Paradoxical Nature Of Belonging In Shakespeare's As You Like It

While the desire to belong is universal, it can develop and be found in different ways. Through expressing this idea in various forms of representation; composers reveal a myriad of experiences and interpretations connected to the concept of belonging. Shakespeare’s As You Like It explores the paradoxical nature of belonging, that one can find inclusion through the state of exclusion. The play also shows how one’s inability to understand their own identity can lead to the exclusion and alienation of others. Furthermore Cee Lo Green’s videoclip ‘Forget You’ examines the pain and suffering caused by exclusion as well as the disconnection a lack of understanding and identity may cause.
In Shakespeare’s As You Like It we witness the paradoxical
She is indeed lost as she is unable to survive without Rosalind, a woman who overshadows her throughout the entire play. Celia’s lack of identity is foregrounded in the simile “ And wheresoe’er we went, like Juno’s swans, still we went coupled and inseparable” and is further reinforced through Duke Frederick’s chastising tone when tells her, "Thou art a fool. She [Rosalind] robs thee of thy name" He alone seems to realize that the only way for Celia to mature is for her to reject or lose Rosalind. Celia gains her identity once she’s in the forest. Shakespeare keeps her predominantly silent , allowing for introspection and consequently enabling her to form a connection with Oliver, ‘She loves me’. Therefore Celia’s exclusion allows her to build her own identity and find connection with
Envy, antagonism and violence can lead to the exclusion of others. Oliver’s inability to understand himself creates an antagonistic relationship between him and his brother. The disjointed syntax “ I hope I shall see an end of him, for my soul-yet I know not why-hates nothing more than he” coupled with the listing of Orlando’s positive qualities and end-placement of himself in the clause, ‘…full of noble device, of all sorts enchantingly beloved; and indeed so much in the heart of the world… that I am altogether misprized’ reflect Oliver’s overwhelming insecurity about the quality of his connection with others. The aggressive stage directions ‘[Raising his hand] What boy!’ towards his brother further reinforce the anger and violent hatred used to distance his brother and exclude him so that Oliver can be better regarded by his community. For Oliver, the enhancement of one’s self involves the diminution of the