Twelfth Night: Prose style
17 lenses on prose style for Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: H1 H2 H3 H4 H5 H6 H7 H8 H9 H10 H11 H12 H13 H14 H15 H16 H17
H1. Readability score per chapter. Count
Flesch reading ease for the whole book is about 87 (higher is easier; 60 to 70 is plain English).
Reading ease per chapter, chapter by chapter
H2. Vocabulary range. Count
3,136 different words. On average 48 in every 100 words are new within a 500 word stretch. 1,821 words appear only once.
H3. Signature words: what this author uses far more than others. Count
andrew, clown, maria, thou, thee. See the full lens on the book page.
H4. Adverb and adjective rates. Count
About 5.16 words ending in 'ly' and 6.01 likely adjectives per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
'ly' words per 1,000, chapter by chapter
H5. Share of weak verbs such as "was" and "had". Count
'Was', 'were', 'had', 'is' and 'are' make up 2.0% of all words.
H6. Passive voice rate. Count
About 1.6% of sentences use a passive form such as 'was taken'. (rough estimate from word lists)
H7. Variety of sentence openings. Count
The five most common first words start 29% of sentences: sir, i, viola, olivia, clown.
| First word | Sentences |
|---|---|
| sir | 255 |
| i | 169 |
| viola | 121 |
| olivia | 118 |
| clown | 103 |
| malvolio | 88 |
| what | 66 |
| enter | 61 |
| maria | 61 |
| duke | 59 |
H8. Rhythm: how much sentence length varies. Count
Sentence length varies by 1.19 of its mean on average (higher means a more varied rhythm).
Variation per chapter, chapter by chapter
H9. Similes and metaphors: how many, and of what kind. Both
33 likely similes ('like a', 'as ... as'): 1.56 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Ch 1, para 2: DUKE. If music be the food of love, play on, Give me excess of it; that, surfeiting, The appetite may sicken and so die. That strain again, it …
Ch 1, para 8: VALENTINE. So please my lord, I might not be admitted, But from her handmaid do return this answer: The element itself, till seven years’ heat, Shall not behold …
Ch 3, para 18: SIR TOBY. With drinking healths to my niece; I’ll drink to her as long as there is a passage in my throat, and drink in Illyria. He’s a …
Ch 3, para 18: SIR TOBY. With drinking healths to my niece; I’ll drink to her as long as there is a passage in my throat, and drink in Illyria. He’s a …
Ch 3, para 64: SIR ANDREW. And I think I have the back-trick simply as strong as any man in Illyria.
Ch 4, para 15: DUKE. Dear lad, believe it; For they shall yet belie thy happy years, That say thou art a man: Diana’s lip Is not more smooth and rubious; thy …
Rich in metaphors of love as disease, music as food, and time as a knot. Similes compare concealment to a worm in a bud and patience to a monument. Metaphors dominate emotional expression throughout.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 9, Scene 14
If music be the food of love, play on, Give me excess of it; that, surfeiting, The appetite may sicken and so die. (Ch 1, para 2)
She never told her love, But let concealment, like a worm i’ th’ bud, Feed on her damask cheek: she pined in thought, And with a green and yellow melancholy She sat like patience on a monument, Smiling at grief. (Ch 9, para 46)
H10. Senses used: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste. Both
Share of sense words. sight 48%, sound 23%, taste 18%, touch 9%, smell 2%. (rough estimate from word lists)
| Sense | Words |
|---|---|
| sight | 89 |
| sound | 42 |
| taste | 34 |
| touch | 17 |
| smell | 3 |
Sound dominates through music and dialogue. Sight drives mistaken identity. Touch appears in physical duels and embraces. Taste and smell are minimal; taste mentioned once in cakes and ale.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 8, Scene 15, Scene 18
If music be the food of love, play on, Give me excess of it; that, surfeiting, The appetite may sicken and so die. (Ch 1, para 2)
O mistress mine, where are you roaming? O stay and hear, your true love’s coming, That can sing both high and low. (Ch 8, para 19)
H11. Repetition, lists of three and other patterns. Both
40 lists of three in the pattern 'a, b and c': 1.89 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Lists of three appear in character descriptions and Malvolio's letter puzzle. Repetition of 'love' and 'disguise' threads through scenes. Patterns of wooing attempts and mistaken identities recur structurally.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 5, Scene 10, Scene 18
Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon ’em. (Ch 10, para 73)
Why, ‘some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrown upon them. (Ch 18, para 140)
H12. Old words that may trip modern readers. Count
Old forms that may trip a modern reader: thou, thy, thee, hath, art, nay.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| thou | 130 |
| thy | 105 |
| thee | 92 |
| hath | 36 |
| art | 25 |
| nay | 18 |
| doth | 13 |
| prithee | 13 |
| hither | 9 |
| shalt | 7 |
H13. Showing against telling, with examples. AI
The play shows rather than tells through action. Viola's love is revealed through her story of the silent woman rather than direct confession. Malvolio's vanity shows through his behaviour in yellow stockings rather than description.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 9, Scene 14, Scene 16
She never told her love, But let concealment, like a worm i’ th’ bud, Feed on her damask cheek: she pined in thought, And with a green and yellow melancholy She sat like patience on a monument, Smiling at grief. (Ch 9, para 46)
Not black in my mind, though yellow in my legs. It did come to his hands, and commands shall be executed. (Ch 14, para 13)
H14. How much description comes before action. Both
Minimal description precedes action. Scenes open with characters already in motion or conflict. Settings are named in stage directions but rarely described; action drives forward immediately.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 4
H15. Filter words such as "saw", "felt", "heard". Count
Filter words ('saw', 'felt', 'heard' and so on): 1.42 per 1,000 words.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| saw | 10 |
| heard | 10 |
| thought | 8 |
| knew | 2 |
H16. Shifts in tone. AI
Tone shifts from romantic longing in Act One to comic chaos in Acts Two and Three, then darkens with Malvolio's imprisonment before resolving to joy. The final scene balances resolution with Malvolio's bitter exit.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 8, Scene 16, Scene 18
If music be the food of love, play on, Give me excess of it; that, surfeiting, The appetite may sicken and so die. (Ch 1, para 2)
Fare thee well, and God have mercy upon one of our souls! He may have mercy upon mine, but my hope is better, and so look to thyself. (Ch 14, para 88)
H17. How the comedy works. AI
Comedy works through mistaken identity, physical farce, and verbal wit. Malvolio's humiliation provides cruel comedy. Sir Andrew and Sir Toby offer comic relief through drunkenness and cowardice. Wordplay and double meanings abound.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 3, Scene 8, Scene 12, Scene 14, Scene 15
No, sir, it is legs and thighs. Let me see thee caper. Ha, higher: ha, ha, excellent! (Ch 3, para 69)
Dost thou think, because thou art virtuous, there shall be no more cakes and ale? (Ch 8, para 57)
He does smile his face into more lines than is in the new map with the augmentation of the Indies. (Ch 12, para 30)
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