Introduction to Shakespeare's Twelfth Night

Sebastian and Viola are identical twins. They were separated off the coast of Illyria in a maritime accident. Viola thought her brother was unlucky, so she disguised herself as a man and became a waiter at the door of the local Duke of Ossino. The Duke of Ossino sent Viola to propose to the beautiful and wealthy young countess Olivia. However, Viola has fallen in love with his master Ossino. On the other hand, Olivia fell in love with Viola at first sight. Things have become subtle and complicated.

At the same time, there is a conspiracy going on in Olivia's home. Her uncle Toby and others retaliated against Malfurion for being scolded by his arrogant housekeeper. Imitating Olivia's handwriting, they wrote a love letter to Malfurion, which encouraged the horse to make bold courtship and told him to wear disgusting yellow stockings often. Malfurion was possessed by ghosts, taken in by ghosts, and ugly all over; Olivia thinks the housekeeper is crazy.

In order to win Olivia's heart, Ossino once again sent Viola to Olivia's house to lobby. Olivia worships Viola more and more. However, Olivia's uncle insisted on marrying her to a stupid rich man Andrew, and together with Olivia's maid Maria, urged Andrew to duel with Viola.

It turned out that Viola's brother Sebastian was rescued by the pirate captain Antonio when he was killed, and they became best friends. After arriving in Illyria, Captain Antonio was afraid of being chased by Illyria authorities and could not accompany Sibas Xin around the city, so he gave him the money bag to use.

Captain Antonio happened to meet Viola who was fighting Andrew. He mistook her for her brother Sebastian, so he drew his sword to help him. However, the passing police recognized him and arrested him. Antonio was surprised to see that Viola was indifferent to his arrest and refused to return his wallet, so he accused her of ingratitude. Andrew and the others wanted to fight Viola, but they met Sebastian, mistaking him for Viola, and pulled out their swords. Fortunately, Olivia who arrived in time stopped them. Olivia also mistook Sebastian for Viola and invited him home to show her love, so they married privately for a hundred years.

Malfurion was declared insane, locked in a dark room and teased by clowns dressed as priests. Later, Malfurion had the opportunity to write a letter and plead with Miss Olivia, and the truth was revealed.

Finally, Sebastian and Viola reunited, and Sebastian and Olivia fell in love. The Duke of Ossino was moved by Viola's appearance and announced that he would marry her. Captain Antonio was also released. Everyone is happy except Malfurion.

Creative background:

The storyline of this play comes from The Twin Brothers written by Roman playwright Plautus and the Italian drama Ingani. In Italy, there are three kinds of plays with the theme of Ingani, one is written by Nicolas Sage and Caziot gonzaga, and the other is a well-known work with French and Spanish translations. British writer Richie also wrote a prose work "Apollon News and Silas" based on the French translation of Yi Ming's plays, which may be the most direct source of william shakespeare.

In addition, Satubia may also refer to the play Sir Clara Manning and Sir Clemdes by Anonymous (1570- 1583), Acadia by Sidney (1590) and Romantic Paris Moss by Emmanuel Ford. Some scholars think that the description of Malfurion implies a courtier named William Norris in Queen Elizabeth's court.

In The Wrong Comedy written by 1594, Shakespeare wrote two pairs of twins. Because they look exactly the same, they are misunderstood by people around them and make a lot of jokes. Finally, everyone met together, cleared up the misunderstanding and had a happy ending. There are some similarities between Twelfth Night and Wrong Comedy.