Journal Article

Invoking Egypt

Kamel, Abeer M. Samir

2025

Overview

The present study aims to investigate how the employment of the different elements of the physical setting in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra, as evoked through the dialogue, contribute to the thematic concerns of the play and to the development of the character of the Egyptian queen. Exploring the influences on Shakespeare's portrayal of Egypt by examining the sources of knowledge available during the early modern period in England as informed by Classical writings and contemporary travel accounts, the study shows the close connection between the character of Cleopatra and the different components of the Egyptian urban and ecological settings. While the New Historicist approach is used to contextualize the play within its historical and cultural milieus, the eco-critical approach, on the other hand, helps demonstrate Shakespeare's view of the interplay between the natural setting and the human character, showing how the ecological elements contribute to the representation of Egypt and the characters, Queen Cleopatra in particular. It turns out that Shakespeare's Cleopatra is depicted as deeply rooted in the Egyptian landscape, her identity shaped and defined by the natural elements of her homeland. Sharing the qualities of the Nile, the fertile soil, and Egypt's flora and fauna, Cleopatra ultimately emerges as the embodiment of Egypt itself, rising from the very mud of the Nile and embodying a profound unity with the land and its elemental forces.

• Publisher: جامعة عين شمس - كلية البنات للآداب والعلوم والتربية
• Subject: الأدب المسرحي / التحليل النقدي / المسرحيات الإنجليزية