I have a problem with clarity...
This is the fourth draft I have done in preparation for a SAC I'm having this week...
The last draft I had done had the problem I had outlined...
Please help! My English is average and I can't self-evaluate any more - any comments or feedback will be appreciated!
THE ESSAY:
It may appear that, in “Cosi”, the theme of love is more prevalent than madness. Love is heavily discussed in Cosi, serving as an exploration of the theme of love. This exploration, through the eventual juxtaposition of characters, lays the foundation for Nowra’s eventual assertions concerning the theme. Madness, on the other hand, exists more subtly. It sets the scene for the play, as Nowra locates “Cosi” solely within a mental institution. Through the juxtaposition of the various characters, Nowra attempts to challenge the audience of whether or not the so-called “mad” patients of the mental institution are really, truly “insane”. Nevertheless, there exists a mutual connection between the two themes that ensures that, without either one of them, Nowra’s intentions and goals concerning his assertions that surround these thematic concerns, will not be as fully explained and expressed. This analysis of text attempts to justify the perceived positions of love and madness in Cosi, and to ultimately discover the inseparable link and its implications Nowra has made between the two thematic concerns.
Love, especially what Nowra deems to be its attributes, are strongly stressed in Cosi. Nowra’s choice of Cosi Fan Tutte, a story about love and fidelity between couples, as the play within his play, indicates the importance that he has placed on the theme of love. Cosi Fan Tutte is responsible for a unique set of conditions in which the characters, especially the mental patients, are prompted to discuss their differing opinions concerning the topic of love. However, in his effort to define what love means, Nowra resorts to the juxtaposition of his various characters, using the negatively and positively viewed characters as conduits for his own assertions. Julie, one who is viewed by the audience with respect because of her voluntary incarceration in the mental institution, characterizes love as being “…stupid and foolish…” that love is “…about being on the edge… “Despite her slightly negative view of love, she does not reject at, nor attempt to redefine it as a whole. However, in stark contrast, Lucy, Lewis’ girlfriend, damns love, strongly emphasizing love’s redundancy, asserting to the audience that “…do you think the starving masses give a f**k about love?” Her extremely negative views of love, coupled with her own infidelity to Lewis, serve to discredit her and her definition that love is “...an emotional indulgence...” and is not “lust”, especially when considering the irony of her expectation of fidelity from Lewis, which displays a discrepancy in her mindset towards love and its attributes. These varying opinions and views serve as Nowra’s initial exploration of the theme of love. However, conclusively, he strongly states his own opinions of love through the main protagonist, Lewis, who is a character who would have mostly gained the audience’s admiration, for his love and fidelity towards the mental patients and frequently tenuous journey of learning and self-development, to eventually come to possess values and principles of accepted moral norms of today. Despite the fact that Lewis believed that love is “…not so important nowadays”, Nowra has utilized his change towards the acceptance of love, that “love and fidelity” are “important things”. This eventual alteration of his opinions and belief is triggered through his directing experience at the mental institution, being confronted by the varying views and opinions of love, as well as the witnessing the consequences of the lack of fidelity in love through Cosi Fan Tutte, when so-called “love” is not enacted because of the lack of fidelity – the same applies to his situation with Lucy. It is supremely obvious that Nowra places a great deal of importance on love because of the volume of attention it receives, which is possibly indicative of Nowra’s own convictions and values in life.
Nevertheless, it must be realized, that being within a mental institution - madness cannot be factored out. There remains something important concerning the mental institution that Nowra wants to pinpoint, or rather utilize, in order for him to thoroughly emphasize the importance of love.
The setting of Cosi, within the mental institution, serves to provide Nowra a chance to define what he perceives madness to be – and in opposition to what society, that is projected by him, defines madness. He provides instances of madness – Roy broke into the theatre because he “Didn’t want to be late” - to constantly challenge the audience of their perceptions of madness. The juxtaposition of the characters, especially between those from the “outside” the mental institution and those from within, serves to further expand his discussion and attempt at defining madness and insanity. However, what is the defining factor that separates the two hypothetical “sides”?
In Cosi, Nowra challenges the basic and regular concept of madness. Nowra does not identify madness as something “abnormal” and “irregular”, dependent on what pertains to the majority of society: instead, he sees madness as having no possession and/or understanding of moral and ethical standards, particularly when there is a lack of the upholding of the values of love – like fidelity. He further emphasizes this point through characters other than Nick, who are negatively viewed because of their disagreeable or unethical speech or actions: Doug, with his dangerous pyromania, and an exceptionally foul mouth, believes in free “love”, which Nowra hints to be not love, and more akin to lust, as it is obviously not involving fidelity and commitment. Lucy sees sex as “…just a fling…” and does not believe in the importance of love, that it is “…an emotional indulgence for a privileged few…” Ultimately, what Nowra attempts to demonstrate is the fact that those who are lacking in love and its attributed values are prone to be irrational and out of touch with reality – like Nick, with his ego-centrism and illogical, self-perceived, reality of his role in society. Nowra attempts to crystallize his assertions through the juxtaposition of his various characters, indicating that, without the possession and application of love and its attributed values, any person can be mad, regardless of what society classifies as madness and insanity. Love, despite its already existent importance as a theme in itself, is only stressed so strongly when Nowra dares to challenge and redefine society’s perception of madness and insanity by love’s addition to the equation.
Therefore, to some extent, Cosi is more about love than madness – the level of discussion and the emphasis on love’s importance attest to that case. Comparatively, madness remains in the background, subtly challenging the audience concerning madness, questioning the credibility of labelling “mad” patients of the mental institution. However, Nowra forms an intrinsic connection between love and madness. His perception of madness is defined by love and its associated values – and without madness love’s importance cannot be stressed any further. Consequently, it will not be correct to always distinguish between love and madness by the volume of attention they receive in Cosi – their shared identities make both of them significant and noteworthy, inseparable…
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