Another Swing at Will

After taking a closer look at the so-called "heath" in King Lear, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at another use of space in Shakespeare, namely the Forest of Arden in As You Like It. (Last week I finally saw Kenneth Branagh's 2006 film adaptation, which does some cool stuff with this space.) The forest stands in stark contrast to the court of France, from which all of the play's major characters hail. At the start of the piece one may note that most of these people are snobbish, materialistic, self-centered, and greedy. It seems as if the atmosphere of the court, in combination with the greed of an uncle, the jealousy of an older brother, and the neediness of some of the women, make the civilized world a very untamed place. This stands in opposition to the Forest, whose inhabitants enjoy peaceful contemplation and tranquil happiness in the heart of nature.

It's a theme that literature has seen before and after the composition of the play: can nature be less wild than the world of men? Once the characters from the French court escape to the forest, they begin to see what is truly essential in life. To offer affection to another person, to have that affection reciprocated: these become the only things that matter. The disputes of the court, and even the reasons for which the characters left it in the first place, are made unimportant in light of these simple virtues. The Forest is described as a rough and unorganized place, but somehow the lack of order brings about the opposite effect in people. There are not any malevolent distractions, such as gambling and fighting for possessions, out in the woods, which I take to mean that once temptation is removed, we return to a more primal, thoughtful way of life. Stated simply, our definition of "order" is what nature would consider "chaos" and vice versa.