » (Austen 53) wonders Anne. Due to Austen's strategic "concealment" of Wentworth's voice, readers also find themselves asking the same question. Captain Wentworth's lack of a distinct "inner voice" allows readers to do their own groundwork to determine his character, thus producing a feeling of great anticipation. and suspense until Austen strategically chooses to reveal her true feelings in her insertion of a letter composed by Captain Wentworth addressed to Anne. This letter, placed at the end of the novel, excludes any further speculative opinions about what he "might" think or feel, including that of the reader. Wentworth says: I can no longer listen silently. I must speak to you by the means within my reach. You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. . . . I offer myself again to you with a heart even more yours. . . I only loved you. . . . You alone brought me to Bath. For you alone, I think and plan. –You didn’t see that? Can you not have understood my wishes? I had not waited even these ten days, could I have read your feelings, as I believe you have penetrated mine. . . (Austen 191) Through this letter, readers receive the only blatant statement of Wentworth's inner feelings throughout the novel. Readers no longer need to draw conclusions from other characters' opinions or Wentworth's ambiguous actions; his inner voice, finally, is spoken. Wentworth's lines, "I can no longer sit in silence," are significant because they emphasize the fact that throughout the novel his own feelings were effectively silent, mere objects of speculation for outside characters or the narrator to start a discussion. Austen allows readers to also experience catharsis through this letter, as the buildup and tension over what Wentworth actually feels has finally been released. This final release of this accumulation of Wentworth's internal feelings helps demonstrate the "incandescence" that Woolf claims Austen possessed. Austen shows through this passage that she knows the desires of her audience. By giving readers only smallglimpses of Wentworth's feelings until the end of the novel, she both reserves judgment for the reader and produces a brilliant shared catharsis of character and reader through the final expression of feelings in Wentworth's letter, thus achieving a complex and successful connection in his work - a moment where readers, like Anne, can breathe a shared sigh of relief in the expression that one cannot help but feel as if "I knew it that way!" » This effect is paralleled in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra, for he too has the authorial ability to shift judgment from the character to the readers, and thus create a similar construction before providing a final authorial revelation of the true voice of the character Cleopatra. Like Anne, Antony's love for the Egyptian princess Cleopatra is expressed fully and often, leaving readers in no doubt as to his feelings and motivations in the play. However, as Austen does in Persuasion, Shakespeare also leaves the "real" voice of his protagonist, Cleopatra, somewhat absent throughout the play. Although he must do so through a distinct method due to the gender difference, Shakespeare uses Cleopatra's contradictory words and actions to "hide" her inner feelings, making it difficult for readers to make a definitive judgment about what she really feels until the end of the play. As Austen executes through her character of Anne, Shakespeare also allows one character's feelings to be expressed through the opinion of another. For example, while Cleopatra's true feelings and motivations are unknown, Antony makes a statement about what he believes Cleopatra feels by stating: "I have fought these wars for Egypt and the queen, / of which I thought have the heart, for she had mine... / Which, while mine, had annexed to her / A million more, now lost...” (Shakespeare IV.xiv. 18-22). These lines indicate Antony's belief in Cleopatra's love for him; However, readers, as they do in Persuasion, must carefully balance these words because they come from Antony's mouth and do not give true insight into Cleopatra's feelings - it is only Antony who "thinks" that he had the heart of Cleopatra. readers should also seek to balance Cleopatra's contradictory words and actions throughout the play in order to form an accurate depiction of her character. Alternating between declarations of love for Antony, at different points in the play, Cleopatra utters lines that reflect Antony as a mere object to her, declaring at one point: "My music playing in the distance, I will betray the finned fish fawns. My curved hook will pierce their slimy jaws, and as I raise them up, I will regard them all as Antonies and say: “Aha! You are taken” (Shakespeare II.v. 13-17). Cleopatra, a woman who on the outside is Antony's lover, seems to refer to him as merely an object that she can hunt and retrieve. These lines raise a question about Cleopatra's true feelings regarding her relationship with Antony, as her words and actions are constantly changing. Again, although by a different method than Austen, readers of Antony and Cleopatra must decipher Cleopatra's true inner voice through a careful balancing of her contradictory words and actions. With this back-and-forth balance of Cleopatra's words, readers find themselves at a crossroads at the end of the play, and just as Austen employs this tactic in her novel, Shakespeare makes one final conclusive statement to illuminate the Cleopatra's true inner feelings. Through suicide.