Central High School - EN EM Yearbook (North Manchester, IN)

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••AS YOi; LIKE IT. inucli interest. To disguise herself and appear as a judge, it was necessary that she understand the law and the ways of a court. The former she obtained from a learned doctor; but for the latter, she must depend wholly upon herself. Womanlike she tried to plead with Shylock ami thought it impossible that he should refuse theories of mercy. Her ready answer to all the Jew's remarks won the admiration of the people and she was encouraged by being called “most learned doctor! ••most wise judge! She was daring even to recklessness an I was not afraid to do whatever was necessary. In the trial, she bore licrcsclf in a dignified and brave manner, conduct which won respect from all in the court. But she had. for all her cool intellectuality, a strain of womanliness which redeemed her She could not refrain from a certain girlish playfulness. After she had explained the result of taking the pound of flesh—the penalty of death, she teasingly. urged Shyloch to take his forfeit and asked him why he did not proceed. The trait which appears as the redeeming virtue in Portia, is seen developed to its maximum in Rosalind. This heroine of “As You Like It. is the iiersonifled coquette. It is a pretty play of wit on Shakespeare's part that tricks out this least womanlike of all his women, in male attire. Our first glimpse of Rosalind is a bit misleading as she is mourning for her lost father but the next moment, she throws aside her gloomy spirit to jest about falling in love. As the natural attendant of the coquettishness, there is to be felt a strong dash of daring, boldness. we should call it. in any one less bewitching than Rosalind. She saw Orlando, became interested. tried to awaken his interest in her. and en- couraged him to an almost unmaidculy degree to obtain a response. Even she could sec that she was bold and tried to excuse herself by saying that her pride had fallen with her fortunes. When it became necessary for her to escape to the forest of Arden, she accepted it as a bit of stage play and seemed pleased, rather than otherwise, to disguise her pretty person in man's attire. Her appearance was well suited to her character. She was tall and graceful and possessed a contented air which went well with her disguise and made her attractive, as she boastingly said to Celia. She delighted to tease Phoebe, tho she was greatly flattered by the foolish shepherdess's infatuation, and gave her sound advice. She tormented Orlando in their mock marriage by being as she herself said, “effeminate, changeable, proud, shallow, full of tears, full of smiles; would now like him: now weep for him. now spit at him. But she was not merely a coquette. She was womanly in the best sense of the word. Even in her disguise, she did nothing immodest. As we see her reaching Arden, she was. according to her womanly nature, weary aiul felt as she said like “disgracing her man's attire and crying like a woman. And her woman's nature betrayed her at last. When Oliver brought her Orlando's token, dipped in his own blood, her sensitive nerves and tender solicitude over power her entirely and she reveals her identity to Oliver, at last, by falling in a dead faint. Shakespeare touches still another prominent side of the woman nature, real and to be reckoned with, if often maligned. In “The Taming of The Shrew. Katharine was hot tempered and disagreeable. She had cultivated that disposition and at last, rather enjoyed being known as ••Katharine, the Shrew. Her temper was ungovernable and she was disdainful to everyone. She even affected a more passionate disposition than she was afflicted with. She looked upon everyone whom she met with cross looks and spoke in angry words. As was natural, her father wished her to marry, but she met all suitors with such cross looks that they went away in despair. When Petruchio came, however, lie was not to be discouraged by her absurd actions. When he tried to flatter her. she flew into a passion of anger: but when he tried to whisper tenderly to her. she turned upon him like a raging lioness. But she soon learned that she must obey his orders and l egan to fear him. At last shegrew meek and tried to please him. to her own astonishment finding it pleasant to be commanded. Not content with giving us a glimpse at the coarser side of woman's n Bure in the shrew. Shakespeare presents, in his lady Macbeth, his nearest approach to the fiend incarnate. Her strong determined will made her seem almost manly. Almost from the first moment, her j er-sonality dominates the play. It is to her that Lord Maclietli must communicate the predictions of the witches at his first opportunity: it is she who plans the details of the murder: it is she who goads him on when he would have withdrawn. The awful night on which Duncan was murdered, altlio it made her husband waver, had no effect upon her. She would have murdered the king her herself, if he had not resembled her father as he slept. Spurred on by the thought that the deed was half done, she went boldv to the king’s room and smeared the grooms with blood, that it might seem their guilt. She had Page Twenty-Nine

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•• AS YOU LI KB IT. women who throb with human impulses and true life. None of his women are so perfect that they have no weaknesses; and not even lady Macbeth is without some redeeming' virtue. Just as innocence is the simplest of human traits, so Miranda of “The Tempest is the least complex of Shakespeare's characters. We see her as a type of innocence. She knew absolutely nothing of the world outside of her island home and had no friends except her father. Hand in hmd with this primary trait, arc tound the hand-maidens of innocence, tender solicitude for others, extreme sensitiveness, and childish frankness. When her father ch »se to te’l her of her past life, she was filled with great sorrow because she had caused him so much trouble and wondered that he should be willing to endure so many misfortunes for her sake. All her thoughts were expressed openly, because she thought no wrong. When she saw Ferdinand, she declared that she admired him. even if he was a traitor. Because her mind was pure, she could not realize what treason really meant. In talking to Ferdinand, she told him. with childish naivitc, that she care I as much for him as she expected t care for the man whom she would mirry an 1 t!i it she w ml 1 gla lly b:-come his wife. On account of her love for Ferdinand. she disobeyed her father's command by revealing her identity. As soon as she thought what she had done, she said that she was sorry but viewed it merely as a mistake, n t as a sin. Her innocence, instead of making her seem narrow, helped her to think pure thoughts, to brond-enher mind, aud gave her the pearl of all woman hood, perfect sincerity. Closely allied with the primal womanly trait of innocence, is that of filial devotion. Cordelia in •■King Lear'' shows us Shakespeare's conception of filial affection. She was the favorite of her aged father and said she knew she loved him more than her smooth-tongued sisters, but she would not exaggerate her love. She said that she loved her father as a daughter should and could not love him more in order to gain a third of his kingdom. Even when her father disowned her aud sent her dowerless from his door, she turned to her sisters and charged them to take good care of her father. “To your professed love. I leave him. she said. “But alas! stood I within his grace, 1 would prefer him a better place. At her departure, she retained a great love as ever for her father, alth her sisters had received the entire dominion. Then, after the elder daughters had won into their iian Is the rewards of flattering. insincere protestations ami hail heartlessly turned King Lear out into the storm. Cordelia, with the true tilial love which is not dependent on reward, came to his rescue. Faithful in her love, she did her best to restore him to happiness again. When Lear was recovering from his illness an 1 regretting his treatment of her. lie opened his eyes to find her standing by his bed. In answer to his pleas. s!ie declared, with genuine forgetfulness, that she had nothing to forgive, that she had in c iuve to do him wrong. From the d mghter to the wife is but a small step, and this step Shakespeare took, when he pictured Dc-demona. This gentle wife of Othello is the maker of the home. When not busy with her household duties, she loved to listen to the thrilling stories of Othello, even when a mere child. Tlu-'C sad stories of the M or won Desdc-mono's affection. At last she told him. that, if he knew of another man who had endured such great trials, she would gladly share his fortunes. Of course, this was her modest wav of telling Othello her love and he married her against her parents' will. Her loving disposition pleased Othello very much and he tried to make her nest as attractive as possible. She. in turn, tried to please her husband in every way. True to her function of making the home the haven of rest and quiet toward which the husband turns longingly, she did everything in her |K wcr to make peace between Othello and Cassio. merging her own interests in those of her husband. She plead with Othello and talked to Cassio privately that the two might be on good terms when they met. As Othello's awakening jealousy made him become surly, she tried harder than ever to please him. At last her efforts Ih gan to make her scheme and she kept displeasing things from him as was the case when she lost the handkerchief which he had given her. In a short time, Othello grew mad with rage and decided to kill her. Even when he told her lie intended to kill her. the wife, hoping to find her old influence with her husband, declared her innocence and begged time to prove it. She took the time, in which Othello told her to pray, to reawaken his affection. But when, at last, she found that he would not relent and tried to pray, it was too late. Othello murdered her lieforc her earnest prayer was finished. But Shakespeare has drawn in strong contrast with the wifely devotion of Desdemona. the woman of keen mind and deep reason. Portia of “The Merchant of Venice'' stands for the intellectual woman. Site was not closely attached to her home, but like a man. was anxious to go where-cver she saw opjiortunity. After urging Bassauio. in vain, to go to Antonio, she went herself to be at the trial of the merchant in whom she felt so Page Twenty-Eight

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•• AS YOU LIKE IT. ” prayed that she might Ik: filled top-full of dirent-cruclty, and the resolution that this prayer should be fulfilled made her urge Macbeth on to the downward path of ruin and. in the end. to pure blood-thirstiness. Hut Lady Macbeth is made a real creature of flesh and blood, whom temptation has made most evil but not a feminine counterpart of the Bvil One. She was not hard-hearted enough to murder Duncan when lie resembled her father. Her physical strength was no greater than ordinary. After the crisis was over, and finally, after the deed was once done, she was over whelmed with remorse which preyed on her mind until her overwrought feelings found relief in monomania and she committed suicide. The Ordinance of 1787. Fern Green The Ordinance of 1787 was a form of constitution for the territories of the Northwest. It was one of the two or three most important acts ever passed by an American legislative body, for it determined that the new northwestern states, the children and the ultimate leaders of the Union, should attain their growth as free commonwealths. untainted bv the curse of negro slavery. Several ordinances for the government of the Northwest were introduced and carried thru Congress in 1781-1786. but they were never put into operation. In 1784 Jefferson put into his draft of the ordinance, a clause prohibiting slavery in all the western territory, south as well as north of the Ohio River, after the beginning of the year 18 il. This clause was struck out: and even if adopted, it would probably have amounted to nothing, for if slavery had been | crmitted to take a firm hold, it could hardly have been broken up. In 1785. Rufus King advanced a proposition to prohibit slavery in the Northwest immediately, but Congress never acted on the proposition. Meantime, a company of people from New England, who were anxious to buy the lands in the Northwest which Congress was offering for sale, would not purchase until they had some assurance that the governmental system under which they were to live would meet their ideas. The company urged the matter upon Congress, which replied by passing the Ordinance of 1787. 'I lie Ordinance was reported to Congress by Nathan Dane of Massachusetts One of his colleagues, Cutler by name, found that many of the eastern people looked rather coldly on tliiescheme of settling, as it would draw the population away from .he east. Hut Nathan Dane favored it. lie-cause lie hoped that in planting such a colony in the West, they might keep at least that part « f the country true to “Eastern politics.” The southern members, too, heartily supported the plan The only real point of difficulty, however, was the slavery question. The committee that brought in the ordinance reported also, an article prohibiting slavery. Only eight states were, at this time, represented in Congress, and five of these were southern states. But the federal Congress rt»»c on this occasion to a lofty pitch of patriotism. The article was adopted bv a vote, unanimous. except for the dissent of one delegate, a Mr. Nobody from New York. The ordinance established a territorial government. with a governor, secretary, judges, and all executive and military officers, who were to be appointed by Congress. A general assembly was authorized as soon as there should be five thous anti free male inhabitants in the district. The lower house was elective, the upper house, or council, appointive. The legislature was to elect a territorial delegate to Congress who was. it will be recalled, to occupy a seat in congress with the right to take part in the debate but not. of course, to vote. The governor was required to own a freehold of one thousand acres in the district. a judge, live hundred: and a representative, two hundred: and no man was allowed to vote unless he possessed a freehold of fifty acres. These provisions would seem strangely undemocratic if applied to a similar territory in our own day. Then there was added a special proviso of universal interest because it introduced a new principle of inheritance. The estates of all persons dying intestate in the territoy should be divided equally among all the children or next of kin of equal degree. The all-imported features of the ordinance were contained in the six articles of compact between the confederated states and the people and states of the territory, to be forever unalterable, save by the consent of both parties. The first guaranteed complete freedom ot worship and religious belief to all peaceable and orderly person . The second secured to the inhabitants trial by jury, the writ of habeas corpus, and the principal other political privileges enumerated in the amendments which the various states have seen fit to incoporate in their constitutions as a “Bill of Rights. ” The third enjoined that faith should be kept with the Indians, and provided that ••schools and the means of education” should forever be encouraged, inasmuch as “religion, morality and knowledge” were necessary to good government. The fourth secured to the new states, which might be erected out of the territory. the same burdens, including rcHpomdbility Pago Thirty