Beatrice and Cleopatra as Moral Agents

Beatrice of Middleton and Rowley's The Changeling and Cleopatra of Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra are unique in their inabilities to conform to a specific typecast. They both emerge as increasingly complex characters, frustratingly neither good nor evil. Yet, their own ambivalent morality is not as important to either play as the repercussions caused by it. Beatrice and Cleopatra, though not definitively driven by evil motives, are similar in their indifference to others. Their selfishness not only leads to their own eventual tragedies, but manages to destroy the lives of those very people to whom they declare love. Neither play actually focuses on the idea of love itself, but rather, the dangerous implications for those who fall prey to it.

Both Beatrice and Cleopatra appear to possess a sort of superficial moral stupidity. Their actions seem provoked not from pure malice, but rather, an incapacity to comprehend the moral weight behind their decisions. Beatrice has no qualms about ordering the murder of Alonzo. Yet, she is not portrayed as cold or devoid of emotions, and ironically, she is crying "joys" of "sweet'st delights" when she discovers the news of his death (III.iv.25). The act of murder is an act of mere convenience, and when she comes face to face with Alonzo's finger, she is unable to connect the bloody deed with her own decision. She is repelled, exclaiming "Bless me!" What hast thou [DeFlores] done?" (III.iv.28). Beatrice places the murder suddenly on the sole hands of DeFlores, retreating from any responsibility. Cleopatra readily embraces the paradoxical element of morality, and even the "vilest things become themselves in her" (II.iii.248-249). This duality of character is evident in her inconsistent behavior, going from regal to almost childlike regularly throughout the text. When the messenger from Rome first tells her that Antony is well, she threatens to pour gold "down [his] ill-uttering throat" (II.v.35). Yet, later, the messenger again repeats that Antony is well and is awarded by Cleopatra's simple "well said" (II.v.44). Both Beatrice's and Cleopatra's seeming unawareness of the moral weight behind their decisions, however, does not mean that they were without any knowledge of their consequences.

The repercussions of Beatrice's and Cleopatra's actions ultimately cause the downfall of nearly everyone with which they are involved. Throughout the plays, both characters make it patently clear that they possess at some level an awareness for these consequences. Beatrice, although superficially ignorant of the moral implications, seems subconsciously knowledgeable. The text is littered with allusions to an untimely end, as she tells Alsemero that a duel would be "a course…" that would " bring sorrow… to death" (II.ii.37-38). Ironically, she warns him away from this course of action, as "blood-guiltiness becomes a fouler visage" (II.ii.40). Unlike Beatrice, Cleopatra seems more aware of the consequences of her actions. As long as her love for Antony is beneficial, she remains true, yet, she is easily swayed by threat to her rule, and says that Caesar "is a god" (III.xiii.61) in which she "hear[s]… the doom of Egypt" (III.xiii.78). Her imminent betrayal is obvious within the text, as she "will betray tawny-finned fishes" (II.v.11-12) "think[ing] them every one an Antony" (II.v.14). When Beatrice and Cleopatra commit to their decisions, they cement an inevitable move towards tragedy. Once they have made their mistakes, there is no escape except death.

Beatrice and Cleopatra are both highly motivated by selfish ideas. They take advantage of another's love in order to reap self profit. Their own morality is blinded by their eagerness to obtain their desires in the most convenient way possible, regardless of others. They are not essentially evil characters, but engage in morally dubious activities without considering the moral consequences of their actions. Yet, it is important to remember that they are, to a certain extent, aware of these consequences. It is this very awareness that ultimately results in their downfalls.