In part two of his commentary on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, Dr. White describes how Shakespeare’s characters bear a striking similarity to those found in Greek mythology, namely Echo and Narcissus. Twelfth Night, White tells us, is filled with similar instances of self-love. But, interspersed with dramatic readings, he also points out that there is life in the play, whereby love breaks out of selfishness. Dr. White sees it as a play filled with truthfulness, in which characters eventually see what is real, i.e., what is actually there. This ultimately leads to a happy ending as they learn to care about someone other than themselves. He ends the commentary with a question and answer session.
The Winter’s Tale is rich in messages to the Catholic audiences of Shakespeare’s time, but did not threaten his role as a public playwright in the company of the king, James I. Shakespeare was forced to do two things simultaneously throughout his career: remain a loyal subject, and write Catholic plays. The Winter’s Tale contains coded messages that gave hope to Catholics who suffered persecution. The king accuses his wife of infidelity and condemns the accused father to death. The king’s loyal servant, Camillo, warns the accused father and together they flee to Bohemia. Bohemia, at that time offered refuge to Catholics fleeing persecution. Pope Paul V (1605–1621) was born Camillo Borghese and was the reigning pope at the time of the production of this play. This is code but it is obvious. Camillo is the good servant working behind the scenes. This play is saying indirectly that the pope is in charge, trust him, he is doing what he can. Paulina, who defends the innocence of the queen, is based on Maudlin Brown who spoke out in defense of the Faith. The conflict at the start of the play concludes with reunion of all those who were separated.
Dr. White describes the comic novel Don Quixote as a great Catholic work, in fact the best-known Spanish novel ever. He proceeds with a dramatic reading of G. K. Chesterton’s poem, Lepanto, dealing with the great naval battle in which Cervantes, a devout Catholic, took part. Following Lepanto, Cervantes became, in essence, the lonely knight riding through Spain, always failing but never giving up. Out of this came Don Quixote, the first of a new literary genre: the modern novel. Dr. White closes his commentary by noting that Cervantes died on the same date as another of his literary heroes, William Shakespeare.
The sequence of Shakespeare’s plays falls into three categories that perfectly parallel the three mysteries of the rosary. From joy to sorrow to glory. His early plays are full of the joy of youth and discovery (Comedy of Errors, Taming of the Shrew.) Then his great tragedies of evil and doubt (Hamlet, King Lear, Othello.) Finally, his romance plays (Pericles, Cymbeline, The Tempest, The Winter’s Tale) tell of virtue, perseverance, reunion, resurrection. The romantic plays, like the Glorious Mysteries, are about rising or falling: Christ rises from the dead, rises into Heaven, the Holy Ghost descends, Our Lady rises. The mystery concludes with her coronation as Queen of all creation, the combination of the natural and the supernatural. The romance plays are filled with good women who suffer. They remain unsullied, unmoving, uncomplaining. They persevere until the end. Romantic plays have three main characteristics: First, character gives way to action, that is, an evil person will do evil. Next, numerous plots throughout the play, much like real life. Finally, the handling of time in that these actions take place over many years and are condensed into the constraints of the production of the play. Our crosses in life will end in glory.
Dr. White continues his discussion of Moby Dick by beginning his analysis of Captain Ahab, whose entrance, he points out, ends the domestic comedy contained in the novel up to that point. He explores the character of Captain Ahab, from the Biblical origins of his name to his personality and his greatness as a tragic character, and touches on the conflict between Ahab and all of nature, even God Himself, as represented by the whale. Dr. White also discusses the picture of American characteristics that continues to be drawn in the novel, covering the conflicting loves of comfort and adventure, religious “toleration” where being “nice” and getting along are the cardinal virtues, and the obsession with money which springs from the excessive love of comfort. Some secondary characters in the book are discussed and their characters briefly examined, along with how and why such a diverse set of men, including an African, a Native American, and a Polynesian, manage to get along together.
Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy about eavesdropping and gossip and the personal and social damage it causes. The word “nothing” is a play on words. In Elizabethan times it referred to eavesdropping, hence, Much Ado About Eavesdropping. The complexity of the conflict comes about through eavesdropping and is resolved through eavesdropping. All drama is founded in conflict: ideas, wills, personalities. This comedy is social in nature: the will of the individual verses the norms of society. Will the individual tear society apart, or will society become so overbearing as to destroy the individual. Comedy teaches that we can have it all; there is compromise. The symbol of this compromise is a happy marriage. Marriage suggests society gets submission to the social order and the individual gets their beloved, produces children and the social order continues. Everyone wins. At the heart of this play is the critical issue of manliness. The virtue of a good woman can compel men to take their proper role to defend women, family, society. Good, virtuous women civilize men. It is her true power in the world; it is at the heart of civilization. And the perfect model for the virtuous woman is Our Lady.
