Navigating the Forest Through the Trees: Visualizing Character Paths Through Shakespeare’s As You Like It

以樹見林：視覺化莎士比亞作品《皆大歡喜》之角色路徑

10.6853/DADH.201810_2.0002

Brian J. Kokensparger

corpus linguistics ； textual analysis ； data visualization ； early modern English drama ； 語料庫語言學 ； 文本分析 ； 數據可視化 ； 近代早期英國戲劇

數位典藏與數位人文

2期（2018 / 10 / 01）

15 - 48

英文

Digital Humanities allows researchers to question traditionally-held theories based on ＂close＂ readings by extending research to ＂distant＂ reading. In this paper, the Ubiqu + Ity tool provided by the Visualizing English Print (VEP) Website is used to analyze the spoken text of all major characters within Shakespeare's As You Like It. The Ubiqu+Ity tool provides several language action types (LATs), which are then classified as relational versus selfish, and active versus reflective. These classifications produce a method (called the character path walk) that visualizes the paths the characters ＂walk＂ through the play, leaving their ＂trails＂ behind that can then be visually analyzed. Upon initial analysis, using the play As You Like It as an example, minor characters such as Phoebe and Silvius revealed dramatic arcs in their speeches. Rosalind's roles as Catalyst (early in the play) and Conciliator (of Phoebe and Silvius) are also identified by applying the method. Some areas for further analysis and method development are suggested.

數位人文的出現讓研究者可以跳出傳統文本分析基於細讀（close reading）的理論框架，擴展研究至遠讀（distant reading）。本文以 Visualizing English Print（VEP）網站提供的 Ubiqu+Ity工具，分析莎士比亞的《皆大歡喜》（As You Like It）中所有主要角色的對話。Ubiqu+Ity有數種語言行動種類（language action types, LATs），可把對話分類為相關的對私自的（relational versus selfish），與活躍的對沉思的（active versus reflective）。這些分類創造了一種可用視覺化方式分析角色在戲劇中的發展路徑的方法，稱為角色路徑行走法（character path walk）。以《皆大歡喜》的劇本為例，在初步分析時，可在次要角色如菲比（Phoebe）和西爾維厄斯（Silvius）的對話中發現戲劇性的弧線。套用上述的視覺化方法，亦能識別羅莎琳（Rosalind）在劇本初期的角色定位為催化劑，以及為菲比和西爾維厄斯的調解人。未來的研究可用角色路徑行走法，對莎士比亞不同的戲劇文集中的角色作更多的比較分析，亦可延伸至分析早期的現代戲劇文集。

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