Life Is a Dream

“But I would like to know, to ease my distress—leaving aside, heavens, the crime of birth—what else I did to merit further punishment.” 

When Rossaura and Bugle investigate the tower and meet Sigismund for the first time, they marvel at his miserable circumstances and eavesdrop as the prisoner voices his frustration. He appears aware of the astrological reasons behind his imprisonment, but the situation still does not make sense to him; after all, as a life-long prisoner, he has had no opportunity to commit any errors that warrant such a punishment as the one he suffers.

“What law, what powers of justice or reason are capable of denying men the sweet privilege, the fundamental license that God grants to crystalline waters, to fish, to beasts, and to birds?” 

Sigismund compares himself to various creatures of nature who all enjoy liberty to move about as they please. Rivers flow as freely as wild animals roam, yet he, a human, is unable to do as animals do. The answer to his question is the law of his father, the king of Poland, whose powers of reason are faulty and based on superstition, which only emphasizes the poignancy of Sigismund’s plight.

“O you, whose ignorance of this forbidden site has led you past its enclosed perimeter against the decree of the king, who has prohibited anyone from seeing the aberration that lies among these boulders; surrender your arms and your lives, or this pistol, a metallic viper, will spit forth a piercing venom of two bullets, deafening the air with its shots.” 

Clothold threatens Rossaura and Bugle upon discovering their presence in the tower. King Vasily has secreted Sigismund away in this prison, so the discovery of the tower by two strangers is dangerous, and Clothold seeks to protect the king from the trespassers. 

“My sword can be surrendered to you alone because, after all, you’re in charge here, and it is incapable of surrendering to those of lesser rank.” 

Rossaura, still disguised as a man, turns over her weapon to Clothold. This action shocks Clothold because he knows the sword that Rossaura offers him and becomes unexpectedly emotional upon recognizing Rossaura’s sword. The sword identifies Rossaura as Clothold’s child; he had left the sword with Rossaura’s mother before Rossaura’s birth and so this intruder whom Clothold has just threatened is actually his own daughter.

“This is my son; his appearance confirms what I feel in my heart, which, longing to see him, calls to my breast, beats its wings within and—unable to break the lock—acts as he who, confined indoors, leans out the window upon hearing a noise in the street.” 

In this aside to the audience, Clothold acknowledges the true identity of Rossaura, not yet realizing that the young man before him is in reality a young woman. Clothold uses the metaphor of a trapped bird to describe the intensity of his emotional reaction to meeting his child for the first time; this metaphor is a more urban comparison of a bird to a human, which reflects Clothold’s life in society (unlike Sigismund’s comparison of himself to a bird in nature, which reflects Sigismund’s life in the wilderness). 

“It was the greatest, most horrendous eclipse the sun has suffered since it shed tears of blood over Christ’s death; and, caught in the midst of the raging fires, the earth presumed itself in the throes of extinction.” 

King Vasily describes the events of the day of Sigismund’s birth to Stella and Aistulf, events which portend the disaster the king hopes to avoid by sending his baby son away to the wilderness. The hyperbolic nature of the king’s descriptions of the solar eclipse communicates more about the king’s own nervous nature than the actual condition of the planet. 

“Tomorrow I shall place Sigismund—for this is his name—without his knowing that he’s my son and your king, under my canopy and upon my throne, where, acting in my place, he will govern and lead you and where you will all docilely swear obedience to him.” 

King Vasily explains his plan to take Sigismund out of his prison and to bring him to the palace in order to test Sigismund’s fitness to rule. Now is the time to perform such an examination, as the king is aging and Stella and Aistulf, as cousins and heirs to the throne, are contemplating marriage, so that they might rule together when it comes time to succeed the king. 

“So you won’t think I underestimate your trust, know that my enemy is none other than Aistulf, Duke of Muscovy.” 

Rossaura explains to Clothold that she is seeking revenge on Aistulf; she does not explain the reasons behind her dishonor, only that Aistulf is her foe. Clothold reacts to this explanation with despair, as Aistulf is a member of the royal family to whom he has dedicated his life and whom he honors. Now, Clothold feels torn between filial duty towards his child and duty to the state and the rulers of Poland for whom he works. 

“To elevate his spirit to the level of the task you have in store for him, I pointed to a majestic eagle and proposed for discussion the swiftness that allowed it, in scorning the sphere of the wind, to become a feathery flare or a runaway comet in the lofty regions of fire.” 

Clothold explains to King Vasily how he has attempted to prepare Sigismund for the palace test. By focusing Sigismund’s attention on the eagle, Clothold has tried to encourage in Sigismund a noble sense of agency. Unfortunately, this comparison may have inspired the opposite feeling in Sigismund, who has never enjoyed a sense of agency whatsoever at any point in his life. 

“If he were to discover today that he’s my son and find himself tomorrow reduced a second time to his prison and misery, given his character he would no doubt lose all hope because, with the knowledge of who he is, what possible consolation could he harbor? And thus I have tried to hedge my bets by leaving myself the option of telling him that everything he saw was a dream.” 

When Clothold asks King Vasily why Sigismund must be drugged in order to be transported to the palace, the king explains his back-up plan. If Sigismund simply wakes up in the palace, he will be more likely to be able to understand the whole experience as a dream. The king doubts his son will conduct himself regally once in the palace, and he plans to punish any bad behavior by returning Sigismund to the tower immediately. The king wants to be able to tell Sigismund that none of it ever happened, should Sigismund find himself back in prison. 

“Heaven help me, what am I seeing! Heaven help me, what am I watching! The sight provokes more doubt than shock! I, in a sumptuous palace? I, dressed in fine fabrics and brocades?” 

Sigismund exclaims in alarm upon waking in the palace of his father. He doubts his surroundings immediately, unable to trust the dramatic change in his environment. His pleas for help suggest he feels fear in these moments, as if the unfamiliarity of the palace is somehow dangerous. Sigismund is correct to mistrust his senses as well as his sudden change in situation; soon enough, he is returned to his tower prison.

“A busybody, a job in which I reign supreme because I’m the nosiest person on the face of the earth.” 

Bugle, in his characteristically-ironic tone, identifies himself to Sigismund in the palace. His words and humor amuse Sigismund, who enjoys Bugle for his irreverent way with words. Throughout the play, Bugle’s wordplay is reliable, and his sense of comic timing and reluctance to take himself too seriously provide the audience with breaks from the intense drama of the rest of the play.

“Did you see how he dropped from the balcony to the sea below? By God, I did it!” 

Sigismund gleefully acknowledges his own ruthless behavior in the moments after he has tossed a servant to his death for saying words that displeased the prince. Sigismund’s emphasis on the agency he suddenly possesses reveals just how difficult a life of isolation and helpless imprisonment has been for Sigismund. His newfound sense of agency appears to distract him from the reality of the situation, a situation in which he has frivolously taken the life of another person. 

“I can survive without your embraces as I have until now, for when a father is capable of using such severity against me that he ungratefully casts me off, raises me like a beast, treats me like a monster, and solicits my death, it matters little that he withhold his embraces, for he has already denied me my humanity.” 

When King Vasily attempts to shame Sigismund for his murder of the servant and his other bad behaviors at court by denying his son physical affection, Sigismund loses his temper. Sigismund speaks directly with his father about Sigismund’s feelings of resentment, and suggests that any sort of inhumane behavior on the part of the prince is the king’s own fault. Sigismund rejects the suggestion that he will miss the king’s embraces, asserting, instead, his disgust at having been treated so poorly since his birth.

“Without recognizing you I recognize my love for you, and such is the faith you inspire in me that I’m convinced I’ve seen you before. Who are you, beautiful woman?” 

Without fully realizing that the Rossaura before him now is the same person as the intruder who first discovered his tower at the beginning of the play, Sigismund proclaims his love to Rossaura. Some part of him does actually recognize Rossaura, but Sigismund’s confusion makes sense as Rossaura was dressed as a man when they first met. His poetic words of recognition are simultaneously suggestive of this initial meeting and suggestive of a more romantic spiritual meeting. 

“How seldom fate errs in predicting misfortune, for it is as accurate in foretelling evil as it is inaccurate in foretelling good!” 

Aistulf’s tidy commentary regarding Sigismund’s fate and the woeful predictions of the stars at the time of Sigismund’s birth can be interpreted literally and sardonically. Aistulf has a particularly-pointed way with words throughout the play, and as Sigismund is Aistulf’s most obvious competitor for the throne, Sigismund is an ideal target. By the end of the play, when Sigismund’s true noble self emerges, Aistulf and the stars are proved wrong. 

“You may tell the princess, Astraea, that I hold her in such esteem that, when she asks me for a portrait, I consider it in poor taste to send it to her; rather, that she may treasure and revere it, I’m sending her the original.” 

Aistulf toys with Rossaura when, on behalf of Stella, she requests from him the locket containing her own portrait. He ironically calls her ‘Astraea,’ knowing full well that Rossaura is trying to disguise herself and refusing to acknowledge their previous relationship. This display of power is consistent with Rossaura’s perception of Aistulf’s poor character.

“You’re a swine and a boorish suitor! I don’t want it from you now because I wouldn’t want to be reminded, in taking it, that I ever asked you for it!” 

Stella rejects Aistulf when Rossaura cleverly manages to regain possession of the locket, claiming that this particular locket is hers and not the one Stella has observed around Aistulf’s neck. In frustration, Stella dismisses Aistulf and his false appeals to her heart, realizing that he is untrustworthy. A marriage between Stella and Aistulf seems unlikely at this point in the play, no matter how convenient that arrangement might be for others.

“You are our prince, we will not accept and do not want anyone but our rightful lord, not a foreign prince. Grant us all your feet, that we may bow before them.” 

After Sigismund has been returned to his tower, a group of soldiers approach, desiring to free Sigismund and to support him in a civil war against his father, King Vasily. At this moment, Soldier 2 mistakes Bugle, who has been imprisoned in the tower for knowing too much about the details of Sigismund’s visit to the palace, for the prince Sigismund, whom he believes is the rightful heir to the throne.

“What in heaven is going on? Am I again to dream of grandeur only to see it undone by time? Am I to glimpse again the shadows and outlines of majesty and splendor only to see them swept away by the wind?” 

Sigismund speaks these lines in an aside to the audience when he realizes that soldiers have arrived to free him from his wilderness prison and to help him become king of Poland. Thanks to his previous experience in the palace, he does not trust his perceptions of the situation that surrounds him, nor does he believe that he may once again experience the grand life that he deserves. 

“Off we go, fortune, to restore my reign. Don’t wake me if I’m sleeping, and don’t put me to sleep if it’s real. Yet, whether it’s reality or a dream, doing what’s right is what matters. If it’s reality, then for the sake of reality; if it’s a dream, then for the purpose of winning friends for when we awaken.” 

King Vasily’s ploy has worked, as these words from Sigismund to Clothold reveal. Sigismund seems to have processed his previous experience at the palace as a dream, and so he carries on applying that possibility to other unlikely events that come his way. Sigismund’s true character begins to emerge in this passage, and he speaks of doing the right thing as a way of life he understands and embraces.

“Aistulf was the ungrateful lord who, forgetting our shared pleasure—for when love is extinguished, all memories are forgotten—came to Poland, lured by his ambition, to marry Stella, his north star and my setting sun.” 

In a plea for support, Rossaura explains to Sigismund the reasons behind her travels to Poland. She has followed Aistulf in order to find revenge, as he has dishonored Rossaura by pursuing his own cousin Stella and demonstrating a wish to marry Stella rather than Rossaura. 

“Rise, my lord, and give me your hand; now that heaven has revealed the error in your attempts to overcome it, my neck humbly awaits your vengeance. I am at your mercy.” 

Sigismund has won the civil war, and King Vasily is prepared to lose his kingdom to the son he imprisoned. Unexpectedly, Sigismund humbles himself before his father, revealing his truly honorable nature, and King Vasily is amazed that the stars that had predicted such disaster could be so wrong.