Madeleine Iaco
“Doth not rosemary and Romeo begin both with a letter?” (2.4.201-02). And doth not rosemary improve most recipes? Used long before Shakespeare’s day, the herb rosemary has a long history of culinary flavor, medicinal usage, and allegorical symbolism. The supposed health benefits and symbolism of rosemary were no mystery to Shakespeare. We see him use herbology and its symbolism in many plays, but as we magnify his herbal metaphors, their complexity grows, as if he were crafting hidden recipes of meaning. Rosemary is a strong herb whose aroma and flavor go a long way. Thus, Shakespeare often uses rosemary as a symbol for the necessity of moderation and restraint while exploiting its paradoxical properties. The application of rosemary, when used as a form of seasoning, requires thoughtfulness and a steady hand; otherwise, the balance of the entire meal is thrown off, much like a Shakespeare play thrown into chaos. He often mixes rosemary into the story with symbolic excess, bringing attention to paradoxes while commenting about life, death, marriage, and identity. This paper will examine four of Shakespeare’s plays and argue that the author uses the paradoxical qualities of rosemary with potent and yet inspiring restraint to craft complex layers within his characters and their stories. The Bard does this by seasoning his plays with this herbal symbolism. In this process Shakespeare appears to understand the limits of moderation and the temporary imbalance achieved by exceeding its limits. As a result of this imbalance, we often see characters behaving paradoxically in paradoxical situations. Through a balancing act of herbal symbolism, Shakespeare provides healing transformations and resolutions.
Peter G. Platt studies the frequent use of paradox in Renaissance-era works and how Shakespeare so readily relied on them in his plays. Platt refers to the paradoxes in Shakespeare’s work as “crucial to a transformation of mind” (12) and believes that “Shakespearean drama reveals that paradox can ‘neutralize,’ stupefy, overwhelm, even annihilate. But the plays also suggest that paradoxes can—if we let them […] help bring variety, complexity, and insight to a world that too often can seem weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable” (16). We can view rosemary as a paradox but also a trigger of “stupefying, overwhelming” events that call attention to the transformative experiences the audience might witness.
Philip Williams discusses the symbolism and history of rosemary in Shakespeare’s works. Williams’s focus is the paradoxes found in Romeo and Juliet (c. 1595). Rosemary “is itself a paradoxical plant [. . .]. [I]t signified remembrance and was customarily employed at both weddings and funerals. Because of its dual usage, rosemary has both favorable and unfavorable connotations: it suggests both love and death” (401-02). This subtle connection between the plot of Shakespeare’s plays and its herbal symbolism demonstrates layers of deep questions regarding life, death, morality, and peace. A study of the deeper contextual history in our literary feast shows that Shakespeare’s symbolic use of rosemary is a paradoxical tool for critiquing the characters, their society, their situations and their transformative experiences.
The story of the rosemary plant has been slow cooking for thousands of years. Although there is no exact date as to when these herbal practices began, we can confirm they were created centuries before Shakespeare. In ancient Greece and Rome, one could find a rosemary plant growing on its native coast of the Mediterranean or in the gardens outside homes. The ancient Greeks and Romans valued this plant above most others, as it was recognized for its healing and preservation properties, as well as its ability to ward off evil spirits (“History”). It was brewed in teas or added to tonics and wine. It was also used to preserve foods (Habtemariam). It was commonly thought to cure all ills; it was used to fight coughs, colds, and many other maladies. These legitimate findings of healing and preservative properties led to the development of more exaggerated folklore. Greek students would wear it around their necks or place it under their pillows during exam time for maximum luck (Perry). It was also found in early sterilization techniques (“History”).
Soon, other countries throughout Europe adopted the plant for its health benefits. By the thirteenth century, the herb was believed to help preserve youthfulness and was used for skincare (Picton and Pickering 76). During the plague of 1665 it was either burned to clean the air or carried by people for good luck and good health (“History”). These practices also gave way to new symbolism and folklore. In Christian culture, rosemary is often likened to the legacy of Christ. If well-cared for, it is said that the plant can live up to 33 years, the same lifespan as Jesus himself (Picton and Pickering 75). As a health remedy or Christian metaphor, rosemary can revitalize or “resurrect” one’s health when its declining—most likely derived from the belief that rosemary can purify your blood vessels, which would then lead to an increase in circulation and better memory (Habtemariam).
Some of the longest-standing folklore traditions regarding rosemary concern weddings and funerals. Couples might receive the gift of rosemary to ensure a lucky, happy, peaceful, and prosperous married life. The bride or groom could even use it as an accessory at the wedding (Picton and Pickering 74). In the Middle Ages, couples would plant rosemary, and its growth was a good omen for the union (Perry). If rosemary signals a happy beginning to married life, the herb also aligns with the tradition of laying rosemary on the grave of those who have passed, an act that ensures the deceased a lucky, happy, peaceful, and prosperous afterlife. It also ensures that our loved ones will not be forgotten (“History”).
In the Renaissance, Shakespeare’s work shows a deep awareness of the complex history of rosemary and its applications. Like a chef preparing an exquisite multi-course meal, Shakespeare serves us rosemary in all its paradoxical forms in multiple plays (or, dare I say, plates). For our first appetizer, we will be delving into King Lear (c. 1606). Edgar, accused by his illegitimate brother of trying to kill their father, is forced to take on the identity of a madman. In the course of the play, his faked madness seems to transform into genuine madness. His reference to rosemary (2.3.16) in his early monologue signals the herb’s relationship to memory and his later attempt to manifest sanity, or any resonance of who he was before the false accusation. (He ends this monologue with “Edgar nothing I am” [l. 21].) Furthermore, the rosemary can indicate that he is mourning the person he had been, as rosemary might be used at a funeral. Finally, the paradox reveals a darker, “mad” part of Edgar that had existed all along: by pretending to be mad, he is unknowingly being authentic.
Hamlet (c. 1599), our second appetizer for this evening, covers themes of death, betrayal, and power. When her father dies Ophelia, like Edgar, is thrown into a bout of madness, during which time she remarks, “And there’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance” (4.5.170). As in King Lear, she can be asking here that her former self be remembered. More generally, these words reflect the tradition of using rosemary during a funeral service to mourn loved ones, as well as their symbolic use in resurrection and purification. Ophelia’s mention of rosemary, therefore, functions to mourn her father and to summon her father back, as mourners often wish they could. Also, perhaps she hopes that phrase will manifest a happy, peaceful, and prosperous afterlife for her now-passed father. In these two monologues, the word “rosemary” seems to pinpoint a moment within the two characters’ lives when their balance or moderation is thrown off by the hardships they face.
The soup is The Winter’s Tale (c. 1611) stew. The play has a strong taste of jealousy and loss, while still revealing undertones of forgiveness, identity, and love. In the play, Perdita hands out herbs to the disguised Polixenes and Camillo, each herb chosen for its specific meaning. She informs them: “Reverend sirs, / For you there’s rosemary and rue. These keep / Seeming and savor all the winter long. / Grace and remembrance be to you both (4.4.84-89). As noted, rosemary is linked to peaceful funerals and happy marriages. This paradox of rosemary here represents the earlier death of Perdita’s mother and older brother and her future marriage to the Prince of Bohemia. In this scene, Perdita, through her reference to rosemary, pays homage to the royal deaths that surrounded her birth, while referencing the royal wedding in her future. (As we’ll see, there is similar foreshadowing in Romeo and Juliet.) A final paradox is that Perdita grew up as a humble daughter of a shepherd, but her true origins, as well as her future, are in royalty. These two opposite identities exist in one character.
For our main course there is a deeper analysis of Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare’s mise en place (the preparation of ingredients before cooking starts) foreshadows the turning points, but the narrative’s resolution demonstrates that although it may seem over-seasoned, potent with tragedy, the dramatic arc is still balanced, tender, and delicious. First, there is the garnish, in this case, lines by Friar Lawrence, who counsels Juliet’s parents:
She’s not well married that lives married long;
But she’s best married that dies married young.
Dry up your tears, and stick your rosemary
On this fair corse; and, as the custom is,
In all her best array bear her to church:
For though fond nature bids us all lament,
Yet nature’s tears are reason’s merriment. (4.5.77-83)
Friar Lawrence not only speaks of her marriage, but he “mis-en-places” her funeral before it even happens, and he speaks of laying rosemary on her “corse” (corpse). He speaks directly to the customs of rosemary regarding weddings and funerals. Not only does he reveal her marriage and predict her death through talking about rosemary’s customs, but he subtly demonstrates the paradox of rosemary by combining both symbols under a singular custom. It is also significant that the Friar speaks of this marriage-death rosemary paradox, since he conducts both ceremonies.
As the main attraction of this dish, the lines from Juliet’s Nurse have the potential of multiple complex meanings in just a tablespoon of words: “Doth not rosemary and Romeo begin both / with a letter?” (2.4.201-02). The nurse uses the first common representation of rosemary, to celebrate the upcoming wedding of Juliet and Romeo, comparing the good omen of rosemary to the potentially good omen of Romeo. Another possible folkloric representation is the belief that if a man cannot smell rosemary, or if he does not enjoy the smell, then he will be an “inferior lover” (“History”). In this context, we can see Romeo as a paradox as well, for he is both a good omen and unqualified for love, as the day before he meets Juliet, he is pining after another girl. However, the most notable conclusion regarding this line is that rosemary represents death. In this sense, the nurse unknowingly “mis-en-places” rosemary as foreshadowing for the lovers’ deaths. The paradox of rosemary also reflects the paradox of the Capulet and Montague families. It seems as if this age-long feud can only be fixed by the young lovers’ marriage or death, two opposite solutions which create yet another paradox. The reference to rosemary also signals the purification of Verona as a result of their tragic deaths, as many health benefits of rosemary are promoted as “purifying.” An excess quantity of rosemary finally ends the Capulet and Montague rivalry, revealing the play’s ultimate paradox: an excess of death eventually gives way to peace.
Rosemary is a healing herb, and in the process of healing, the wound always gets worse before it gets better. The process is painful, and one is unsure of its outcome. If one burns rosemary to purify the air, the smell potent and unpleasant, but after the smoke disperses the new air is purified. In these four plays, we see rosemary used either as a tool of foreshadowing or as a turning point of events. When rosemary appears in the dialogue, transformations begin, culminating in truth, wisdom, and purification. In The Winter’s Tale and Romeo and Juliet, an excess of tragedy and death gives way to peace and forgiveness. An excess of madness gives way to truth in King Lear and Hamlet. The paradoxes and herbal symbolism in Shakespeare’s works highlight the conflicts of the stories while offering healing solutions. According to Platt, the paradoxes found are a “discovery of double, multiple perspectives” (1). This multiplicity is apparent in rosemary’s symbolism. The occurrence of the word enhances themes and paradoxes in a story, potentially representing some of rosemary’s healing qualities, its pungent and flavorful traits, its folklore, and the traditions that make it a complex paradox itself. It is no wonder Shakespeare would have kept this herb handy on his spice rack.
Shakespeare’s plays demonstrate that moderation balances his stories concerning life or death, peace or chaos, and sanity or madness. Rosemary can bring healing properties and heavenly tastes when used correctly, but when that line of moderation is crossed, one discovers the other side of the paradox: a bit too much rosemary, and the story is thrown into chaos. Rosemary itself becomes a symbol of balance (and lack of balance) in Shakespeare’s plays. The herb foreshadows many outcomes before dinner is served. One might say Shakespeare is a literary chef himself, balancing all the symbolism, themes, and paradoxes in the perfect ratios, showing the absurdity of the stories and the complexity of the characters, making it a memorable feast.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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Picton, Margaret, and Michelle Pickering. The Book Of Magical Herbs: Herbal History, Mystery, and Folklore. Quarto Inc., 2000.
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