Topic > Love as You Like It from a Different Perspective

Pastoral as a literary device thrives on the juxtaposition of city life and country life. Pastors often point out that the burdens of the city can be eased and clarified by a trip to the country's therapeutic environment. A sense of balance and rightness is often restored through self-reflection or conversations with uncorrupted pastors. Sojourns to these socially detached regions allow one to “explore ideas and play roles on one's own terms and for one's own enjoyment” (Leggatt 192). Through the characters of Rosalind and Orlando in his play As You Like It, William Shakespeare suggests that to find true happiness one must visit the forest and be freed from worldly constraints. City life loads the two protagonists of As You Like It with social customs and conventions, as demonstrated by their initially tense and uncertain speeches. After moving away from the suffocating urban environment, both are able to openly embrace and develop their love in the Forest of Arden. The lessons learned and emotions expressed in the forest (without the restrictions of social propriety and expectations) extend far beyond the confines of the forest: they have always existed and simply required an unclouded lens to reveal. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay. Whether because of their awareness of expressing their undying love for each other or the social standards that calm such outbursts, "Orlando and Rosalind's love" dialogue at court is hesitant, uncertain, and timid" at best (Leggatt 194 ).Orlando, a character hitherto known for being rather eloquent and verbose in expressing his emotions to his brother, finds that he has "weights on [his] tongue" and is "overthrown" by love, unable to speak to the beautiful Rosalind. when she urges him to lecture (AYLI.I.II.244-246). Love is described as “a power more oppressive than liberating,” as Shakespeare emphasizes using a series of conquering images (Leggatt 194). , Rosalind is amazed by her newfound love. At Celia's plea that "Cupid have mercy" on her cousin "has not a word," Rosalind admits that she has "not one to throw at a dog" (AYLI. I.III. 1-3) Throughout this scene Celia pushes the conversation forward, while Rosalind hesitantly, if affectionately, reveals her interest in the young man. Seen through this window, covered in the dust of outdated convention and the grime of hesitation, the future of Orlando and Rosalind's relationship appears dark and unpromising. Having been driven from civilization through threats or exile, both characters are forced to seek refuge in the forest. Upon entering the woods, they abandon their inhibitions, enjoying “remarkable imaginative freedom in the forest” and also finding themselves in a “place of testing and education” (Leggatt 191). In direct contrast to his previous inarticulability, Orlando "rediscovers his language, in astonishingly elaborate and patterned verse," blanketing the forest sanctuary with heartfelt poems "in testimony of [his] love" for Rosalind (Leggatt 195, AYLI.III .II. 1, 122-151). His ability to not only express his love, but to do so so vulnerably and in such a public forum, reveals a man uninhibited by personal and social reservations, capable of a level of self-expression that is only actualized by entering the woods. Furthermore, while Celia had previously dominated and guided the conversation over Orlando, Rosalind as Ganymede “comes into herself…begins to develop her own ideas and use her own wits” (Leggatt 194). Rosalind appears to achieve a complete reversal.