Date of Award

5-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

College/School

College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Department/Program

English

Thesis Sponsor/Dissertation Chair/Project Chair

Jeremy Lopez

Committee Member

Adam Rzepka

Committee Member

Keith Slocum

Abstract

Antony and Cleopatra has long been regarded as a play about shame. Underlying this reading there have been several assumptions, namely that Antony's shame is justified and that Cleopatra's influence is destructive. These beliefs are rooted largely in the historical treatment of Cleopatra, particularly that of Plutarch, who advanced the view that the Queen of Egypt destroyed a formerly great man. In this paper, I argue that the opposite is true: that Shakespeare's Cleopatra, far from destroying Antony, actually helps to liberate him from the tyranny of Roman expectation. In the course of my analysis, I examine two competing sets of ideas. The first is stoicism, particularly that of Epictetus and Seneca the Younger, for this is the philosophy embodied by the Roman characters in the play, most notably Octavius. The second is that articulated by Erasmus in Praise of Folly, a work highlighting, among other things, our inability to control our emotions. In short, I argue that Cleopatra is a fundamentally Erasmian figure who helps Antony to embrace folly and thereby realize his potential.

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