Four Corners of a Love Diamond
Roxane, a lavishly gorgeous woman is the center of three mens universes in the play Cyrano de Bergerac. Three men: Cyrano, Christian, and De Guiche are all in love with (or think they are) this one woman, each man being completely different from the next. Cyrano is a soldier and a sensitive poet; he can compose words that will make any woman melt, but only wants one woman to read his words. Christian, a northerner, is also a soldier; he is a very handsome man, and has the looks that would make any woman melt, but he has no wit and therefore cannot confess his love to Roxane in his own words. De Guiche, a high ranking officer, is an assertive vengeful man; he is Cyranos opposite and thinks he is in love with Roxane. The only thing these three men have in common is the desire to win Roxanes love.
De Guiche is a powerful man with a Type A personality. In his mind he is a winner, and is used to getting what he wants. It just so happens that he wants Roxane, though his intentions may not be clear cut as to whether he actually loves Roxane or if she is just an object of his desire. We do know he will go to great ends to get her, even if it means risking many mens lives in a war. I believe De Guiche sees a striking young woman like the rest of the men but his feeling end there. I dont think he cares for her inner beauty and simply wants her as a trophy wife. Another reason I believe De Guiche has a desire to be with Roxane is simply because he thinks she deserves to have the best, and in his egocentric mind, that is himself. This, to me, shows De Guiche as being a very shallow, selfish, and bitter man. If he truly loved Roxane all he would want is for her to be happy, but she wouldnt be if they were to end up with each other.
Christian is a brave hardnosed man who is deeply in love with Roxane but does not have a clue of how to express his feelings of love to her. Christian sees a kind, sincere, and an exceptionally gorgeous Roxane and immediately falls in love with her at first sight. Though Christians love for Roxane may not be very deep or complex like Cyranos, it is still genuine love unlike De Guiches love for Roxane. I perceive Christian as being a sincere and thoughtful man that has no wit or eloquence when it comes to confessing his love for Roxane; so much so he requires the help of Cyrano to speak for him, literally. The scenes that Christian and Roxane share are comedic and at the same time very tragic. It is very unfortunate because Christian is so sincere for his love of Roxane, but he is also so helpless.
Lastly we have Cyrano, he is a poetic soldier who loves a good fight, and has a wonderful way with words that would melt any womens heart, but Cyrano has a very large nose that protrudes from his face and is very unpleasant to look at. Cyrano needs what Christian has, handsome looks and confidence; similarly Christian needs what Cyrano has, a witty and eloquent way with words. Combining the best of both men would create the perfect man. Cyrano realizes this fact and uses it to his advantage to express his love to Roxane through a median, Christian. Cyranos love for Roxane is complex; it stems from their childhood; Roxane was the only woman to ever pay any attention to him and for that his love grew immensely for her. Cyrano sees a woman who is so caring and sincere she could look past his ugliness and spend time with him. The mere thought that she could possibly love him for who he is was good enough to keep him going for many years until he actually confessed his love for her during his final minutes. Cyrano has an extremely strong character; he was able to love a woman from a far and let a friend marry her, this took a very strong will. For this Cyrano is a remarkable example of kindness, heroism, and respectability. Thus, Cyrano is the only man deserving of Roxanes love.
These three men, all believe they are in love with Roxane, and deserve to spend their lives with her. Unfortunately for them only one man can have her heart and since she despises De Guiche, he has no chance to be with her. You think it will be Christian because they get married, but De Guiche indirectly kills Christian by bringing war upon him. This leaves Cyrano, the only man deserving her love; tragically he doesnt confess his love till his final moments on this planet, and only shares a few minutes of unconditional love with Roxane. Those few moments though were enough to make Cyranos life worth it and he can die knowing he was loved for his inner beauty.
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