Extremism

Leontes is preposterous. His character, as has been discussed recently in our group discussions, can be rather unbelievable at times–and certainly disagreeable. However, as I have pondered our discussions and read our blog posts, I have begun to wonder about the benefits of the extremism of Leontes's character for Shakespeare.



Imagine that someone that you know, probably a very close friend, suddenly accuses you of something debasing. This accusation is untrue and absurd. It doesn't even make sense. You attempt to explain this to your friend, but he will have none of it. He is convinced, and will not hear your arguments to the contrary. I believe that such a situation would cause a large swell of emotion within you. It would be difficult not to be angry, to pursue vindication at all costs, to prove the stupidity of your friend. It would be difficult to remain calm.

Now, after considering our own reaction were we involved with someone behaving as Leontes has in The Winter's Tale, imagine the reaction of the audience to a production of the play. I think it would be similar. The extreme behavior of Leontes is sure to cause a stir among the viewers. And perhaps this extremism is calculated by Shakespeare to cause this stir in order to support his didactic agenda. Or maybe not. But it deserves our attention.

As the title of this blog suggests, I enjoy all things design. As I consider the idea of using extremism to generate emotion in a viewer, I can think of few areas in the world where this could be more useful than in design. I believe that design is successful when the viewer, or user, has an emotional response to their interaction with the product. Good design is impactful. (And certainly Leontes is impactful.) Sometimes, I think it is beneficial to use over-the-top or exaggerated messages in order to move someone to action. Perhaps this is the same tool being applied by Shakespeare in this play. It does not matter whether or not it is believable or rooted in reality. You certainly can't miss the fact that Leontes is acting irrationally. Maybe that is what is important for us to notice and learn from.