Antipholus of Syracuse in

Antipholus of Syracuse could represent a high-middle class man of the Elizabethan society.

The story, located in the far, classic Greece, shows us a young man who is the son of a merchant. According to David Ross, “The Tudor era saw the rise of modern commerce with cloth and weaving leading the way. A prosperous merchant class emerged from the ashes of the Wars of the Roses”. Thus, we can deduce that William Shakespeare used the classical Greek job – being a merchant – to get the audience away to that place and also to indirectly mirror his contemporaries, because the merchants were, as already said, an emerging new class.

As the son of a merchant, Antipholus of Syracuse could be either a simple citizen, a member of the bourgeoisie or even a gentlemen. In the Elizabethan society, following William Harrison: “Citizens and burgesses have next place to gentlemen [...] In this place also are our merchants to be installed as amongst the citizens (although they often change estate with gentlemen, as gentlemen do with them, by a mutual conversion of the one into the other), whose number is so increased in these our days[1]”. Once we know, more or less, the social status that this character is representing, we can investigate the way he behaves according to his social position.

The first thing we are acquainted of is that Antipholus has a servant – Dromio- , and that he is allowed to beat him any time he wants, as we can see, for example, in 1.2. 92-93 (although this time that is not his Dromio), 2.2. 23-24, etc. But, why does Antipholus beat his servant? Nowadays, this behaviour of the master towards the servant would be highly criticised and punished by law but obviously at that time it was not so. As some critics say, “The best servant is a little bit psychic. He is there when you need him but never hovers” (Elizabethan) so these passages of the play might be better understood to be a funny feature of the performance of the comedy and have nothing to do with Antipholus’ social status or education. However, if we look at the educational system in Shakespeare’s time, when “The main purpose of education was to teach children appropriate behaviour for their social class and to make them useful members of society” (ISE), we also find that “Discipline was strict, and often involved beatings” (ISE). So here we could even see – from a very critic and cynical point of view – a sort of reflection of that educational system.

Antipholus of Syracuse is an educated man and, as I said in my first individual paper of this subject - which dealt with the problem of identity – quoting the Encyclopaedia Britannica, ‘In Elizabethan time, “The educated Englishman was no longer a cleric but a J.P. or M.P. (justice of the peace or member of Parliament), a merchant or a landed gentleman who for the first time was able to express his economic, political, and religious dreams and grievances in terms of abstract principles that were capable of galvanizing people into religious and political parties” (Encyclopaedia Britannica). So the man had a definite role in society, knew more about the world and about himself ’, and that is exactly what happens with this character.

Although Shakespeare does not fill Antipholus of Syracuse with long speeches – a more common feature of tragedies -, he shows his education through his vocabulary, especially in his soliloquy of 1.2. 33-40, and when he is showing Luciana that he loves her in 3.2. 60-64.

Furthermore, we need to know how a man of his class behaves with a woman. We must pay attention to the fact that “The concept of equality between the sexes would have seemed very foreign to most in Shakespeare's day:” (ISE). So we can understand how Antipholus of Syracuse acts towards Adriana. She, who really believes that the man she is talking to in 2.2. 113 is her husband, will be very delighted to please Antipholus and he, not really understanding if that is a dream or a nightmare, following her, acts as a responsible man, as the head of the family. Otherwise, if both would have acted as having the same responsibilities, rights and duties, the performance would have seemed completely unreal to the Elizabethan audience and the play would have been a disaster.

Then we can conclude that Shakespeare uses this character, Antipholus of Syracuse, to unconsciously - or indirectly - show to the male audience how their everyday acting was.

Best, Michael. Shakespeare's Life and Times. Internet Shakespeare Editions, University of Victoria: Victoria, BC, 2001-2005. http://ise.uvic.ca/Library/SLT/ . 09-Apr-2007

Britain Express. Elizabeth I and Elizabethan life in England. “Elizabethan life: the New Merchant Class”.http://www.britainexpress.com 09-Apr-2007

Harrison, William. Internet Modern History Sourcebook: William Harrison (1534-1593): “Description of Elizabethan England, 1577 Chapter I: Of Degrees Of People In The Commonwealth Of Elizabethan England” Internet History Sourcebooks Project. Paul Halshall, ed. http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1577harrison-england.html#Chapter%20I 09-Apr-2007

Wells, Stanley and Taylor, Gary eds. et al. “The Comedy of Errors.” The Oxford Shakespeare: The Complete Works. 2^nd ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press 2005.

[1] From “Holinshed's Chronicles. The modernization of the spelling, etc., follows that of Mr. L. Withington, whose notes are signed W.” (William Harrison).