All The King's Horses and All The King's Men

All The King’s Horses and All The King’s Men

It seems that even being shipwrecked doesn’t stop some men from being just what they are. This scene right here in Act 2 scene one serves two purposes along its dialogue. It is said by they themselves that Antonio is not usually serious: “I am more serious than my custom” (2.1.215). Which shows that he’s usually joking around, which is shown by Antonio and Sebastian earlier in the scene. Gonzolo is trying to comfort Alonso, the king because they have obviously just been shipwrecked. The normal thing to do would be to try and comfort each other. The usual reaction, which Alonso shows when he worries about his son, is to wonder who else has survived this tragedy.

Instead Antonio and Sebastian seem to be having a good ol’ time. They are, in asides, making jokes and bets. At one point Antonio says this “Fie, what a spendthrift is he of his tongue!” (2.1.23-24). He says this about Gonzalo about his efforts to comfort he king and even says he could tell his time by this man’s speech, seeing as he speaks constantly even though Alonso doesn’t seem to want to hear it or be comforted by it.

This seems familiar to us, the two men on the side joking around and making bets. It is, in a way, a theme that transcends time because we still see it in books and movies to this day. Some things simply do not change as time goes on. It also provides a bit of a comic interlude. All we had known, truly, about Antonio before was that he was an usurping brother who took the rightful Duke-ship from his brother and sent him to this island that he is currently on. This in a way, confirms the nature we had begun to suspect in the way that he and Sebastian make fun of a person trying to comfort their king. It shows that he is not the most kind hearted person, more prone to causing jokes, making bets and the like.

He also lectures Sebastian not to be lazy. He says that lazy people end up at the bottom of the pile, when otherwise they would be at the top of the heap. This seems to be Antonio’s way of seeing things, and reinforces how he ended up with the title of Duke from his brother. Instead of just taking the title temporarily from his brother while he studied his books like Antonio was supposed to, he instead worked hard and took it from his brother. If he had been lazy he would not have been able to take this away.

So this scene serves two purposes. It shows that some things will never change no matter how much time goes on. This is shown by how the theme of the two men joking around stays strong in this. It also serves to reinforce Antonio’s character. It shows us that he indeed seems the sort to have been able to take the title of Duke from Prospero. It makes his character a set one, which is important.