Analyse
the character of Piers Gaveston in Marlow’s Edward
II.
King
Edward’s “French minion”, Gaveston is a remarkably well
delineated Marlovian character. It is important from the point of view of the
conflict in the play – the conflict between the sovereign and the barons of the
realm. He is the central of all ruptures. But it’s not Gaveston alone who
ignites the trouble; there is something in the nature of Junior Mortimer which
flames and sets it on conflagration. The character of Gaveston has limited
individual drawbacks, which have been exaggerated by the opposition.
In
structure the character of Gaveston is simple and
not of complex in the sense. His faults and foibles float on the surface. Had
King Edward bestowed his mad affection on him we would hardly have been
recognized on the street. He is proud, egoistic and with a vein of hatred for
the barons.
