Belonging is the feeling of security and support when an individual is accepted through the relationships and connections made with other individuals and groups. The Shakespearean play ‘As you like it’ explores the innate human nature to connect. This is illustrated by the characters desire to belong within their respective family, gender and location. Shakespeare utilizes language techniques in order to express the notion of belonging through three concepts: Belonging through a shared experience, belonging within a family and belonging through love
By having a shared experience, individuals are able to belong to one another due to the understanding brought about through the common experiences. The forest of Arden is a tabular rasa representing transformation through unity. Throughout the play, there is much juxtaposition between the Forest of Arden and the royal court. The forest is presented in a more favourable light in that the Duke Senior and his court, reside there. All of the good characters in the court are banished or exiled to the forest at the start of the play. Duke Senior describes the court as “painted pomp…the envious court”. He goes on to say that in the forest the dangers are real but natural and are preferable to those in the court “The …churlish chiding of the winter’s wind… even till I shrink with cold, I smile and say This is no flattery” The alliteration used in the Duke’s speech suggests the harsh conditions of the forest are preferable to the pomp and false flattery in the court: That at least in the forest, things are honest. The forest of Arden has been alluded to that of the garden of Eden and the people residing in it (Duke and his court) as Robin Hood and his merry me: “…there they live like the old Robin Hood of England” This reinforces the sense of belonging of the men in the forest of Arden through their experiences of banishment.

Family is the fundamental unit to which individuals belong. It is the first and the most important group in which we belong. As you like it opens with Orlando complaining of being robbed of his birthright and being disrespected by his brother. Orlando’s use of animal imagery ‘his animals on his dunghills are as much bound to him as I’ reveal the discord of the Orlando’s family. Orlando’s repetition of negatives ‘I have nothing’ connotes emptiness and portrays his feelings of alienation. As a result, Orlando is left to feel hopeless and useless. This highlights the consequences of the negation of filial discord and lack of