Just ewww.
So now that you have Tim Curry playing the ever sleazy Cardinal from "Three Musketeers" (the real one) in your head, I'm going to give you Sara's Top Ten Reasons The Duke Stinks
1. He forces Angelo to take on his job and then sneaks back in to spy on him.
2. He dresses as a friar and uses the disguise to manipulate Isabella and Marianna.
3. He tells Marianna that replacing Isabella is not a sin because she has a contract with Angelo - the same conditions under which Claudio has been condemned and Juliet imprisoned.
4. He manipulates Isabella and Marianna for pretty much the entire play.
5. He uses Claudio's death, or lack thereof, as leverage against Isabella - not telling her until just before he pops the question.
6. He punishes the daylights out of Lucio for things he says to/about him while he is disguised as the Friar. Yes, I get it, Lucio is really annoying but the punishment was petty and personal. Making an honest woman of the prostitute he left with child would have sufficed.
7. He doesn't solve anything! All of his worry about lax follow through of laws and his actions ends with a petty round of an eye for an eye or "Measure for Measure."
8. He uses his sneaky leverage to get the girl - I think. As far as I can tell, Isabella never says yes.
9. He expects Angelo to do the job he is not capable of and faults him for being as lecherous as himself (If Lucio is to be believed).
10. Well, number ten is - All of this adds up to a Duke who is as much of a "scum canoe" as Angelo.
2 of 5
2 of 5
I initially started off liking the Duke a lot. While I thought he was pretty cowardly and I wasn't a huge fan of him for going around disguised as someone else, he did amuse me a lot. However, I just finished Act 5 and I came away with not a great opinion of him. I don't think that what he decided to do as punishment for everyone in the end was what some of them deserved (i.e. Angelo deserved death, Marianna deserved someone better, and Lucio, as annoying and obnoxious as he was, kind of got screwed over.) After reading that act and reading your post, I do agree with you. He is not such a great person. I didn't think he was as bad as Angelo though.
ReplyDeleteI agree completely that the Duke is a total douche! The fact that he knows Isabella wants to be a nun and he's like "congratulations! I choose you to marry me!!" is soooo selfish I can't stand it. It's all about what he wants and has no consideration for anyone else.
ReplyDeleteThe Duke is one big idiot. He is the heart of all the problems in this entire play. If he was removed I think all of the characters would be well off.
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