Perdita- Lost and Found- The Winter's Tale

Here is something I wrote about a character in a play by William Shakespeare -- The Winter's Tale.

One of the most important characters in the play The Winter's Tale is Perdita.

Perdita means lost.

This name was given to her when Hermione appeared to Antigone in a dream and told him to give the name Perdita or lost to the infant.

The name, perhaps has its origins in the word perdition or perish.

Destiny is completely against Perdita from the time she is in the womb of her mother.

Although Perdita is the child of a king and queen and therefore a princess tragedy strikes her life when she is in the womb of her mother.

Her father accuses her mother of adultery while she is in the womb of her mother and her mother is imprisoned.

It is while her mother is in prison that she is born.

Her father refuses to have anything to do with her.

He orders her to be abandoned without any hope for survival.

Antigone takes her in a ship to a far flung savage place where Antigone is attacked by a savage beast and dies.

He leaves Perdita the infant, abandoned somewhere in this vast wilderness where wild beasts like bears and foxes roam.

Destiny shows kindness to the newborn infant and she catches the eye of a simple shepherd.

(An illustration of the shepherd finding the newborn Perdita --from a copy of the The Winter's Tale that I borrowed from the library.)

He has kindness in his heart and chooses to raise her.

He tells his son about this.

His son meanwhile has seen Antigone being killed by the bear and goes to find out more about this.

It is in this family of the shepherd and shepherd's son that Perdita grows.

In the second half of the play Perdita who does not know she is a princess is depicted as leading the life of a normal shepherdess.

Destiny shows kindness to her again and a prince, the son of Polixenes starts to like her.

To the son of Polixenes the idea that Perdita is not a princess does not matter.

Polixenes and Camillo finds out that the prince is spending a lot of time in the humble abode of the shepherd on account of Perdita.

Polixenes objects to the fact that his son likes Perdita on account of the idea that she is not a princess and therefore not suitable for his son.

The prince Florizell is determined to marry Perdita.

Camillo hatches a plan to take Florizell and Perdita to Sicilia to get the help of king Leontes in helping Florizell find favor with Polixenes.

This sub plot in the play reveals the importance of birth or (descent) in a marriage.

Who your parents are determines if you are noble.

If your parents are royal you also will be royal.

Polixenes does not want his son to marry a common girl.

This places obstacles in the plans of Florizell and Perdita.

But many of Perdita's actions and words reflect her royal lineage inspite of a common upbringing and several people comment on this.

Florizell and Perdita go to Sicilia to present themselves to king Leontes.

The simple shepherd and the shepherd's son along with a former courtier of Florizell also go to Leontes.

They want to give the king the information they have about Perdita since they had found her in the savage land.

The information they have is a gold necklace of Hermione, a letter from Antigone who brought her to the savage land to abandon her and other gold as well as some things the shepherd's son found with Antigone who was eaten by a bear.

During the conversation with the shepherd and the shepherd's son it was revealed that Perdita was brought in a ship by Antigone but nothing could be recovered from the ship because it was ship wrecked.

So these few items were the only evidence of Perdita's birth.

But these reveal that Perdita is Hermione's and Leontes own daughter.

Apart from her words and actions these artefacts reveal her true identity.

It is curious that the second part of the play starts with a long dialogue by father Time.

We have all heard of the adage Time will tell.

Events unfold as Time moves forward and unravels the truth about Perdita.

Until the shepherd and the shepherd's son choose to take Hermione's necklace to Sicilia and tell the story of where and how they found her the royal heritage of Perdita is not revealed.

As long as it is not revealed she and Florizell would not have Polixenes blessings.

In the play while the shepherd and the shepherd's son describe how they found Perdita they also mention that the ship in which she was brought from Sicilia is wrecked and all was lost.

As soon as the shepherd's son found the ship, it was wrecked so that all that could reveal the identity of Perdita was lost as soon as the ship was found.

Perdita's story reveals the universal theme of being lost and being found.

Many parables of Jesus allude to the theme of lost and found.

From the story of the prodigal son who left home to live out his life in riotous living and was found when he returned to his father, to the woman who lost one of her coins who searched to find the one lost coin, to the story of sheep that wanders from its fold and gets lost and the good shepherd leaving the 99 to find that one lost sheep this story of being lost and then being found is identifiable to most humans.

Another adage tells us all who wander are not lost.

Perdita is lost due to no fault of her own. She is found due to no merit on her part.

Painting

Here is a painting I painted today. The colors I used are a deep blue, and other shades of blue, atleast two shades of yellow and several shades of orange for the sky. The mountains were painted with green and brown colors. The fields below with green and magenta.

The inspiration for this painting is this picture I found in the internet. The word I think best describes the sky in this picture is firmament. I am not sure I completely succeeded in making the sky in the painting I painted look like a firmament. I think the fields are okay.

Some awesome selections from Merchant of Venice

Here are some passages I liked in The Merchant of Venice.

So shines a good deed in a naughty world. Good deeds make this world a bright place.

I liked this passage because of the names of birds. The crow can be considered as good of a singer as the lark. If the nightingale sings during the day when geese cackle the nightingale can be considered as a bird that sings like a wren. The word season means a particular period of time in a year. Season also means add flavor. Seasoned means accustomed. These words could mean that singing at the right time and encouraged with the right words a talent can be brought to true perfection. Otherwise it may become embroiled in or mistaken for mediocrity.

An inland brooke empties itself into the ocean and then the true nature of the king is revealed. Striving for greatness reveals our greatness.

This passage is about the blessings of mercy.

Noticing Trees

One day at age 9 I was writing a novel. The main character in the novel leaned her back against a tree and noticed that the tree was very rough.

I was reminded of what I wrote at age 9 when I looked at these trees.

My father noticed that I noticed these little details and complimented my observation skills.

An important quality of a writer is to observe the world around us. I photographed these trees yesterday. Words like primordial, primeval come to mind when I look at these gnarled trees.

I hate broccoli!

Yesterday I wanted to find out about the impact of a former US president declaring he hated broccoli on produce farming. I did not get much info in the internet. But remembering this incident helped me summon up courage to hate broccoli too. I was introduced to Broccoli in the US. I read that it was a super vegetable packed with nutrients and vitamins and that it was anti carcinogenic. When I learned about its health benefits I started eating broccoli like crazy. Until I became synonymous with broccoli.

Recently for reasons unknown to myself I started disliking broccoli. But it was a health food-- how could I dislike something so healthy. Then I remembered former US president George H. W. Bush Senior who hated broccoli and one of his first announcements as president was that he hated broccoli.

Yesterday as I chopped broccoli florets thinking of how much I dislike this vegetable I remembered the former US president who hated broccoli. That gave me courage to dislike broccoli too. One other reason I started eating broccoli was that I thought if I did not eat broccoli I would become unhealthy and die. But now I am not so pessimistic. Even without eating broccoli I can be healthy.

I have evolved to hate broccoli a vegetable I used to like a lot.

Painting

I painted this yesterday. The colors I used are white, pink, blue, yellow, and several shades of green.

The inspiration for this painting was the picture you see above which is a painting by a child that I found in the internet. In this the green leaves are much more pronounced than in the painting I made so most probably I will be painting this again. In this painting the first thing you see is green leaves. When I paint it again I hope to emphasize the leaves. Also, the green leaves are painted over light and fluid colors that melt into each other. In the painting I made the green leaves are painted over colors that are as deep as the green leaves and they don't flow as easily as in the painting above. So I need to work on learning to get that effect.

The Merchant of Venice: Character Sketch of Shylock 2

Shylock's grievances about being mistreated because of his race: Merchant of Venice

Character Sketch of Shylock: Merchant of Venice

The title of the play the Merchant of Venice refers to Shylock a Jewish merchant who lived in Venice.

The phrase Pound of Flesh in the English language is from this play and refers to Shylock's mode of cruel justice.

Today this term refers to all kinds of actions in which humans persist "on getting something they are entitled to even though it may cause distress to the person it is demanded from."

Scholars question if this play can be considered a comedy because of the theme of revenge and violence that emanate from the character of Shylock in the play.

The character of Shylock, from one of the most famous of Shakespeare's plays is etched in the minds of most people and remains in our collective memories as a symbol of cruel and inhuman interpretation of justice.

In the beginning of the play Shylock is a miserly man who takes an exorbitant amount of interest for the money he lends and for which Antonio another merchant criticizes him bitterly.

There is enmity between these two characters from the beginning of the play. Shylock thinks his money lending practices reflect the virtue of thrift and that Antonio criticizes him unfairly.

""But more for that in low simplicity

He lends out money gratis and brings down the rate of usance here with us in Venice." " These are Shylock's words about Antonio. These words reflect Shylock's business ethics and critical spirit.

Shylock is introduced in the play when Antonio, in order to lend money to Bassanio to help him marry Portia approaches Shylock because he has dearth of liquid cash to lend to Bassanio. Shylock inspite of the enmity between himself and Antonio agrees to lend the money on one condition.The condition is that if the money is not repaid within three months he would require a pound of flesh from Antonio. The condition is bizarre in the 21st century. It was bizarre in the 16th century too.

The usury laws of the time of Shakespeare in England considered the charging of interest, or any kind of penalty for non repayment of loans an crime punishable with excommunication. Ten percent interest was chargeable under some kings. Under certain others no interest could be charged. I guess the borrowers were required to just repay the money when they could. But the worst punishment was excommunication. Nobody required pounds of flesh.

This condition by Shylock reflects the cruel aspect of Shylock's character and would have been introduced as a metaphor for cruelty by Shakespeare.

In the scene where Shylock is introduced in the first few sentences Shylock repeats everything Bassanio says. Then he says cryptically that Antonio is a good man. Later he explains what he means. He means that Antonio is sufficient as a bond.

As soon as Antonio enters the scene he turns to the audience and says he is a fawning publican.

Shylock says he hates Antonio because he is a Christian. Then he lists the complaints he has against Antonio. Antonio lends out money at no interest rate which makes Shylock's money lending business unprofitable. He said that if he gets a hold of Antonio he will take out the ancient grudge he bears him. These are words full of hatred. It is more than business rivalry. According to Shylock Antonio hates the Jewish nation and criticizes Shylock in the places the merchants congregate. According to Shylock Antonio criticizes Shylock, the business profits he makes, and his thrift which Antonio calls interest. According to Shylock his Jewish tribe will become cursed if Shylock forgives Antonio. These words show that Shylock is one of those blinded by unforgiveness and hatred.

While saying these words to the audience he then turns to Bassanio and Antonio says very politely to Antonio rest you fair good signior. Perhaps outwardly Shylock is a sauve and polished man. Or it could mean that Shylock is hypocritical in that he speaks politely to a man he hates. Although incensed by hatred still saw an opportunity for revenge in Bassanio's request. If he was a simple man who hates Antonio for treating him badly then he would have said he does not have the money or does not wish to interact with Bassanio and Antonio. Instead he may have chosen to play a sinister game. To be continued....

Thursday, February 15, 2024

Ash Wednesday

Yesterday was Ash Wednesday. I went to church. It was very crowded. The first person I saw when I entered church was a girl wearing a white dress with pink purple and red hearts. She wore this with leggings and boots. She wore a white hair tie. She had long blonde or light brown hair. Her older sister was wearing a pink dress. There were very few kids. Most were college students.

After the three readings there was the sermon. Right after the sermon they started distributing ashes. In Kerala on Ash Wednesday there is school so I have never been to church as such on Ash Wednesday.

Some girls come to class wearing a black cross on the forehead. I have thought of it as the Christian bindi because some girls draw a small cross on the forehead instead of smearing the forehead with a huge black cross. Once I remember going with my grandfather to church on Ash Wednesday. My grandfather sometimes brought ashes for us.

I don't remember going with my parents. Yesterday I stood in line and got to go for ashes in the room next to the main church where the mass is held. I usually see students there and there are couches, TV etc.

It was there that I got ashes. I was given ashes by a girl wearing overalls and a green long sleeved top. I have noticed this girl before.

As she put the ashes on my forehead she said you are of dust and to dust you will return. I don't remember what they say in Kerala.

The words made me think. Is this not pessimistic. To tell you will return to dust. Right after that I went to the bus stop and came home.

During the bus ride I continued to think of dust. That is the opposite of hope. I was so filled with foreboding. Is this right or wrong? So what they say in Ash Wednesday is it right, I am not sure but I think life experiences will tell me and I just have to cling to Jesus. May be they are saying this as a vestige of a medieval custom. I wish I knew what they say in Kerala.

Then I looked up Ash Wednesday in my phone and realized it is not a day of obligation. And I was relieved. As I stood in line I realized yesterday was the first time I was going to church on Ash Wednesday in the US.

On Feb 13, I watched kolby koloff's story behind the song for the song no room. She said God says fear not lots of times in the bible. So I decided to look up fear not verses in the bible. I read lots of verses. I read it from Country living. There were verses from all the books of the Bible. So many verses were so courage giving. I read it several times. Then I saw this Bible verse good news of great joy. It is about Christmas. Jesus is good news of great joy. But we also get lots of bad news on a daily basis. That is not from Jesus. Bad news is not from Jesus. Only good news of great joy is from Jesus. So if I hear a bad news remember it is not true. The truth is Jesus. Jesus is good news of great joy. Only consider good news of great joy in your life.

So the message of you are of dust and will turn to dust seemed anti thetical to Jesus.

This year Easter is on March 31. Yesterday lent started. In the sermon the priest said in your Lenten observances practice something that will help you during the rest of the year. I was not sure what exactly I should give up. In Kerala most people give up non vegetarian food. I don't like non vegetarian food anyway. My parents always said children should not observe the harsh practices of my faith. So I decided not to give up anything instead just add some habits. Here is a list I prayerfully drew up. February 15 2024 to March 30, 2024

Read 100 pages every day.

Pray Morning and Night every day.

Write more than 100 sentences every day.

Hair care every other day.

Look beautiful every day. This was inspired by the scripture reading yesterday and also my parents instructions.

Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Painting of a sky

I painted this picture today. The colors are orange, pink, blue, white and green.

This painting depicts the sky.

My inspiration was the painting you see above. This picture is from Houzz.com.

Sunday, February 11, 2024

Painting

I painted this picture yesterday. My inspiration was the picture you see below.

I saw this picture in Britanica encyclopedia. This picture is an example of aerial perspective.

Saturday, February 10, 2024

Street Lamps

Yesterday I went to church and while coming back I took these photos at the bus stop. I reached at a time when there were no buses in the bus stop and no people waiting for buses. Since it was dusk the street lamps were on and I thought the lamps looked so pretty. There were lamps shaped like globes or spheres and like lanterns. I always notice street lamps.

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