Symbol of the Rover

➡️ Paper no: 101  literature of the Elizabeth and Restoration period .

Assignment paper no.101: 

 

This blog is an assignment paper no.101 literature of the Elizabeth and restoration period . In this assignment I am dealing with the  symbols of The Rover.

Name :  Gohel Dhruvika 

Paper 101 :  literature of the Elizabeth and Restoration period

Unit 3 : Aphra behn's The Rover 

Subject code :  22392

Topic name:  Symbols The Rover 

Batch :   M.A sem 1 

Roll no. :  07

Enrollment no.   5108240012

E-mail address: dhruvikagohel252@gmail.com 

Submitted to:  smt , S.B  Gardi , department of English , MKBU .

💠 Aphra behn's introduction: 

Aphra behn It is unclear where exactly Aphra Behn was born, or even what her maiden name was. She is believed to have married a man with the last name Behn in the mid-1660s, but little is known about him, and she may have made him up completely. After becoming a spy for the English monarchy (also in the mid-1660s), Behn was deeply in debt; in fact, a warrant was even issued for her arrest. It was then that Behn began writing plays (she also wrote poetry and fiction). By the 1670s and 80s, Behn was one of the most prolific and successful playwrights for the British stage. Still, Behn faced sexism, and was often accused of bawdiness and unfemininity both because of her work and the mere fact that she was a women writer. After a disastrous flop called Like Father Like Son, the prologue of which caused Behn to be sued for libel, she stopped writing plays. Although she died poor, and suffering terribly from rheumatoid arthritis, her fame was so great that she was buried in Westminster Abbey.

💠 Symbols: 

1. Carnival 

2. Masks

3. Angellica' s picture 

4. Swords 

🔷 Carnival: 

Italian cities such as Venice and Naples (where The Rover takes place) were famed for their Carnivals, huge, city-wide festivals during which many of the rules of ordinary life were temporarily suspended. Within the play, Carnival symbolizes a world of inverted values and freedom in which noblewomen can roam the streets and impoverished cavaliers can court them and win their hands. Yet the world of the Carnival—a world without consequences—is not without its dark side. Predators such as Willmore and Blunt take advantage of the free-for-all atmosphere in order to accost and even assault women, while belligerent men often end up dueling each other on the streets. In depicting both the positive and dark sides of Carnival, Behn is displaying both the comic and the troubling aspects of the topsy-turvy, consequence-free genre of Restoration Comedy.

🔷 Masks 🎭 : 

Hellena, Florinda, and the cavaliers all use masks and disguises in order to plan and carry out their various liaisons. On a deeper level, however, masks represent the confusion of identity that takes place within this play. Willmore and Hellena fall in love without even knowing each other’s names. Belvile, meanwhile, repeatedly does not recognize Florinda even when she is right in front of him. Masks, therefore, are emblems of confusion and deception, and proof that identity is not as stable or singular as it seems.

🔷 Angellica's picture: 

Every day, Angelica commands her servants to display pictures of herself in front of her house, so all the citizens of Naples can admire her beauty. Once she falls in love with Willmore, however, she ceases to do so. These pictures represent not only her vanity, but also her sense of self. The courtesan stops displaying them because she has fully given herself to Willmore and so is no longer “giving herself” to anyone else—a disastrous decision, as she soon learns.

🔷 Swords ⚔️ : 

 The Rover, swords are associated with masculinity, virility, and power. Belvile is a true man in part because of his skill with a sword. Much of Blunt’s humiliation comes from being robbed of his sword, and then being forced to wear a rusty one. At one point the cavaliers and Don Pedro draw their swords, and much is made of the fact that Pedro’s Spanish blade is longer than their English swords. Willmore, in particular, often uses swordplay as a metaphor for intercourse. The connection between masculinity and violence is a traditional but disturbing one, and Behn takes care to show the consequences of such a belligerent and dangerous atmosphere.

💠 Conclusion: 

Overall, Rover symbols are essential for effective operation and communication in the complex environment of space exploration. They enhance our ability to interact with and understand the rover's activities on distant planetary surfaces.