The Two Gentlemen of Verona is the first play written by Shakespeare, between 1589 and 1591, and although it may seem a bit unmerciful to say so, it shows that this is a first tentative endeavor. Not only is the richness of language, character and ideas so typical of Shakespeare lacking, the main theme he has chosen, that of male-male friendship, leads the author into rather misogynistic territory.
Although this is a "romantic comedy", Shakespeare is very negative about the experience of love compared to the homosocial bonding between male friends. To love was to be rendered effeminate. Passion prevented that young men became good soldiers, students or explorers. It was even considered as physically destructive: "As the most forward bud / Is eaten by the canker ere it blow, / Even so by love the young and tender wit / Is turn'd to folly, blasting in the bud."
In Shakespeare's time, male-male friendship was seen as something pure and ennobling, enabling friends to perfect themselves through the mirror they provided to one another. But that is of course only possible when both friends have a high-standing character, which is not the case for these two gentlemen of Verona: Valentine will reveal himself to be weak and naive, and Proteus even much worse, as a double dealer and a trickster.
[Two Gentlemen of Verona by Angelica Kauffman (1789)]
The plot is as follows:
Proteus and Valentine, two young gentlemen, are good friends living in Verona. There is only one black spot: Valentine is in love with Julia, something deplored by his friend who sees love as negative. As the play begins, Valentine is preparing to leave Verona to complete his education at the court of the Duke of Milan. He asks Proteus to come with him, but Proteus refuses to leave. Disappointed, Valentine bids Proteus farewell and leaves on his own.
Meanwhile, Julia has a discussion with her saucy maid, Lucetta, who thinks that Proteus is fond of her mistress. Julia, however, complains that he has so far not yet declared his love. Lucetta then produces a letter given her by Speed, the servant of Proteus, but Lucia pretends she doesn't want to read it and even angrily tears it up. Later, when she is alone, we find her picking up the fragments of the letter from the floor, trying to piece them back together - she is also in love with Proteus.
Meanwhile, Proteus' father has decided that Proteus should travel to Milan and join his friend Valentine. He orders that Proteus must leave the next day. Proteus comes to say farewell to Julia, exchanging rings with her and vowing to be faithful and return soon. Their leave-taking is drenched in tears, and only Crab, the dog of Lance, Proteus'
clownish servant, remains dry-eyed (the monologues which Lance here and elsewhere addresses to his dog are the comic highlight of the play).
In Milan Valentine has given up his hate of women, for he has become infatuated with Sylvia, the daughter of the Duke. Sylvia cannot openly show that she likes him as well, for her father has promised her to the rich but foolish suitor Thurio. So she has Valentine copy out a love letter she dictates to him, but he is so naive that he doesn't realize the letter is addressed to himself.
Then Proteus arrives at court and immediately falls in love with Sylvia and vows to win her - out of sight, out of mind, he has already forgotten Julia, and will also betray his friendship ("In love/Who respects friend?"). Unaware of Proteus' feelings, Valentine is happy to meet his friend again. He also naively discloses his plan to elope with Sylvia, because her father wants to force her to marry Thurio. He shows the rope ladder he has hidden under his mantel, to climb into the tower were Sylvia is held prisoner because of the Duke's suspicions. As a "good friend", Proteus immediately plants a knife in the back of Valentine by running to the Duke and informing on his friend, in the hope this will give him the opportunity to declare his own love to Sylvia. The Duke banishes Valentine from Milan. In the wood outside the city, Valentine is captured by a band of robbers, but when Valentine lies that he was banished for killing a man in a fair fight, the outlaws elect him their leader (believe it or not).
Meanwhile, in Verona, Julia decides to travel to Milan to join her lover. She will disguise herself as a page so she will not be harmed on her journey and asks her maid Lucetta to help her make the clothes, including a codpiece, for her disguise (the first of many cross-dressings in Shakespeare). Once in Milan, Julia quickly discovers Proteus' love for Silvia, watching him attempt to serenade her. She contrives to become his page boy – Sebastian – and is immediately used as a messenger to Sylvia. She has to bring Sylvia a letter and the very ring she gave her lover when he left Verona! But Sylvia scorns Proteus' affections and tears up the letter. Julia then gives an account of Proteus' betrayal and the two women decide to join hands together.
[Valentine Rescuing Sylvia from Proteus, by William Holman Hunt, c. 1850]
Silvia determines to run away and look for Valentine in the forest; she is helped by Sir Eglamour, a knight who has taken a vow of chastity after his true love died. In the forest they are confronted by the outlaws and Silvia is taken captive. The outlaws then happen to run into Proteus and Julia (still disguised as Sebastian). Proteus rescues Silvia and professes his love for her, but when Sylvia refuses him, he proceeds to rape her ("I'll force thee yield to my desire")... Fortunately, at this point Valentine intervenes and denounces Proteus (it is busy in the woods).
Horrified at what has happened (an unbelievable change of mind), Proteus vows that the hate Valentine feels for him is nothing compared to the hate he feels for himself. Convinced that Proteus' repentance is genuine, Valentine forgives him and even offers Silvia to him (note that Valentine has not addressed even one word of consolation to his beloved, although she was captured by a robber band and then threatened with rape). At this point, overwhelmed, Julia faints, and then reveals her true identity. Proteus now suddenly remembers his love for her and vows fidelity to her once again. As the Duke now also approves of the marriage between Valentine and Sylvia, the play ends with a double wedding.
Note how Shakespeare undermines the play's women, even though they are the only faithful and strong characters. Valentine apparently regards Sylvia simply as a possession he could give away to others - even to his traitorous friend who had tried to rape her. Also, her fate is only decided by the men around her (Valentine, the Duke and Thurio, who agrees to give her up) and she is not allowed to utter a word in her own cause. Even more troubling is the final assumption that Julia would be happy marrying a treacherous and faithless man who has developed into a would-be rapist. His change of mind and rediscovery of his love are totally unbelievable.
As stated at the top of this page: in this play, Shakespeare puts male-male friendship over the love between man and women - women are treated as just an appendix. The denouement will leave modern audiences and readers with a bad taste in the mouth.
Text at Gutenberg.org
Text after the Arden edition at MIT server
The Plays of Shakespeare