Antony & Cleopatra

Shakespeare’s historic tragedy, Antony and Cleopatra, was immensely popular in his time and was a familiar story to his audience. Shakespeare’s success with this play may have been what prompted other writers, such as Charles Sedley, to write their own renditions of the play. Sedley composed his version of Antony and Cleopatra about 70 years after Shakespeare’s success. While the story may be similar the writing style’s of Sedley and Shakespeare may be similar their writing styles are quite different.

The first difference in style that struck me while reading Sedley’s rendition was his increased tendency to write in rhymed verse. Meanwhile, Shakespeare chooses to write most of his works, including most of this one, in blank verse. This nearly constant rhyming gives a very different feel to the play itself, and in my opinion, it takes away from the seriousness of the story. Rhyme gives the verse a lighter more care free feeling even though the words make it clear that the events taking place are grave.

The organization and length of the final scene also varies from Shakespeare to Sedley. Shakespeare doesn’t begin the final act until after Antony’s death, while Sedley begins it with Antony’s land battle and Cleopatra first fleeing to her monument. However, in both renditions of Antony’s death it is Proculeius who misleads Antony into believing Cleopatra dead, which in turn, causes him to kill himself.

In both renderings, when Antony dies Cleopatra contrives a plan with her ladies to kill themselves. In Sedley’s version though, in the time they spend together as Antony is dying he is pleading with Cleopatra not to kill herself after his death, while Shakespeare’s characters do not really speak of it. I think this gives Sedley’s Antony a more truly in love appearance, because he loves Cleopatra so much even after death he cannot bear the thought of her bringing harm to herself.

In both plays Cleopatras end comes at the bite of an asp, as Sedley calls it, or according to Shakespeare aspic. Both are names for the same worm like creature that lives in the bank of the Nile, I think this choice of how to die really emphasizes Cleopatra’s complete refusal to be controlled by the Romans. Even in her death she chooses the poison of her own land to any sword or foreign contaminant.

Overall Sedley’s rendering draws much from Shakespeare, but his characters have their own little twists that make them unique. For example, Antony’s increased value for Cleopatra’s life and her careless disregard of his last wishes for her life.