Nov 14, 2009

Antony and Cleopatra | Conflict of Rome versus Egypt; West versus East

Essay discussing one of the major themes in the play: the conflict between the Eastern world of Cleopatra and the Western world of Antony. Addresses the question: Who does Shakespeare favor in this dichotomy?

As its title plainly suggests, Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra revolves around the extraordinary relationship between two unique individuals, one a Roman general and the other an Egyptian queen. Along with Augustus Caesar, these figures dominate the tragedy's narrative progression. But while Antony and Cleopatra focuses upon an incendiary love affair, Shakespeare makes it apparent that there is a much larger tension involved here, a clash between two worlds. Encompassing much of the known world at the time, what is at stake in Antony and Cleopatra is not confined...