Post #2 - Memory

In just the first two plays of the semester, memory proves and reiterates its importance. Memory both exacerbates and exposes the central conflicts in The Comedy of Errors and The Taming of the Shrew. In both plays, the principal characters succeed in their ruses of false identification until memory reveals the truth. The climax of each play occurs only when memory exposes the characters' dishonesty. Typically, there is at least one character that enters the complicated sequence without full knowledge of the trickery. In this case, memory is the catalyst for various emotions such as anger, confusion, fear, and annoyance.

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Contested memory surges through The Comedy of Errors. The play even begins with remembrance as Egeon, doomed to die, remembers his lost son: "My youngest boy, and yet my eldest care, / At eighteen years became inquisitive / After his brother; and importuned me / That his attendant--so his case was like, / Reft of his brother, but retained his name-- Might bear him company in the quest of him; / Whom whilst I labored of a love to see, / I hazarded the loss of whom I loved" (123-130). By beginning the play with this forlorn scene, Shakespeare frames the story in layers of memory. As readers, we can look at this clever sequencing as foreshadowing; Shakespeare is sending a message about how much memory will impact the coming events. 

As the play forges onward, memory begins causing arguments and mistaken transactions in every scene. The first of these exchanges occurs in Act I Scene II when Antipholus of Syracuse mistakes Dromio of Ephesus for Dromio of Syracuse, to whom he has entrusted a large sum of money. When Dromio of Ephesus contests the claim, Antipholus responds, "Come on, sir knave, have done your foolishness / And tell me how thou hast disposed thy charge" (72-73). This first miscommunication leads to Dromio's belittlement as Antipholus mocks him. These conflicts of memory lead to far more dire consequences, however, as the characters trade items and information of higher value. For example, when Antipholus E refuses to pay for the gold chain he never received, he is threatened with arrest and must send Dromio S to retrieve money for his bail. When Dromio E turns up in Act IV Scene 4 and does not have the money, this of course leads to more misdirected anger and confusion. This pattern continues in similar fashion until all true identities are revealed. In this way, memory is shown to interact with identity, credit, and even status (all are other critical concepts).

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Unlike The Comedy of Errors, The Taming of the Shrew reaches its climax as a result of just one contested memory (rather than a continuous sequence of memories). The characters' tomfoolery is brought to light when Vicentio, Lucentio's true father, is thought to be an impostor. Vicentio is livid when Biondello, his son's longtime servant, blatantly lies about recognizing him. Aghast, Vicentio says, "Come hither, you rogue. What, have you forgotten me?" (43-44). Although Vicentio knows his true identity as Lucentio's father, he still chooses to phrase this line as a question. This state of frenzy reveals how easy it can be to temporarily forget one's identity, especially in the face of a group that is equipped to contest that identity. Vicentio's angry state also exposes memory's power over him. His first question is not, "Do you not remember who I am?" but rather, "Have you forgotten me?" Here, as in The Comedy of Errors, Shakespeare explores the relationship between memory and selfhood. This relationship, which is of paramount importance in these two plays, is bound to make an appearance elsewhere in this semester's reading.