The Green Man

The Green Man has adorned English churches for over 1000 years, but no-one has been able to say for sure what it is or anything about its origins. It has been connected with Christianity since the 6th century but the links between man and nature are more of a pagan concept. It is likely, then, that this figure or god was adopted by the early Christian Church as a Christian concept. It was perhaps adapted to represent the cycle of life from death which can be overcome by Faith in God and heaven. It has also been suggested that the Man is in fact Adam as seeds were placed in his mouth after his death, from which grew the burning bush that Moses spoke to.

There is another theory that the Green Man is a 'Jack-in-the-Green' which was a man inside a framework adorned with leaves. Jack-in-the-Green was assocaited with May Day celebrations and Morris dancing, so symbolises the beginning of Spring and the renewal of life. However, the Green Man is not only found in England, but figures have been found in cathedrals and fountains across in Europe, and even in cultures as far away as Nepal and the Ancient Egyptian god Osiris (god of the underworld) was coloured green. So the exact origins of this mysterious figure remains unknown, although several theories place him in the region of death leading to re-birth but the precise origins evade us...

Wealth/loneliness in 'The Tiger's Bride'

So we're supposed to write about something interesting in 'The Tiger's Bride'. For me, one interesting element is the association of the Beast's loneliness with his wealth. He "bought solitude, not luxury, with his money", indicating that for him wealth is not something that can be compared to material beauty. Rather than providing for a large number of human guests that could be accommodated with his money, he instead opens up his dining room to be used by horses. He seems to find company in nature, as he covers up portraits whilst leaving the frescoes which are reminiscent of Paradise where animals are equal to men (and of course where the lion lies down with the lamb).

Therefore, it is clear that nature matters to the Beast much more so than his material possessions. He doesn't have any human servants, preferring to employ clockwork maids and his monkey manservant. Distancing himself from the human world is, ironically, achieved through his wealth enabling him to have the "megalomaniac citadel of his palazzo" but he doesn't enjoy any of the comfort this brings and resides in his "eyrie" with a "small fire in a small grate". For the Beast, wealth is associated with human contact so he avoids the visible signs as much as possible. This way, he can separate humanity from nature, which is regarded as 'true beauty'- seen as Beauty's human skin is turned into "a nascent patina of shining hairs".

Characters of commedia dell'arte

Commedia dell'arte originated in Italy to counter the strict conventions of classic theatre. Instead, commedia dell'arte abandoned such rules and allowed actors room for improvisation and brought in characters who were loud and colourful, rather than the flat characters of classical theatre. There are a variety of these characters, who I suppose can be called caricatures of certain people and classes.

Harlequin: the best known of these stock characters with his patched outfit and mask. He is basically a trickster, and, though he is poor, is able to survive through his wit and creativity.

Scaramouche (Scaramouche, can you do the Fandango?): a captain who doesn't seem to do much fighting (his name meaning small,fast fray) and is more of a ladies man. He is clever (but also lucky) enough to escape out of any awkward situations he finds himself in and hand the blame to somebody else.

Pantaloon: an old, greedy merchant who does all he can to keep his money. He is opposite to the Harlequin, who is young and poor but is able to trick the Pantaloon out of his gold.

The Doctor: known as Balanzone, he is rich, fat and thinks he knows everything. His meaningless dialogues may contain (wrong) citations in Latin or Greek and he impersonates any important person, whether it is a doctor, or more likely a lawyer or judge. This character allows a break in the running of the commedia dell'arte and is the sort of 'know-it-all' character that the audience can resent.

Innamorati: pair of lovers (often the son and daughter of the Pantaloon and the Doctor) who are important in the commedia dell'arte as their situations (eg. contrasted love and envy) give rise for the entrance of the more comedic characters, in particular the Harlequin and Pantaloon.