Subplot and Plot: The Commentary of the Madhouse on the Castle in Middleton and Rowley’s The Changeling
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published 29/05/2008
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SummaryIn the seventeenth-century Jacobean revenge tragedy The Changeling, Thomas Middleton and William Rowley present two seemingly separate worlds in both location and action. The main plot is characterized by the locale of the castle in Alicante, ruled by Vermandero. This setting is centered on the appetite of Vermandero’s daughter, Beatrice-Joanna, against the paternal will. Further, the action of this setting develops through the love triangle between Beatrice, Alsemero, and De Flores that magnifies Beatrice’s character. The subplot is distinguished by Doctor Alibius’ madhouse within which Alibius becomes increasingly fearful of his wife, Isabella, potentially acting disloyally; the playwrights also present the “mad” characters of Antonio and Franciscus and their actions toward Isabella, of which Alibius grows extremely jealous.
Table of Contents
- Initially, Middleton and Rowley divide the play.
- Beatrice's desire for Alsemero stems from her objection to her father's will.
- De Flores tells Beatrice that she has been transformed by her crime, and it now defines her.
- While Isabella, as the wife of the madhouse's doctor, is locked up, she becomes an object of desire for outsiders.
- As Antonio is a changeling, the players in both the main plot and subplot experience conversions in character.
- Beatrice's own inability to act reasonably causes her to follow her desires.
- Middleton and Rowley create a relationship between the setting of a castle and a madhouse.
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