scheff, thomas - gender wars_emotions in much ado about nothing
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7/23/2019 Scheff, Thomas - Gender Wars_Emotions in Much Ado About Nothing
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Gender Wars: Emotions in "Much Ado about Nothing"Author(s): Thomas J. ScheffSource: Sociological Perspectives, Vol. 36, No. 2 (Summer, 1993), pp. 149-166Published by: Sage Publications, Inc.Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1389427Accessed: 02-10-2015 11:58 UTC
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7/23/2019 Scheff, Thomas - Gender Wars_Emotions in Much Ado About Nothing
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Sociologicalerspectives
Vol.
36,
No.
2,
pp.
149-166
Copyright1993Pacific ociological ssociation ISSN
0731-1214
GENDER WARS:
Emotions
n
MuchAdo AboutNothing
THOMAS
J. CHEFF
Universityf
California,antaBarbara
ABSTRACT: Inordero xplorehe elationetweenove ndwar, apply
a
theoryhowing
he
ffinity
etween
omance,hame,
nd
nger
n classic
text.
hakespeare'slayspresent
n
exceedinglyrim ortraitf
the
relationshipetween
en nd
women.ven is
ighthearted
reatment
f
his
theme
n
MuchAdo about
Nothinguggests
hatove etween
man
nd
a
womannvolvesnendingensionnd
onflict,
uchike he ontinuous
distrust,eception,
nd
utrightarfare
etween
ations.
close
eadingf
the ext
f
MuchAdo shows
hamelanger
equences
othn conventional
courtship
Hero
ndClaudio)nd nthe
nconventionalelationfBeatrice
and
Benedick
oth
elationshipsnvolve
nfatuation.y nalysisuggests
thatcknowledging
hame nd
ngeretweenen ndwomen
ay
e n
importantirsttepowardesolvingheironflict.
I
hatewhile
love;wouldyou
sk how do
t?
My
case
proves
ts
rue;
hat's ll theres to
t.
-Catullus
ATTACHMENT, SHAME,
AND
IMAGES
OF
HUMAN NATURE
Untilrecently,thas been customary o view humannature n one of twoways,
as either
nherently estructive
or
as
a
blank slate upon which culture writes
human character.
The first iew
is
associated
with
Hobbes and,
in
a laterform,
Freud;
the second
view,
with
the
cultural
elativity
ound
n
the work of
classical
anthropology
nd
sociology.
More
recently,
t
has become the dominanttheme
in
psychology, s expressed
n
learning
heory.
In the last
twenty years, however,
results
of a
corpus
of
studies of infant-
caretaker
elations
uggest
the
possibility
hat new
perspective
s needed
which
will be in better ccord with
the nfant
tudies and with clinical
findings n adult
Direct
ll
correspondence
o:Thomas
. cheff,epartment
f
ociology, niversity
f
California-Santaarbara,
Santa
Barbara,
A
93106-9430.
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150
SOCIOLOGICAL
ERSPECTIVES
olume
6,Number
,1993
emotions.
his
new
viewpoint
egins
with
he
postulate
hat
ocial
ttachment
is the
fundamental
uman
motive.
lthough
thas
has beenformulated
y
many
authors,willfollow,noutline,heposition eveloped y HelenB.Lewis 1976,
1981,
983).
The
recent
nfant
tudies
trongly
uggest
hat
humannfants
ave,
t birth,
strong,
enetically
rogramed
apacity
or
ocial nteraction.
arly
n thefirst
ear,
infants
re ble
toengage
n
thegame
f aking
urns
t ooking
nd ooking
way,
and
in
smiling
t the
caretaker.
his
game
forms
hebasis
formutual
delight
between
arent
nd
child,
ndfalling
n ove.
For
comprehensive
eview
f
hese
studies,
ee
Retzinger
991.)
ove
between
hild
nd
parent, secure
ond,
s
not
certain
owever.
fthe
parent
rchild
fails
oplay
thegame,
t
maynot
occur.
In conjunction
ith
herclinical
tudies,
ewis
(1976)
has subsumed
hese
findingsn a theory hich elatesttachment,hame, ndanger.n this heory,
love
nvolves
either
ndependence
or ependence,
ut nterdependence.
owlby
characterizes
uch
relationship
s
as
a secure
ocial
bond. hame
nd
anger
re
instinctive
nd, therefore,
niversal
motional
esponses
o,
and signals
of,
threatened
onds.
f
his
were he ase,
hame
nd
anger
would
figure
rominently
in all ove
relationships.
Lewis's
work,
ikeFreud's,uggests
hat mbivalence
s inevitable
n
intimate
relationships.
nlike
reud
especially
n his aterwork),
owever,
ewis
argues
that
hatred
nd
destructive
elationships
re
not a fixed
part
of the
human
conditionut reproducedy lienatedocial elationships.nthis rticle,suggest
that
omance
may
mask
massive mounts
funconscious
hame
nd
anger.
Shame
nd anger
eem
o
play
key
ole
n
relationships
hatnvolve
xtensive
idealization
r
hostility.
n
this
rticle,
consider
herole
ofthese wo
processes
in romantic
elationships
t both
he
nterpersonal
nd
cultural
evels.
The
tradition
f
courtly
ove
and
romance
provides
cultural
cript
for
idealization
n
Western
ivilization. lthough
here s more emphasis
on
idealization
fthe
woman,
specially
n the
origins
fthetradition,
onsiderable
encouragement
ormutual
dealization
s
provided.
Falling
n ove,"
ften
t
first
sight,
s
considered
o be an extraordinary
tate,
ar ifferent
romhe
mundane
aspects feverydayife. deasofa fated rdestined elationshipith unique
person
re
also
prominent.
Separate
from
ultural
radition,
et
strongly
nteracting
ith
it,
is
the
psychological
rocess
f
nfatuation.
ndividualsmay
merely
ct out
the
cultural
script
f dealized
omance
without
eeling
t.
But,
ften,
he
cript
s deeply
elt;
the
ndividual
alls
head
ver
heels"
n ove
with he
perfect"
artner.
dealization
in this
ase
is
not
merely
onforming
o a
culturally
anctioned
ole
but also
a
compelling
emotional
experience.
propose
that both
the cultural
and
psychological
lements
n
idealized
omance
an be understood
n terms
f
the
dynamics
f hame
nd
anger.
Suppose, s suggestedn thediscussionf ttachment,hat hame nd rage re
both
iologically
rogrammed
o
ignal
hreats
o
mportant
elationships.
urther,
these
motions
ould
be
roused
requently
n
ntimate
elationships:
ne
person
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Gender
ars
151
is so dependent n
theother
hat
/he
rustrates
s, eading
o
anger,
nd
we
feel
criticizedr
rejected,
eading
o
shame.
requent pisodes
f hame nd/or
age
maybe an inevitableart f ll ntimateelationships.
If hese motionsre
mmediatelycknowledged,
s is sometimeshe
ase, hey
maybe quickly ispelled
Scheff979;
cheff
nd
Bushnell
984). erhaps
n
early
infancy,efore trong
ocial anctions
re
pplied y
self
r
other,
hese motions
are
frequently
roused but
immediatelyxpressed
nd
dispelled.
or
adults,
however, he case maybe quitedifferent.specially
n
Western
ocieties,
hese
emotions
re
severely
ontrolled.
hey may
be
acknowledged nly
under
extremelyestricted
onditions,
f
t all.
They
re
often
een as
evidence f elf-
indulgence,eakness,
r ack
of
elf-control;hey
re
taboo
Scheff984).
Under these
conditions,
he affects f shame
and
rage
lead
a
shadow
life,
expressed nly ndirectly.ne channel, willargue,nvolves dealization. n
individualmaydenyhis/herwn shame
by inking
elf
with n
idealized
erson
or
class
of
persons.
xcessive
atriotism ay
e seen s one route hat dealization
may take; snobbery ttached o a
person's ineage
or social class is another.
Idealization
may
lso take more
personalized oute,
omantic
nfatuation
ith
another
erson,
r
hero-worship.
Theprocess f
nfatuation,
hether ith
class f ersons r particularerson,
can be understood
n
terms
f
combinationf dealizationnd
shaming.
t
begins
with he
denial
f
person's
wn hame:
eelings
f
nadequacy
nd
rejection.
ne
links ne's selfwith n idealized ther, homanifestshedesirableualitieshat
are
missing
n
one's
self,
nd
has
none
of one's own
undesireableualities,
especially
weakness nd commoness. he other s
seen as
"special," ossessing
glamour,harisma,r
magic. erhaps his oute s a distorted
ersion f heprocess
referredo
by
Durkheim
1915)
s thedifferentiation
etween he acred nd the
profane.
Idealization,
hich
egins
with
hedenial f
hame, lso
ncreaseshame. aving
created
perfect
ther,
ne
may
come
to
view one's
self rom hepoint fview
of hat
hypotheticallyerfect
ther. he
process s
self-perpetuatingo the xtent
thatone
underplays
he
mperfections
f
the
other, nd overplays ne's own.
Viewing ne's selffrom hepointof view of a scornfulther s the prototypic
context or
enerating
hame. hemore
dealization,hemore hame, ndthemore
shame,
hemore
dealization:
n
aspect
f
whatLewis
1971) alled feelingrap.
In order o illustrate
ome of ts
features,hismodel nd
the theory f shame
dynamics
n
which t
s based will
be
applied
o Much
Ado bout othing.
SHAME/ANGER
EQUENCES
IN A
SHAKESPEAREAN OMEDY
Although
uch do
s
certainlycomedy,tdisplays he
usualShakespeareanark
underside ith
onsiderable
rominence:hysicalnd emotionaliolence etween
men, nd betweenmen nd women. willfirst escribehis lementn theplay,
then
nterpret
t n erms f
theory
f
motion. opefully,
his reatmentill urther
understanding
f
he mbivalentovethat ccurs etween
men nd women.
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152
SOCIOLOGICAL
ERSPECTIVES olume6,Number
,1993
MuchAdoconcerns
woparallelmale-female
elationships:
he conventional
courtship etween
Hero and Claudio,
nd the
unconventionalne
between
Beatricend Benedick.hese ourtshipsake lacewithinframeworkfphysical
violence,
nd themselves
nvolve oth
physical ndemotional
iolence.ince he
violences skillfully
oven
nto plausible arrative,
t often oes unremarked.
I will
begin
y describinghe
violent lements
nthe tory.
The
play penswith reference
owarfare.
messengers
reportingo Leonato
(Hero's
father),ero,
nd Beatrice hatDon Pedro
s arriving,fter
victoryn
battle. n answer
o Leonato's
uery, hey earn
hat hevictory as
won with
the oss ofonly
smallnumber fmen:
Butfew
f ny ort,nd none
ofname."
That s to say,
fewmendied,but they
werecommon
oldiers,ot
gentlemen.
The reminders faint, utoccurs n a strategiclace.The
firstopicoftheplay
is a war
n which
mendied.
The econd opic
s weeping. hemessenger
eports
he ears hed
byClaudio's
uncle when he learned
hathis nephewhad
distinguished imself
n battle.
Presumablyhe ears
lso reflectheuncle's
elief
hat laudio s unhurt.
We have
learned
n thefirstew econds f
hefirstcene hat n
war omemendie,
thers
survive,nd the
urvivor's
in
weep
foroy.Violent eath,
urvival,
nd
weeping
mark somber eginningor
comedy.
Thetopic fviolent
eath
s taken pbyBeatrice,
hen heenters
hedialogue,
in her
ests boutBenedick's
dequacy
s a soldier. erfirst
ine s:
I
pray ou,
sSignior ountantoetumed
romhewars r
no?
She refers
o
him
s
Mr.
wordthrust,
reference
hich
Hero s able to translate
for he
others s
Beatrice's
layful
amefor enedick.
s we shall ee
below,
he
use of mpromptu
abels
atherhan
roper
ames ccurs requently
n
references
Beatrice
nd Benedick
make o each
other.
In this
ase,
the
obriquet
efers
o a
potentially
ethal ct.
Beatrice
oes
on to
deny,
n hernext
omment,
hat
Benedick
s
deadly,
owever.
er
next eference
is to a shootingontest, ith lunt rrows,etween enedicknd Cupid.Finally,
in this amecomment,
he
ridicules enedick
s a
solider,
s
a
killer,ypromising
to eat all
"ofhis
killing."
n her
nitial
omments,
eatrice
eferso
swords,
ows
and
arrows,
nd
finally
o
killing,
ll
aspects
fwarfare.
After
eatrice
akes
everalmore
ests
tBenedick's
xpense,
er
ncle,
eonato,
explains
o
the
messenger
he
background
f
Beatrice's
esting,
hat
here
s
a
"merry
ar"
between
and B. He
goes
on to use another
military
erm:
ach
of
their
onversations,
e
says,
s a "skirmish
f
wit."
Beatrice,ontinuing
he
metaphor
f
warfare,
efers
oher ast
meeting
ith enedicks a
conflict
nwhich
he
was
vanquished,
o the
point
hathe lost
"four f
his fivewits."The
initial
dialoguemoves,withoutransition,romhewarfareetweenmen o thewarfare
between
men
nd women.
he
beginning
f
he
play
eems
o
suggest
parallel
between
warfare
nd romance.
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Gender ars
153
The next
dialoguen
thefirst
cene
nvolves ne
ofthe kirmishesetween
and
B
thatLeonatoreferredo. This s one of
the
six
dialogues
etween
B
and
Bintheplay.Each nvolves disagreementr a quarrel. s I will uggest elow,
each
also
involves
considerable
mount
f
hostile nnuendo
y
both
parties
toward he ther.
ince
oth
f
he
ontenders
re
present,
nd
each
eems
apable
of
defendingis/herself,
he
skirmishes
hemselvesan
be considered o be
fair
fights
etween
quals.
This
s
not
rue f he
pening
ialogue,
owever,
n
which
Beatrice
idicules
enedick
n
his
absence,
moving eonato
o
defend
im
nd
mildy
eprove
eatrice.
ince he
berated enedick
henhe was unable o
defend
himself,
e
are
eftwith
he
mpression
hat
Beatrice's
nimosity
oward im
s
not
ompletelyn
good
humor.
At
thecenter
f
the
plot are two
scenes
nvolving
motional nd
physical
violence. he firsts thedenunciationndhumiliationfHero nthechurch;n
the
econd,
eatrice
sks
Benedick
o
kill
Claudio, isbestfriend.
In
the
firstcene,Claudio
carefullyrchestrateshe
ituationo
as to
disgrace
Hero.
The
night
efore
he
weddingwas to
take
place,
Don
John,
he
villian,
ad
caused
Claudio
to
believethat
Hero had been
unfaithfulo
him.
Rather
han
cancelinghe
wedding,
laudio
rrivest the
hurch ith
is
econds, on Pedro
and Don
John,nd
allows he
ceremonyo
begin.He
halts t
dramaticallytthe
pointwhere heminister
sks
f
ny
mpedimento the
union s
known.
At
this
point,
e
declares hat
he has
been unfaithful,
econded
y Pedro nd
John. he
men
denounce
Hero s a
"rotten
range" nd a
"commontale," prostitute.heispublicallyisgraced.
Themost
ntense
iolencenthe
cene omes
not
rom laudio's
arty,
owever,
but from
ero's.Her
father's
irst eaction o the
denunciation
s
to wishdeath
for
imself. fter ero
faints,
is
next
esponse
s
to wish
for er
death, o
hide
her
shame.At the
height
fhis
fury,
e
hopes that he will
die so that
hewill
not
have okill
erhimself.
fter ero
hasbeen
uestioned,
eonato
cknowledges
the
possiblity
hat he
has been
wronged.
ven
o,
he
vows
revenge,ither
gainst
her,
f
he s
guilty,r
against er
ccusers,f he
s
innocent.he
public
haming
ofhis
daughter
ouses
Leonato o
extremesf hame
nd
rage.
The second sceneoccurs mmediatelyfterhedenunciation,henB and B
remainn the
church fter
he
others ave
eft.
enedick eclares
imselfn
ove
with
Beatrice.
n the
course fhis
declaration,
e
asks
her
f
heres
anything
e
can
do to
prove
his
ove.Her
reply
s
succinct:Kill
Claudio."
Beatrice ants
her
cousin's onor
venged.
fter
n ntense
uarreln
which
eatrice
xpressestrong
anger
nd
outrage,
enedick
grees
o
challenge
is
friend
laudio
o a
duel.
In the
first
cene,
denunciation
y
oneman
rouses
umiliated
uryn
nother,
tothe
point
f
desiring
irst is
own
death, hen
hat fhis
daughter.n the
econd,
a
promise
f
physical iolence
etween
wo
men s
instigated
y a
woman.
This
comedy
egins
within
frameworkf
war to
the
deathbetween
men;
heplot
hingesuponthepotential ordeadlyrevengewhenhonor s impugned n the
relations
etweenmen
nd
women.For
discussion
f he
roleof
honor,nsult,
and
revenge
n
feuds, ee
Scheff
nd
Retzinger
991.)
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154
SOCIOLOGICALERSPECTIVES
olume6,Number
,1993
Both f he
omanticelationships
n this lay nvolve
iolence,ut
heviolence
is disposed
differently
n eachcase.
n thecourtship
fHeroby
Claudio,
here
s
no violence n the urfacel;t s hidden eneath facade fromanticove. Some
of hese ssues
retouched
nbyHays
1980).t comes
o the urface
nly hrough
outer ircumstance,
conspiracy
gainst
Hero's exual
honor.Until
hemoment
whenClaudio
was informed
f Hero's
upposedfaithlessness,
e
had idealized
her, eferring
o her s a "jewel
beyond rice,"
s the
sweetestady"
he hadever
seen (I.i.175,
82). Such idealization
f thebeloved
s conventional
n Western
societies. arallel
o,
nd interacting
ith, hecultural
rocess f dealization
s a
psychological
ne, the
phenomena
f infatuation.
n the
discussion f shame
dynamics
elow,
will
return
o dealization
nd itsrelation
o shame nd
rage.
On thesurface,t
least, he element
f
dealization
eems
to be absent
n the
relationetween eatricendBenedick.f nything,hey eemtoengage nthe
opposite
process, rofaning
ach other t
every pportunity.
nce
again, heir
relationship
an also be interpreted
n both
cultural
nd psychological
erms.
Benedick'sole onforms
o that f
themisogynist,
he
woman-hater,ady-killer;
Beatrice
ccupies
he
complementary
emale
ole,
he hrew
who s "curst"
with
ill-temper
nd hatred
fmen.
In
I.i,
othLeonato
ndhisbrother
ntonio
make
this
oint.)
The psychology
f their
relationship
s
more ambiguous
han its cultural
components,
owever. ne
possibility
s that heirwarfare
s an
openexpression
ofthehositilityhat s a partof all intimateelationships.ne ofFreud'smost
important
nsights
as that ll ove
s ambivalent,
mixture
f ove and
hate.
n
intimate
elationships,
ach
persons so dependent
n the
other
hat rustration,
which eads
to
anger,
nd
oss of
face,
which eads
to
shame,
re
nevitable.
n
this
view,
humiliatedury
oward he beloved
s
a natural
part
of
any
intimate
relationhip.
he onlyquestion
s
whether
t willbe
hidden
by
idealizationnd
infatuation,
r acknowledged
penly.
My
reading
f he
dialogues
etween
and
B,
to be
discussed
elow, uggests
that
hey
re
nvolvedn an interminable
uarrel,
quarrel
ased noton the
pen
acknowledgment
f hame
nd
rage
but
on the
upression
fthese
motions,
o
that hey reexpressed nly ndirectly,n sarcasm nd other orms fhostile
innuendo.
SKIRMISHES
Although
he haracters
n
Shakespeare's
lays
refictional
reations,
will reat
them
s
if
hey
were
ctual
persons.
t
may
be
argued
hatwritersremuch
more
revealing
f hemselves
nd
their orld
n
fictional
ork han
n
ostensibly
actual
work uch
as
autobiography.
his
eems o
have been
the ase
withGoethe.
His
autobiography
ealt,
n
large part,
with
ofty
ntellectual
nd
philosophical
themes.His novels, n the otherhand, pparently erebased almost ntirely
on his own
experiences
nd,
to
a lesser
xtent,
n
thoseof
persons
who
were
well
known o
him.
ince
o little
s known f
Shakespeare'sife,
here s no
way
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Gender
ars
155
to evaluate he xtent
o which ischaracters
re
based upon ctual bservations
ofreal
behavior.
Whateverhecase, however, is dramaticceneshavethe characterf ived
experience:
hey voke
ur motional
esponses s f heywere
eal. or his eason,
theymay erve he
purpose f llustrating
ome
deas aboutemotions
nd their
relationship
o thought
ndbehavior.
In this
discussion,
willdescribe ow both
of the ove relationships
n Much
Ado eem
to be driven y shame-rage.
n the ase
ofHero
nd Claudio, he piral
is made
up largelyf motions
hich rebypassed
nd, herefore,nvisible
xcept
undergrossprovocation.
he
bypassing
perations
notonlya psychological
process
infatuation)ut a
cultural
ne as well.The cultural
cript rovides
disguise
for
hostility:
he
process
of dealization
hich s
part
of
the
Western
traditionf romanticove. When cultural nd psychologicalrocesses ct in
conjunction,
he epression
f hame ndrage s virtuallyomplete
nder
rdinary
circumstances.
As
will
be
seenbelow, hedialogue
etween
andBsuggestshepresence
ot
only
of
bypassed
hame-rage ut,
n
addition,
onsiderable
mounts
f
overt,
undifferentiated
ersions
f he
ame
motions.
referorelations
ike
hat etween
Hero and Claudio,
where
hame-rage
s
usually ypassed,
s
silent
mpasses,
nd
relationsike that
of B and
B, where some of
the shame-rages
overtand
undifferentiated,
s
interminable
uarrels.
SinceB and B's firstxchange oretells uch f heir elationship,willdiscuss
it at
ength.For description
f hemethod f ounterfactual
ariantsnd other
methods sed
n nferringffects
n
a verbal ext,
ee Scheff990).
eatrice'sirst
line o
Benedicks:
I wonder hat
ou
will
till
always)
e
talking,
igniorenedick; obody
marks
you.
Benedick eplies
n
kind:
What,mydearLadyDisdainAreyouyet iving?
Beatrice's
irst
ord o
Benedicks not
greeting,
s would
be
expected
n
any
conventional
ocial
elationship,
ut
hostile
est.
he
fact
hat hedidnotwelcome
him
utberated
im nstead s
mportant
or everal easons.
irst,
t
uggests
hat
instead
f n
ordinary
ocial
elationship
nwhich
eace
t east
utwardlyrevails,
they
re
nvolved
n
an
ongoing
uarrel.
urthurmore,
his
kirmish,
ike he
arger
quarrel
n which t s an
incident,
s unmotivated.
e are
never
iven
cause
for
thehostilites.
For
most of
Shakespeare's
overs,
he
path
of love
is
blocked
by palpable
impediments.n thehistorylays ndthe ragedies,ealpolitik,ither fnations
or
families,
ilitates
gainst
he overs.
ven nthe
omances,
heres
usually
ome
realobstacle.
or
example,
n
Twelfth
ight,
iola s in
ove with manwho oves
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156 SOCIOLOGICALERSPECTIVES olume6,Number,1993
another oman. ut nMuchAdo, heres no obstacle n the uterworld. heonly
obstacles re within.n this espect,herelationshipetween and B resembles
that etween eontes nd Hermionen TheWinter'sale [160811972):heir eace
is shattered y Leontes' ealousy,which s utterly ithout oundation.
Finally, here s one more eason hatBeatrice's nmotivatedostilityn this
line is of importance. ccording o Lewis (1981), he most ntense hame s
generated
n
a context
n
which person s expectingffectionut nstead ets
rejection.t seemsplausible hat man n Benedick's osition, eturningrom
war,might ope his personalwar withBeatricemight lso be over. willreturn
to
this onjecture elow.First, onsider ne more ayer f nnuendo
n
Beatrice's
comment.
If
he had said,
"I
wonder hatyou keep talking; obody s listeningo you,"
the remark ould still e disparaging,ince tsuggests otonly hatno one is
listening ut also thathe is unaware hatno one is listening,hat s, thathe is
a fool.
I
use the asterisk
*)
to indicate
ounterfactualhrases
hat
might
ave
been aidbutwerenot, ollowinghe onventionn inguistics.)ut, s stated, he
remark s even more disparaging han that, ecause the word "still,"which
Shakespeare ses to mean always,"mplies hatBenedicks foolish otonly
n
this articularituation,ut
hat e s
always
fool.
eatrice'semarkboutnobody
listenings also obviously xaggerated,ince he at least s listeningn order o
surmise hatno one else s.
Benedict'sesponse scalates he evel fhostilityegunbyBeatrice.ince he
layers f nnuendo
n
this entence re complex,
will
divide
t nto hree
arts,
as follows:
a) "What,"b) "my
dear
LadyDisdain ,"c)
"Are
you yet iving?"
he
first ord what"
mplies
he
ffect
f
urprise,
hich s
to be a
part
f hemain
insult, elivered
n
part c). That s,Benedick ffectsurprise hatBeatrice
s still
alive. f
b)
had been
"my
dear
Lady *Beatrice ,"
henhisretort ouldhave been
similar
n
formoBeatrice's
nitial
isparagement,
n
address
ollowed
y
n nsult.
If
nything,
his orm f ddresswouldhave been somewhat
more
amiliar
nd/
or
affectionatehanhers, ince t
would
have added to
her
name
and form f
address, Lady*Beatrice,"
he
phrase my
dear."
SinceBenedick oes not call herbyhername, s she did him, ut instead
substitutes
he
disparaging
abel
"Disdain,"
heeffectfthe
phrase my
dear"
s
not added
familiarity
r
affectionut rather
arcasm,
n effect
missing
rom
Beatrice's
ddress o
him.
he substitutionf
disparaging
abel nd
the
arcasm
in
tsuseis oneway
n
which enedick'sommentscalates he evel
of
hostility.
A
second
way
nvolves is main
nsult,ffectingurprise
hat
he s still
live.
It
appears
hatBenedick'smain nsult
s
much
more
hostile
han
Beatrice's,ust
as
his form f ddress s morehostile.
aising
he ssue
of
the
possible
eath
of
another
erson
s
insulting
n
tself
nless
he
opic
s
handledwith onsiderable
deference.
he
casual
way
in
which Benedick ntroduces t
is
an
insult.
Furthurmore,ffectingurpriselone s also nsulting,s if he ife rdeath f he
other
s of
no
ntense oncern
o
him. he
ocially
orrectffect
ouldbe
pleasure,
oreven
oyful urprise,
hat
heotherwere
till
live,
f
deathwere
possible.
ven
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Gender ars
157
though,
n
the
present ase,
he omment
s
obviously
ntended s a
jest,
t s
still
a hostile
est,
or hese easons.
Since t s notmentionednthecomment,heputative easonforBenedick's
supposed urprise
s
ambiguous.
n
the bsence
f
mention,
enedick's
abel
Lady
Disdain" an be seen as particularly
nsulting
incehis retort
oes noteliminate
the nferencehat
he s so disdainfulhat
his rait
might
omehow ave ed
to
herdeath.The two-pronged
ature fBenedick's
ssault, nvolvingabeling
nd
sarcasm,
n theone
hand,
nd
esting
boutBeatrice's
eath,
n the
other,
makes
her nitialnsulteemmoderation
tself.
Theone way
nwhich
eatrice'snitial
omments
mmoderate,owever,
s
that
it dispenseswiththe greeting
nd
expression
f concernwhich
conventional
etiquette equires. t is this aspect of her
quip
which
may
have
occasioned
Benedick's xtreme esponse. f, s already ndicated,e had beenhoping or
truce,
f
not yearning
or
n affectionateelcome
rom he
wars, henBeatrice's
initialabwouldhave truck
im ike
slap
nthe
face.
n
this
ontext,
he
urprise
he affectst seeing er livemight
avebeen n nadvertantefensive aneuver:
if
you are tillwarringgainstme, hen
denyhaving hought
f
you at all,much
less havinghad fond houghts.n
terms fthetheory sed here, is reaction o
what
he
perceives
o
be
her
ejecting
nitial
omments to firsteel ntense
hame,
then xtremenger irected oward er.
The
model
f
he hame/ragepiral uggests hat toccurs otonlywithin,ut
between heparticipantsnaninterminableuarrel. here re three eelingraps
involved, ot ustone. nthe
present ase, he hame s completelyypassed or
both
participants.
one of the
rage
s
expressed ompletely,
ut
ts
presence
s
felt s hostilitynd sarcasm.
s
long
as these
ffects
re
neither cknowledged
nor
dispelled,
he
quarrel
will
notbe
resolved.
The
quarrel
nderdiscussion eemsto
fit,
n
outline, he requirementsfthe
model.Beatrice's nitialhostility
oward Benedick,
n
his absence, suggests
resentment
n her
part, n interiorpiral fbypassed hame nd rage.This tate
occasions
er
ttack
n
him,
which ouches ff
is
resentment,eading
o
his
even
morehostile ebuttal.ollowing his
irstound
f
barbs, hey rade everalmore
insults. lthough hey topquarreling ithoututside nterference,here s no
resolution:
Benedick:
...But
eepyour
ay,
God's
ame have one."
Beatrice:
You
lwaysndwith
jade's rick.know ou f ld."
Beatrice
ets
not
nly
he irst
ord,
ut lso
the ast. hecomplainshat is actics
are
ike
hose f
"jade,"
vicious orse.
heeditor f he
ignet
dition
uggests
that
Beatrice efers o the trick f
the sudden
top,by which he horse ries o
throw
he
rider.
n
an
interminable
uarrel,
ll of
theother's
moves, ven those
that renothostile,resuspect.
Benedick's mbivalence oward eatrice
s suggested y his onlyreferenceo
her fterhe eaves
the
cene.
mmediatelyollowing
he
quarrel, laudioreveals
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158 SOCIOLOGICALERSPECTIVES olume6,Number,1993
his suitforHero
to Benedick,t one pointdescribing er,
s already ndicated
above,as "the sweetest ady that ver
lookedon." Benedick omparesHero
unfavorablyo Beatrice:
There's er ousin,
nd hewere ot ossessed ith fury,xceeds
er
smuch
inbeautys the
irstfMay oth heast fDecember.
In
Benedick's ye,
t is Beatrice, otHero,who is the beauty.
However, s is
characteristic
f
chronic
esentment,e
sees only heher nger, ot his own
or
thatwhich
or
hey re mutuallyesponsible.
Thefeeling-trapodelpredicts hat
f eft o their wn devices, articipants
n
an interminable
uarrel
re quiteunlikelyo escape
the
trap
unless ne or both
undergo ubstantialhangesntheir ersonalities:hequarrels compulsivend
involuntary.n thepresent ase,however,
heparticipantsrenot eft lone.
Their
friends oncoct plot-actually, conspiracy-to
ring
B
and
B
to the altar.
Bendedict'sriends,ed by
Don
Pedro,
nd Beatrice'sriends,
ed
byHero,
urmise
that
B
and
B love each other ut are
unableto acknowledgehisfact,
ven to
themselves.
The plot s as
follows: on Pedro nstructshe
friendsf
B
and
B
to follow
wo
parallel
evices. he male
friends,
on
Pedro, laudio,
nd
Leonato,
will
rrange
thatBenedick ears
hem alkingboutBeatrice'secret ove
for im. he female
friends, ero ndtwo"gentlewomen"Margaretnd Ursula),will rrange hings
so thatBeatriceverhears
hem
iscussing
enedick'secretovefor
er.
hisplot
is carried hrough
withouthitch.
BothB and
B
swallowthe bait. Each
is
unsuspecting
ntil
he ast scene, s
themarriages aboutto takeplace.Each s
alsogreatly ratifiedy
the
upposed
ove of he
other,
ransformed
mmediately
from cynic
o a passionateover, utonly
n
private oliloquy.
n actual ontact,
thetwo
overs ontinue heir
ostility,
hich s
only lightly
bated
by
theturn
of vents.
The next
dialogue
etween
B
and
B
occurs efore on
Pedro'splot s carried
out;
he
overs re till
ompletely
t odds.
The
cene s
a masked ance.Benedick
is pretendingo Beatriceobe someone lse,repeating disparagingomment
about Beatrice.
he
appears
o
suspect
hat
he
is
in
fact
Benedick,
ecause she
launches into a
diatribe, alling
him
a "dull fool"
among
other
things.
Characteristically,
owever,
he
also commends
im:
he ends
her
tirade
n a
sexual
note:
I
am surehe
Benedick)
s in the
fleet;
would
he
had boarded
me "
It is
of
nterest
o notethat he ast
dialogue
n
the
play
also involves
masks;
Beatrice
nd
Hero ome o
their
eddings
eiled. enedick's irst
ine n
this cene
is: "Which
s Beatrice?"Masks
or other
isguises
re a common
ngredient
n
Shakespeare's
male-female
elationships.
ne
very
commondevice
s for he
heroine o
disguise
erself
s a
man,
s
in
the ases
of
Portia, osalind,
nd Viola.
Inmanynstances,hedisguises reusedtoadvance courtship,hich erves
the
nterests
f
both
parties.
n other
ases,however,
he
disguisemay
be a
form
of
rickery,
s
in
the ases
of
Helena nd
Marianna,
ho
both
disguse
hemselves
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Gender
ars
159
not s men, ut as
other
women.
n
some
ofthe
cases,
however, isguise
sused
merely s a meansofassault, s
in the case
of
achimo's ttack
pon Imogen's
sexualhonor n
Cymbeline.
lthoughachofthesedeceptionserves oadvance
the
plot, hakespearemay
lso be
commenting,
ub
rosa,
n
the
arge
olethat
deception lays
n
therelations etweenmen nd
women.
The hird ialogue etween andB s very
rief,
t nvolves
nly
hree
xchanges.
It
occurs fter enedick as overheardheplotters escribe eatrice'secret
ove
for im
butbefore eatrice as beensimilarlyuped.
Although
he cene s
brief,
it s precisely
onstructed.eatrice, otyetpracticed pon by herfriends,s still
cranky:
Againstmywill am sent o bid
youcome
n
to dinner.
Benedick, hose ttitudeoward eatrice as been
transformed,s gallant:Fair
Beatrice,thank ou for
our ains."But
Beatrice
eemsoblivious o
the
change,
and she persistsn herhostilities.enedick,
n
hisway,
s also oblivious; efore,
he saw hostility
n
Beatrice's ommentsven where here
was none,but
n
this
scene,he insists n
finding
air
meaning
n her
hostility:Ha Againstmywill
am
sent o bidyoucome
n
to
dinner,'
here's double
meaning
n
that...."
Although enedick's ttitudes
changed,
t s also
unchanged.
t is
still ased
upon error,
ut now a differentrror. irst t
was
excessivelyejecting;ow,
t s
excessivelyccepting. enedick asmerelymovedfromnemodeofdistortion
to
another,
rom
rofaning
eatrice o
dealizing
er.
erhaps
his cene
erves s
a
wry
omment n the
difficulty
f
hanging
romantic
elationship.
nlessboth
parties hange
imultaneously,
he
mpasse
will
ontinue.
The
fourth
ialogue
occurs after he
play's
central
risis,
Hero's
public
humiliation.
his
dialogue
ccurs
when B
and
B
remain n the
church fter he
others ave
eft. ike ll the
other ialogues etween hese wo, talso involves
a
quarrel.
eatrice as been
practiced ponby
her riends
y
this
oint
n
the
play;
she now
thinks hatBenedicks
in love withher.For
the
first
ime,
e
declares
his ove.But
he s
appalled
when he
demands hat e
kill
is
bestfriend,laudio.
Whenhehesitates,he attacks im,with nly lightndirection,y complaining
about the
fashion
f
men
who
only alk,
ather han
ct:
"men
re
only
urned
into ongue."
This
disparagement,houghndirect,
s
reminiscent
f
her
direct riticism
n
her
firstomment,
n
Benedick'smanliness:
I
promisedo eat all
his killing."he is
in
a
highfury,
most
f
which,
ut not
all,
s
directed t Hero's
detractors.ome
of
t,however,
s
directedoward ll
men,
nd
therefore,
n
part,
t
Benedick,
hen
he hesitates o
do her
bidding.
In
this
ase,
the
quarrel
s both
emotional nd
physical.
n
her
fury, eatrice
continuallynterruptsenedick,
t first
llowing
im
a few
words
"Hear me,
Beatrice,-"),utfinally,nly art f neword, ername "Beat-").Atonepoint,
the
contest
ecomes
physical.
eatrice ows to
leave the scene
because he will
not
meether
demand or
ction.
pparently
e
tries o restrainer
physically;he
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160
SOCIOLOGICAL
PERSPECTIVESVolume 6,Number , 1993
says, "nay,
pray you, et me go." This
scene is a realistic escription
f a violent
quarrelbetween overs.
The fifthand next to last) dialogue is relatively rief, nly tenexchanges. t is
the least quarrelsome
of the dialogues.
Benedick s now the complete
gallant: I
will ive n thyheart, ie
in thy ap, and be buried
n thy yes."Beatrice, owever,
thoughnot quarrelsome,
s by no means amorous.
She is, rather, usinesslike.
he
is still oncerned
about her cousin's
honor.Her business
with Benedick
s to
find
out ifhe has indeed challenged
Claudio as he had
promised o
do. When she finds
out thathe has, she relents
omewhat,but not completely.
WhenBenedick
asks
herwhat twas about himself
hichfirstmade her
fall n ove with
him, he answers
in
her usual
tartmanner,which combines
praise and blame in
the same breath
in more or less equal measure. She
goes on to asks
him the analogous question,
but changing he phrasingfrom fall n love" to "forwhich ofmy good partsdid
you firstufferove for
me?," mplyinghat ove is ess
a reward han
punishment.
Perhaps
because of the continuing
ncertainty
f her cousin's position,Beatrice
is much ess
in
a hurry
o idealizeBenedick han
he is to idealizeher.
The
sixth
nd last
dialogue
occurs
n
the last scene
of the
play,the
wedding
of
B and
B
and of Hero
and Claudio. Once again, the
dialogue is short but
dense
withmeaning. tbeginswith
a
quarrel.
Benedick:
Whichs Beatrice?
Beatrice: answer o that ame.Whats yourwill?
Benedick:
Do
notyou ove
me?
Beatrice: Troth,
o;
no more
han
eason.
Benedick: Why,
hen,youruncleand the Prince
nd Claudiohave been
deceived-they
wore
you
did.
Beatrice:
Do notyou ove
me?
Benedick: Troth,o;
no more han eason.
Beatrice:Why, hen
my ousin,Margaret,nd
Ursula remuch
eceived: or
they
id swearyoudid.
Benedick:
They
woreyou
were lmost ick
or
me.
Beatrice: They
wore
hat
you
were
well-nigh
ead
forme.
Benedick: Tisnosuchmatter.henyoudonot oveme?
Beatrice:
No,
truly,
ut n
friendlyecompense.
At the ast
minutebefore he
wedding,
he
friendlyonspiracy
has come unstuck.
Benedickhas balked,
pparently ecause
of Beatrice's
nitial entativeness.
When
she
identifies
erself o
him n the first
xchange,
he
merely
sks
for is
will,
ather
than
affirming
ers:
*"I
am
Beatrice,
ome
to
marrymy loving
Benedick."
When
he
asks
if
he
loves
him
instead
of
affirming
hat he loves
her),
he
responds,
s
she
usually does, by
both
affirming
nd
denying:
Why,no;
no more thanreason."
They
are back
in
impasse:
f
eft o
themselves,
he
marriage
might
not occur.
Once again, theyare notleft o themselves.Theirfriendsntervene, roducing
letters
y
both
lovers,
ttesting
heir ove.
The
marriage oes forward,
utunder
protest:
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Gender ars 161
Benedick: Come, willhavethee; ut, y this ight, take hee or ity.
Beatrice: would not deny you; but by thisgood day,yieldupon great
persuasion,nd partly o save thy ife, or was toldyou were n
a
consumption.
Perhaps t willbe necessary or hefriendso attend hehoneymoons well as
thewedding. hequarrel as beendisrupted y outside ntervention.incethe
combatants ave notchanged,t s ikely o continue.
DISCUSSION
In this rticle, have focused n thequarrelsomeomance etween eatrice nd
Benedick,uggesting hat heirove and attractionoward ach other, hough
genuine,
s also ambivalent.
n
essence,my nalysis npacks
he
meaning
f
he
abstract onceptofambivalence.hisanalysis s intended o developa new
approach o an old problem,heroots f nterminableonflict.
In
thecase
of
Beatrice nd Benedick,mbivalentove means hat he ttitudes
of
the overs oward
ach other nvolve hree
ayers
f emotions. s the
play
demonstrates,he firstayer, urface ostility, asks ove and attraction. y
analysis, owever, uggests
hatbeneath his econd
ayer
here s
yet
a
third,
unknown o the haracters:nacknowledgedhame nd anger.My nalysis
f
he
discourse ppears
to
support
his
conjecture
bout
the sources
of
quarrels:
interminableonflicts driven y unacknowledgedmotions.
My discussion
f
nfatuationnd idealizationlso points owardwhatmight
seemto
be
an
utterly
ifferent
roblem,
he
place
of
obsessive
ove n
relation
o
large-scale olitical ssues like
charisma.
y comparing
he
unconventional
romance
f
Beatricend Benedick
ith
he onventionalne
of
Hero nd Claudio,
it maybe possible o advance urunderstandingf hese argerssues.
Since he
play
nvolves
irtually
o
discourse etween
he econd
air
f
overs,
Hero and
Claudio,
have had
very
ittle o
say
about heir
elationship,
hich
s
muchmore onventional,
nd
thereforerevalent
n
thereal
world,
han
hat
f
BeatricendBenedick.
How could heHero-Claudioomance
e
central
othe
plot
f he
play, et
how
little
ialogue
etween
hem? iscourse etween he wo s
unnecessary,
ecause
the marriagehatfinally
ccurswas
arranged y
others
n
its
entirety.laudio
approached
ero
hrough
hreentermediaries:
enedick,
on
Pedro,
nd
Leonato,
herfather.
When
Claudio ellsBenedick is
ntentiono
marry ero,
he had not
yet
met
her.
He had seen
her from
distance,
o he is
familiar
nly
with
her
outer
appearance.
e also
knows hat he
is
not married
r
engaged,
ecause
he is a
member
f he ame ocial
et,
he
ristocracy
f he
ity
f
Messina. e alsoknows
thatBeatrices Hero'scousin, nd thatBenedicknd Beatricereold friends/
enemies.
n
a
sense,
his declarationf
ntentiono Benedick
an
be seen
as
a
first,
informal
tep
oward
formal
eclaration.
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162 SOCIOLOGICALERSPECTIVES
olume
6,Number
,1993
His next tep s tostate
is ntentionso
hiscommandernthe rmy, on
Pedro,
a Prince, sking
Don Pedro fhe would be willing o arrange
he
marriage.
on
Pedro grees o do so, andloses no time nhis task;he firstellsHero andthen,
with
her ssent,
Hero'sfather,fClaudio's
wish.The matchs made as
quick s
a
wink,
withno words assing etween he
wo overs.
The mannerhat he marriage
s arranged,
ith he oversnot knowing
ach
other, oes
notnecessarilyoint o nfatuation
romfar. rranged arriages
ere
part f
heculturalcript f hetime. uch
arrangements
ouldbe madewithout
infatuationr, ndeed,without
eelingsf any kind.Claudio's
wordssuggest,
however,hat s well s following
he ultural
cript, e also s nfatuated.
Claudio
s somewhatmore erbal bout
his ntended han
withher.Hiswords
suggest hat
e dealizesHero nd,
na carefullyontrolled
ay, s nfatuatedith
her. o Benedick,e says: In mine ye she s the weetestady hat ver looked
on" and a "jewelbeyond rice."
o Don Pedro, e discloses
eelingsoward
er.
Now thatClaudiohas
put
his
thoughts
fwar and fightingehindhim,
n their
place,he says:
Come hronging
oftnddelicateesires
All
rompting
ehow
air oung ero s,
Saying
liked
er re went owars.
CallingHero "the weetest ady," fair,"nda "jewelbeyondprice" uggests
idealization.
he
ast ine,
n
combination
ithwords ike
thronging,"
uggests
lengthy reoccupation
nd
obsessive
nterest
n
a woman hat
Claudio
had
never
met.
As the
plot
uggests,
ince
Claudio
does
not
ctually
now
Hero,
hisattraction
to
her s vulnerable
o
outside nfluences.
n
order o break
p
themarriage,
he
villain,
on
John,
nsinuateso Claudio hatHero
has had llicit elationships
ith
men.
o
that his abrication
illbe
convincing,
earranges
o have Claudio ee
a woman he
thinks s Hero
conniving
ithmen ate at
night
utsideHero's
window.
Even thoughDon John'sharges reabsurd, laudio's ttitude owardHero
immediatelyndergoes
iolent
hange.
Without
ny nvestigation
r
attempt
o
question
Hero
herself,
laudio
performs
n
instant
bout-face. rom doration
without
imit,
is
feelingshange
o ntense atred. e himself
tages
scene t
thewedding
o
humiliatend
reject
er.
Although
he
ightning-quick
ransformation
n
Claudio's
eelings
s somewhat
melodramatic,
t
points
o an
important
ifferenceetween
nfatuationnd
love.
Love
is more table
than
nfatuationecause
t is
based
on
knowledge
f the
beloved.
Knowing
oth
good
nd
bad,
ove eads
to
trust.
nfatuation,
n the
ther
hand,
nvolves
ittle r no
knowledge
f heother.
s in
the
case withClaudio's
attractiono Hero, t is often ased onlyon outer ppearance. acking ctual
knowledge
f he
other,
he nfatuated
ne
usually rojects
is
orher
wndesires
and
ongings
n
the
beloved.
he
mage
f he
ovedone
s
almost
ntirely
ade
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GenderWars
163
up
in
thebeholder's
magination.
s Tennov
1979)
has
shown, trongong-term
infatuationccurs n
fans fmovie nd rock tars, ersons ompletely
nknown
totheirnfatuateddmirers.
Although he
distinction
have
made between
ove and infatuation
eems
obvious nough,t s not
usually xpressed
n the iteraturen
romanticttraction.
In fact,nfatuations nottreated s a serious oncept n thehuman ciences. he
psychoanalyticiterature
ives
omeattention
o
dealization,
ut
virtually
one
to
nfatuation.he two tandard tudies ealing
with
dealization
nd nfatuation
are
by Person 1988) nd,
s
alreadymentioned,
ennov
1979).
erson
iscusses
idealization utdoes
not venuse theword nfatuation.
Tennov 1979) ives
erious ttentiono
neither
oncept. hegoes
o
the
unusual
length
f
nventing
word, imerance,
o
avoid
using
he orrect
erm,
nfatuation.
Like the popular iteraturen love and romance,he actively bscures he
distinctionetween
ove nd nfatuation.he
uses
nfatuation
nly
o
mean
brief
adolescent assion.
I
propose hat hedistinctionetweenoveand nfatuations an
extraordinarily
importantne, raught
ith
onsequences
oth orndividualsnd
societies. ove
can
be interpreted
s a
specific ype
f
ocial
olidarity,
strong
ond based on
deep knowledge
nd
acceptance
f he ther.
lsewhere,
have
referredo
persons
with uchknowledge
f achother s being n a state f ttunement
Scheff990).
It s attunement
hat
makes
ossible
he
rapid
nd flexible
ooperation
hat s
the
foundationf stable ocial rder.
From his oint
f
view, elationships
ased on
infatuationather han ove
are
extremely
enuous onds
disguised
s
strong
nes.
Such
bonds
re
as
confusing
to
the oveobject
s
to the over.
heymay
lso be
paralyzing
or
relationship,
and for
society
n which
here re
many
uch
relationships.
My argument oncerning
nfatuation
uggests
a
new
approach
to
the
phenomenonf charisma.
nfatuation
asts an
irresistibleura over ts target,
whether
lover r a
politicaleader. o theuninfatuatedye, he ndividualmay
seem
an
ordinary
mortal,
ut to the
nfatuated,
e or
she
seems
to be
the
most
glamorous,ccomplished,
r
righteous erson
hat
has ever ived. n
thisview,
it snot ove hat sblind,ut nfatuation.osuggesthatove s blindstoconfound
itwith
nfatuation,
hich
s what nfatuated
ersons eel
ompelled o do.
This
rgumentroposes
hat
harisma xists
argely
n
the
ye
of
hebeholder.
It further
uggests
hat charisma s for
he most
part producedby
alienated
societies;acking
ecure
bonds,
ts
members
eekpseudo-bondswithrock
nd
movie
tars nd,more
minously,oliticaleaders.
f his
s thecase, n analysis
of
harisma
equires
theory
f ocial
ntegration,
f lienation
nd solidarity,hat
is
applicable
oth o
nterpersonal
nd
societal
elationships.
uch
a
theory
must
trace he
nature f ocial
bonds,
with
particularttentiono themanagementf
emotions.
The rudimentsf sucha theoryresuggested y Braithwaite's1989) heory
of rime
nd
crime ontrol.f
his
heory
s
generalizedo
apply o ocial nstitutions
in
addition
o
crime,
t
suggests
hat
eintegrativeorms f
ocial ontrol roduce
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164
SOCIOLOGICAL
ERSPECTIVES
olume6,Number
,1993
solidarity;epressive
ormsroducelienation.
nanother lace
Scheff993),have
outlined omeofthe
elements f
general heoryf ntegration,
ndhow t can
be applied orelationshipsetweenndividualsnd those etween ations.n this
scheme,nfatuation
ecomes n importantlement
n
conflict
etween ersons
and between roups.
CONCLUSION
In Shakespeare's
lays,
utside ntervention
ftens necessaryo clear
way the
obstacles
between overs. ndeed,
o be effective,upernatural
ntervention
s
frequently
equired.
nA
Midsummers'sream,beron,
he airy
ing,
ractices
pon
the overswith magicove-juice.n MeasureorMeasure,incentio,heDukewith
god-like owers, emoves
he mpediments
hich tand
betweenClaudioand
Juliet,nd
between imselfnd sabella.
he empest
rovideshe learest
xample.
For Miranda
nd Ferdinand,
heyoung overs,
he war is over;there
re no
impediments.
owever,ll has been
arranged
y Prospero,hemighty
agician.
Like god,
he
has
broughthem ogethern spite
f torm
nd strife.
The reference
o the
need
for
od-like
owers
ccurs ven
n
Much
Ado, espite
theotherwise
ealistic ature f
heplay.Don Pedro, he
rchitectf he cheme
to match
he wo ntagonists,
ndshis nstructionso his
co-conspirators
n this
note:
Ifwe cando
this,
bring
he overs
ogether)
upid
s no
onger
n
archer;
is
glory
hall e
ours,
or
e
are
he
nlyove-godsII.i.
71-373).
The
need for upernatural
ssistance
n
affairs
f the heart
uggests tragic
resonance.n King
ear
[160811972),
lbanyays:
If hat he
heavens o not
heir isible
pirits
Send
uickly
own o ame
hese ile
ffences,
It
will
ome,
Humanityust erforcereyn tself,
Likemonsters
f he
eep iv.ii.
7-51).
My analysis uggests
hat,
ven
n
comedy,hakespeare
ntimates
deadlock
in therelationship
etween
men
nd women.Given
hediscussion
n this
rticle,
we may
ee
that hefeudbetween
Beatrice
nd Benedick
s
kin
not
only
o
the
comedic
reatments
f
this
heme,
s
in
the
verbal attles
etween
Rosaline
nd
Biron
nd
the
physical ights
etween
Katherinand
Petruchio.
t s also related
to
his
tragic
overs.
Perhaps
he
losest
elativeo
Much
do
s
not
The
amingf
he
hrew,
ut
Troilus
andCressida,storyet ntheTrojanwar.n thisatterlay, he nterplayetween
infatuation
ndwar,
which s only
hinted t
in
Much
Ado,
s
made
explicit.
he
main
plot
oncerns
he nfatuation
fTroilus
or
ressida;
n this
elationship,
he
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Gender ars 165
obsession f a Greek oliderwith Trojanwomanhe hardly nows eads
only
to personal nguish. utthe play also traces, y mplication,heparallel ourse
ofParis's nfatuationithHelen, hegreatest eauty n theworld,whomhe had
nevermet. aris's bsession, ecause tbecomes he ause ofhisnation,eadsnot
only o personal nguish ut lso to war nd destruction.
In both omedies nd tragedies,heplays eem o say that nfatuatedomantic
lovebetweenmen ndwomen,ndperhaps eroworship etweenmen nd men,
is notdestined or ooperationutfor ollision.
This course s
not
nevitable, owever.
ven the
mostvicious
deeds may be
redeemed.n
TheWinter's
ale, 6 years f ufferingeachLeontes lesson.
Even
thoughhe has lost his son, his wife nd daughter re returned o him,
artly
throughhance, utpartly,lso,becausehe himselfhanges. isdeepcontrition
over
his
misdeeds
as
ncreased
ot
only
his
tolerance utalso
his
knowledge
f
himself. is unjustifiedealousrage oward isqueen can be interpreted
n terms
of
hame ynamics:ather
han
cknowldging
isown
hame,
whateverts
ource,
he masked t
with
nger rojected
ntohis nnocent ife.
WhenLeonte's aughters returned
o him fter 6
years' bsence,
he
queen's
loyal etainer,aulina, tages viewing
f
"statue"
fhis
upposedly
ead queen.
Actually,
t s the
queen herself;
he has vowed to
remainn
hiding
ntil
he ost
daughter
s
found.
When
Leontesfirstees
the
supposed tatue,
e is
quick
to
acknowledge
is
feelings:
I
am ashamed:
oes not he tone ebukeme
For
being
more
tone han
t?
v.iii.
7-38).
Perhaps cknowledging
ur own shame
might
e
a first
tep away
from
war,
toward eace.Itmight
ot decrease he
ntensity
fhuman
uffering,
ot
a
hair,
but t
might
ecrease ts duration.
f
shame
nd
rage
re related o
love,
s has
beensuggested ere,
hen
nderstanding
f
hese
motions
might elp
break he
deadlock
n
the
warbetween he exes.
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Harcourt race
Jovanovich.
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