Twelfth Night (Folger Shakespeare Library)
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Premium Content Comic Cruelty in Twelfth Night

By Anonymous - January 18, 2009

In a Shakespearean comic setting where chaos, asininity, and insolence reign, the very qualities of comic irreverence become virtues. A comic hero or side character who relentlessly pranks stooges and straight men for the audience's enjoyment is likely to win the viewer's appreciation. Yet it is not just the straight man's suffering -- or even the…

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