Part 1:

A lot of the actions in Measure for Measure, set in Vienna, seem to be far off for the audience watching them. In short, those viewing this play would not have been shocked by what they saw. (251) It wasn’t uncommon to have prostitution and thieves during this time. Many people went to these “bathing houses” for prostitution and what became known as a cure for the pox, sitting in there for an extended amount of time and sweating, sort of like a sauna. (252) Also, at this time were the prisons and a very specific set of “rules” that they all, more or less, operated by. Basically, if you could afford it or had the friends that could afford it, you could basically do anything in prison. Either from money or prostitution, or both, you had options in prison, if you had the money you could bribe your way out of whatever you needed to, and you had the access to even in prison. Those who could not afford any special services or living conditions were put in a place called “The Hole” where inmates slept on the ground without bedding, or anything else for that matter. (254) The law enforcement that oversaw these prisons and more specially, running these prisons either corruptly or justly. These people were looked down on quite often because they tend to be lower members of society.

 

Part 2:

Just like in society during this time, the characters in Measure for Measure were conducting a lot of these activities on a regular basis. Whether it was prostitution, stealing, or other illegal acts, many of them were not truly enforced the way they were written in the law. Just like the prisons during this time, you could bargain and bribe your way out of a lot of punishment. For the most part, the Duke was lenient on the laws that he was expected to enforce. However, when the Duke took a leave of absence, not truly going anywhere just hiding in plain sight, Angelo takes over and tries to change the way that things have been running for quite some time now. The irony of this story is that Angelo comes in and tries to use the law to put Claudio to death and eventually try to force Isabella to sleep with him in order to free Claudio. Then upon being caught by the Duke and the rest of the characters in the play is forced to marry someone he doesn’t want based upon the same letter of the law which he tried to use for his own personal agenda.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

 

Kamps, Ivo & Raber, Karen, ed. Ch. 3: The Underworld. Measure for Measure: Texts

and Contexts. By William Shakespeare. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2004, Print.

 

Shakespeare, William. Measure for Measure. Ed. Ivo Kamps & Karen Raber. Boston:

Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2004. Print.