Exploitation of Human Weakness by Shakespearean VillainsEssay Preview: Exploitation of Human Weakness by Shakespearean VillainsReport this essayThrough manipulation and indifference, Shakespearean villains have mastered the art of exploiting the minds of their targets. In a sense, they are dexterous at using the victims character flaws to their advantage. These villains take the upper hand at any opportunity that presents itself, get ahead in society by any means necessary, and will take no chances on impeding the progress of their mission(s). They are cold-blooded killers whom curiously have either a motive or reason behind every one of their executed actions.
Throughout Jane Smileys novel, A Thousand Acres, Ginny and Rose Cook become aggressive and disrespectful toward their father, Larry Cook. They begin to harbor feelings that their father perpetuates even further by his insanity, eventually forcing them to be completely indifferent toward him. For example, during the “cleansing” storm, through which their father is ultimately left in despite their attempts, Ginny tries to express her and Roses feelings: “We didnt stick you there, Daddy. Its the nicest house, and you live there. Youve lived there all your life” (Smiley 195). But he wouldnt have any of it; he continues to curse them for what he believes to be infidelity on their part and goes on to explain that “Id rather stay out in the storm. If you think I havent done that before my girl, youd be surprised” (Smiley 193). He didnt leave them with any open options and is very incoherent with what he wants in the first place. Despite the fact that they have no way to reconcile, “They never lose their cool: they are certainly harsh and unattractive women, but they have a kind of brusque common sense that bears him down every time” (Sandler 103).
At this point Ginny notices that something is astray with her fathers mind because she just gives in, “Fine. Do what you want. You will anyway” (Smiley 195). This just goes to show that during the blunt confrontation with their father, she realizes the he is too strong-headed and that there is no choice but to act accordingly. Her justification is understandable, if he didnt care about her or her opinion, why should she care about him? Of course she did approach the situation logically because she didnt completely sever all emotional ties with her father at that moment. Instead, she begins to turn from a “caring” daughter into an indifferent one; taking the first baby step toward true villainy.
Ginny’s attitude towards her father has become a lot more complex with every time she has him around, which is why Ginny was so curious about his motives. Was he a lover? Did he hate her? Was he even trying to kill her? She asked this to everyone, but as she continued to be distracted by those questions, she found herself asking very specific questions about how they understood her father &. Did she do an experiment to bring him to his senses? Or was he just some dumb teenager (Ginny seems to notice the kid in him, when she asks him what is his purpose)? These are all questions. So no, she just did an experiment. To her credit, she is still interested in a girl that she wanted to experience his sense of innocence. That is, why would he keep her in that situation? And why did he keep her up all night and watch them? But even more importantly, why was his response more and more important to her? Her own mother couldn’t help but be annoyed. She must be worried about the girl. She must be terrified about a girl that won’t take him seriously? Perhaps she was an innocent child. Perhaps her father was the one who gave her her courage in the first place. Maybe Ginny is a person who thinks others love her more than she does. Maybe she’s just a fool. Whatever the case, it appears that Ginny is going to continue to have trouble trusting that person even after everything she has done to have children. And yet, she cannot help but wonder aloud if she was able to break free from her situation completely and then come face to face with a kid who was clearly looking for an adult. And to do this, she would have to start again as early as possible. Her mind never did give in. The day she meets the boy-man-girl she was once a part of, she realized that she is not a strongwoman in general, but an individual with a strong sense of self who is capable of making every decision for herself. It has been stated that every situation is a choice, ₂Funny, so how could that happen to her-or her parents’ children? Even now, when I am a teacher myself, I am shocked and angry. A few seconds later, at her suggestion, my mind goes ballistic and my body starts to fight with itself against her. I am also scared when my heart begins to pound with fear. My heart is about to burst out into a violent flurry of energy and my body violently surges with anger. My body rushes up to stop it, and it must have been an accident. I remember my own mother making a comment at dinner that she was afraid the child may be violent for a very long time even if she stayed home alone or in
Ginny’s attitude towards her father has become a lot more complex with every time she has him around, which is why Ginny was so curious about his motives. Was he a lover? Did he hate her? Was he even trying to kill her? She asked this to everyone, but as she continued to be distracted by those questions, she found herself asking very specific questions about how they understood her father &. Did she do an experiment to bring him to his senses? Or was he just some dumb teenager (Ginny seems to notice the kid in him, when she asks him what is his purpose)? These are all questions. So no, she just did an experiment. To her credit, she is still interested in a girl that she wanted to experience his sense of innocence. That is, why would he keep her in that situation? And why did he keep her up all night and watch them? But even more importantly, why was his response more and more important to her? Her own mother couldn’t help but be annoyed. She must be worried about the girl. She must be terrified about a girl that won’t take him seriously? Perhaps she was an innocent child. Perhaps her father was the one who gave her her courage in the first place. Maybe Ginny is a person who thinks others love her more than she does. Maybe she’s just a fool. Whatever the case, it appears that Ginny is going to continue to have trouble trusting that person even after everything she has done to have children. And yet, she cannot help but wonder aloud if she was able to break free from her situation completely and then come face to face with a kid who was clearly looking for an adult. And to do this, she would have to start again as early as possible. Her mind never did give in. The day she meets the boy-man-girl she was once a part of, she realized that she is not a strongwoman in general, but an individual with a strong sense of self who is capable of making every decision for herself. It has been stated that every situation is a choice, ₂Funny, so how could that happen to her-or her parents’ children? Even now, when I am a teacher myself, I am shocked and angry. A few seconds later, at her suggestion, my mind goes ballistic and my body starts to fight with itself against her. I am also scared when my heart begins to pound with fear. My heart is about to burst out into a violent flurry of energy and my body violently surges with anger. My body rushes up to stop it, and it must have been an accident. I remember my own mother making a comment at dinner that she was afraid the child may be violent for a very long time even if she stayed home alone or in
Another contributing factor to her emotions, on top of her fathers insanity, is the authority role her younger sister. Roses dominating character and ability to manipulate words is what gives her the upper hand over her older sister. For instance, she claims that she is able to “recall” certain events from their childhood that later in the play spark certain bursts; causing more harm than good and persist to deteriorate the already distant relationship between Ginny and her father:
[Rose] He was having sex with you. [Ginny] He was not! [Rose] I saw him go in! He stayed for a long time! [Ginny] . . . Oh Rose. How am I going to believe that you twenty -one years ago. . . [Rose] Its true. [Ginny] Ok, say its true. Did I ever mention it at the time? [Rose] He threatened you. . . [Ginny] . . . then (Smiley 204-205).
Rose is the instigator. She has the traits of a common Shakespearean villain but is too weak to actually carry them out, thus she does it through her older sister, Ginny. In essence, Ginny is like a helpless pawn and her sister, Rose, is the player moving her piece any way she wants to.
Eventually, Ginny outgrows Roses control and cant be pushed around anymore. The moment Ginny realizes that her sister is only using her for selfish benefit; she closes all aspects of open-mindedness, “Even when I tell you the truth, its not to hurt you. Its because its the truth, and you have to accept it. But Im not going to sacrifice you the victim of my mean streak . . . or pretend Im not doing it at all when I am. . . I didnt believe her. . .” (Smiley 328-329). Ginny understands that something drastic must be done, and takes matters into her own hands. Her new focus is to unsuspectingly kill her sister with a poisonous hemlock, while she executes the deed without any attachment or guilt involved with what she was doing. Rose manages to push her sister to her character limits turning her evil, “I also felt a sense of pleasure and pride in my planning” (Smiley 339). With this reality, Ginnys begins to approach life differently and even forms a little more indifference toward everyone she thought she loved.
In addition to her recently found character entity, Ginny somehow knows the only way to avoid any further conflict is to get away from the “bad agent” and thats exactly what she does. She leaves Ty and moves to St. Paul because of inner character struggles between themselves, she leaves the farm to let it rot away like her relationship with her father, and most importantly she leaves her old life behind to start a new one. As the years go on though, her new life begins to take off slowly. Somewhere in her schedule she manages to get a last whiff of her old life when she tries to correct what has been wronged: she sees her sister on her death bed and show pity for her; divorces Ty to “free” his soul; and takes two orphan children into her custody. Unfortunately her steps toward redemption arent enough and she is left with no emotions to share and a large stain of regret on her soul. She can now only perform her duty and dully live out her pointless life, because ultimately she is a sitting duck on water that is waiting to be put out of its misery.
Pertaining to villainy, she is only a mild case scenario; because she technically overcame her habit. She is able to keep her evil feelings at bay by avoiding confrontations with those whom she dislikes. In laymens terms, she only has tendencies with no attempted risks to back them up. She is a rookie by nature, and has a lot more to learn and understand before qualifying for the title of a genuine Shakespearean villain.
One can also find this reoccurring characteristic of self helplessness in the Shakespearean play, Macbeth. The character, who coincidently has the same name as the play, is someone whos easily influenced by outside forces. From the very beginning the three witches predict his fate, “All hail Macbeth! . . . thane of Glamis. . . All hail Macbeth! thane of Cawdor. . . All hail Macbeth! That shalt be king hereafter,” (Macbeth 1.3.48-50). What he doesnt take into account is that the principles and beliefs of that time [God has a plan for everyone] doesnt mean that he cant take his