“How green!”: The Meanings of Green in Early Modern England and in The Tempest
In Shakespeare’s works, “green” takes on many implications, as do other colour terms, to stimulate the visual, olfactory, and tactile senses altogether. In Enobarbus’ well-known lines (Antony and Cleopatra 2.2.191-205), Cleopatra’s beauty is praised with colours that recall texture and perfume. Fema...
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| Publicado en: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/erea, |
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| Autor principal: | |
| Formato: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Lenguaje: | Anglais |
| Publicado: |
E-rea
2015
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| Acceso en línea: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
| Sumario: | In Shakespeare’s works, “green” takes on many implications, as do other colour terms, to stimulate the visual, olfactory, and tactile senses altogether. In Enobarbus’ well-known lines (Antony and Cleopatra 2.2.191-205), Cleopatra’s beauty is praised with colours that recall texture and perfume. Female characters such as Ophelia, Marina, and Perdita are associated with colourful scented flowers. Shakespeare’s sonnets describe love and lovers in colour terms. But when we focus on a particular colour term, “green,” its varied meanings are surprising. It may obviously refer to the shade of natural leaves or to the colour of the sea. Rich in figurative implications, “green” can be variously the colour of love, jealousy, decay, and freshness — although these seem contradictory. In The Tempest, which is set in a utopian nature, the colour is referenced in Gonzalo’s cryptic exclamation, “How green!” (2.1.54).This paper thus considers the functions of colour terms in Shakespeare, especially green, with a particular focus on Gonzalo’s phrase and its implications in The Tempest. |
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