antony and cleopatra act 2 scene
...nds of men alike is a quality possessed by Cleopatra which she demonstrates throughout the play. This point is supported as Enobarbus eulogizes a tantalizing image of Cleopatra using strong visual imagery. He begins by depicting the image of the barge upon which Cleopatra ‘pursed up the heart’ of Antony on the river Cydnus. Enobarbus likens it to a ‘burnished throne’ which ‘burned on the water’. The deliberate use of ‘burnish’ and ‘burned’ accentuates the intensity of Cleopatra’s presence, heightened by the use of alliteration- the aim of such words is to immediately alert the senses of the audience just as if they were actually witnessing the event. Enobarbus then proceeds: ‘…the poop was beaten gold, Purple the sails, and so perfumed that The winds were love-sick with them; the oars were silver, Which to the tune of flutes kept stroke, and made The water which they beat to follow faster, As amorous of their strokes.’ This part is the speech is riddled with sensual images to stimulate the senses- attesting to Cleopatra’s vivacity as she seems to bring inanimate matter to life, but also to her enigma and even her influence over the Earths elements, i.e. air and water, (which could possibly explain her conquering of the mere mortal Antony). Music, perfume and the colour purple, are associated with lust; Enobarbus’ vivid recollection is perhaps to demonstrate the overwhelming impact of Cleopatra’s attributes, or maybe to justify Antonys infatuation with her, especially as Enobarbus even equates her with Venus, maybe insinuating the she herself bears a godly nature: ‘O’er- picturing that Venus where we see The fancy outwork nature.’ Another image also linking Cleopatra to the Goddess Venus was that ‘On each side of her Stood pretty dimpled boys, like smiling Cupids,’ Cleopatra i...