Free How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare by Ken Ludwig Page A

drunken knight. If there is any fictional world I want to live in, it is definitely Illyria.
And what shall I do in Illyria?
My brother he is in Elysium .
    In Greek mythology, Elysium was a place at the end of the earth where favored heroes were conveyed by the gods after death. Thus we know immediately that Viola believes that her brother is dead, and we know that she loved him so much that she is certain of his heavenly reward. Also point out to your children that Elysium and Illyria sound somewhat thesame. Could Illyria be a kind of Elysium for the blessed who are not yet dead? Also notice that the names Olivia, Viola, and Malvolio are virtual anagrams of one another. Shakespeare is up to something, and it has to do with relationships and the identities of these three main characters.
    Next comes an idea and a ray of hope:
Perchance he is not drowned.—What think you, sailors?
    To which the Captain replies:
It is perchance that you yourself were saved .
    Brothers and chance will play significant roles in this play, and it is not surprising that both are touched upon in these early speeches.
    In general, you’ll find that passages with two or more characters are especially fun to memorize with your children, as you can each take a different role and turn the passage into a little play.
(Thunder. Lightning. Shipwreck. Children roll off bed.)
    VIOLA
What country, friends, is this?
    CAPTAIN
This is Illyria, lady .
    VIOLA
And what should I do in Illyria?
My brother he is in Elysium .
Perchance he is not drowned.—What think you, sailors?
    CAPTAIN
It is perchance that you yourself were saved .
    As the scene continues, Viola questions the Captain about Illyria, which is a way for Shakespeare to fill in the backstory. The Captain explains,first, that during the shipwreck, he saw Viola’s brother tie himself to a mast. Therefore the young man might have saved himself. Next he explains that Illyria is governed by a duke named Orsino, that Orsino is in love with a neighboring countess named Olivia, and that Olivia has turned the Duke away.
    VIOLA
Who governs here?
    CAPTAIN
A noble duke, in nature as in name .
    VIOLA
What is his name?
    CAPTAIN
Orsino .
    VIOLA
Orsino. I have heard my father name him .
He was a bachelor then .
    Isn’t it interesting that Viola would remember that he’s a bachelor? Already Shakespeare has us thinking romance.
    CAPTAIN
And is so now, or was so very late [lately];
For but a month ago I went from hence [here],
And then ’twas fresh in murmur (as, you know ,
What great ones do the less will prattle of)
That he did seek the love of fair Olivia .
    What a clever epigram Shakespeare throws in like an extra treat: What great ones do the less will prattle of . In other words, “What celebrities do, we lesser folks will talk about.”
    VIOLA
What’s she?
    CAPTAIN
A virtuous maid, the daughter of a count
That died some twelvemonth since [a year ago], then leaving her
In the protection of his son, her brother ,
Who shortly also died, for whose dear love ,
They say, she hath abjured [given up, sworn off] the sight
And company of men .
    And now we know that Olivia is virtuous, that people speak well of her, that her brother died (remember, Viola’s brother is also presumed dead), and that she has sworn off men because she is in mourning for her father and her brother. At which point, Viola gets an idea:
O, that I served that lady ,
    As the greatest literary authority of the eighteenth century, Dr. Samuel Johnson, observed in his Notes on Shakespeare in 1765:
[At this point,] Viola seems to have formed a very deep design with very little premeditation: she is thrown by shipwreck on an unknown coast, hears that the prince is a bachelor, and resolves to supplant the lady whom he courts.
    The Captain replies that Olivia would never agree to it: CAPTAIN
That were hard to compass [accomplish]
Because she will admit no kind of suit ,
No, not the Duke’s .
    So the ever-resourceful Viola comes up with another idea:
I