10. Twelfth Night

Twelfth Night. William Shakespeare. 1601. 272 pages. [Source: Bought][Shakespeare play; Classic]

First sentence: If music be the food of love, play on;

 Premise/plot: Twins (Sebastian and Viola) are shipwrecked and separated. Adventures and misadventures await the pair in the coming weeks. Viola dresses as a man and takes a job in the service of Duke Orsino. Orsino is truly, madly, deeply in love with a woman, Olivia, who is mourning the death of her brother. Viola becomes his messenger--delivering his unwanted love letters. Olivia thinks that Viola is better than a letter. Sebastian, meanwhile, finds a few buddies to hang out with. As with all Shakespeare plays, this one has a few fools in it--not all fools are foolish though, mind you. Sometimes the fools have more common sense than all the main characters combined. For example,

CLOWN. Good madonna, why mourn'st thou?
OLIVIA. Good fool, for my brother's death.
CLOWN. I think his soul is in hell, madonna.
OLIVIA. I know his soul is in heaven, fool.
CLOWN. The more fool, madonna, to mourn for your brother's soul being in heaven. Take away the fool, gentlemen.

My thoughts: I always take this play for granted. It doesn't leap out at me as being MY FAVORITE. (The one that does leap out is MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING.) But Twelfth Night is a pleasant--more than pleasant--diversion for a winter's night. It is a comedy with some GREAT lines. I absolutely LOVE and ADORE the first line, "If music be the food of love, play on." That may just be one of my favorite Shakespeare lines ever.

Here are a few of my favorites:

• Virtue that transgresses is but patch'd with sin; and sin that amends is but patch'd with virtue.
• If you be not mad, be gone; if you have reason, be brief. 
• Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon'em. 
• Words are grown so false, I am loth to prove reason with them.
• Foolery, sir, does walk about the orb like the sun, it shines everywhere.

© 2020 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Twelfth Night

Twelfth Night. William Shakespeare. 1601. 220 pages. [Source: Library]

Twelfth Night is not in my top three list of plays by Shakespeare. But I often forget that I do really enjoy it all the same. For one thing, it is a comedy. And I just love how this one opens. I must admit that the line, "If music be the food of love, play on" is a great, great line.

So. Essentially this one is about a shipwreck and the romantic misunderstanding that arise from that shipwreck. Sebastian and Viola are twins. Each think the other perished in the wreck. Viola, with a little help from a sea captain, decides to "become" a man and seek employment with Orsino the Duke of Ilyria. Her new name is Cesario. Sebastian is rescued by a man named Antonio, who also happens to be a sea captain, but not the same that rescued Viola. These two will not realize that the other is alive for most of the play. Olivia is the "love" of Orsino's life. The problem? Olivia is mourning because of her brother's recent death, and, she really can't be bothered with the Duke's attempts of wooing and courtship. Most of the characters in the play are from Olivia's household. (Also the Duke's household.) Feste, a clown, bridges the two together in a way. He's in scenes at both houses. (He may just be my favorite character from this play).

So what is the misunderstanding? Well, Olivia falls madly, deeply in love with Cesario at first sight. Cesario is the Duke's messenger. Viola herself falls head over heels in love with the Duke. It seems love will make a fool of all three since there can be no happy ending as matters stand. There are further misunderstandings, but, this is the big one.

One of the comic elements of this play involves a practical joke of sorts in Olivia's household. Malvolio, her steward, is led to believe that Olivia is madly in love with him. He believes this easily, and, soon becomes a very, big fool all in the name of love.

I think I appreciate this one more having seen it performed when I was in college.

Favorite lines:

Anything that's mended is but patched. Virtue that transgresses is but patched with sin, and sin that amends is but patched with virtue. ~ Feste, Act I, scene V

Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon'em. ~ Malvolio reading a letter "from Olivia" Act II, scene V

Love sought is good, but given unsought is better. ~ Olivia to Cesario, Act III, scene I

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Much Ado About Nothing

Much Ado About Nothing. William Shakespeare. 1599/2004. SparkNotes. 256 pages. [Source: Bought]

Much Ado About Nothing is without a doubt my favorite, favorite, FAVORITE, FAVORITE William Shakespeare play. To put it into perspective, I enjoy a handful of his comedies, and, even now and then a tragedy--though not Romeo and Juliet.

So what do I love about Much Ado About Nothing?

I love the movie. Even if you have no intention of ever reading the play, you SHOULD see the movie adaptation starring Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson.

I love the soundtrack, the score, by Patrick Doyle. It is probably one of my favorite scores ever. (Perhaps I should do a top ten list sometime!)

I love the characters of Benedick and Beatrice. I do. I love, love, love them both as individuals and as a couple.

I love the humor and the romance.

I love how quotable it is. Down below, I'll be sharing my top ten quotes from the play!

Now, I don't necessarily, love, love, love the "romance" between Hero and Claudio. Hero is perfectly fine as a character--not fiery, not memorable, not delightful--but fine. Claudio, on the other hand, deserves to be yelled at more than a couple of times.

My top ten quotes from Much Ado About Nothing. The first three are my favorites. The rest are in the order of the play itself.

***

BENEDICK

[Coming forward] This can be no trick: the
conference was sadly borne. They have the truth of
this from Hero. They seem to pity the lady: it
seems her affections have their full bent. Love me!
why, it must be requited. I hear how I am censured:
they say I will bear myself proudly, if I perceive
the love come from her; they say too that she will
rather die than give any sign of affection. I did
never think to marry: I must not seem proud: happy
are they that hear their detractions and can put
them to mending. They say the lady is fair; 'tis a
truth, I can bear them witness; and virtuous; 'tis
so, I cannot reprove it; and wise, but for loving
me; by my troth, it is no addition to her wit, nor
no great argument of her folly, for I will be
horribly in love with her. I may chance have some
odd quirks and remnants of wit broken on me,
because I have railed so long against marriage: but
doth not the appetite alter? a man loves the meat
in his youth that he cannot endure in his age.
Shall quips and sentences and these paper bullets of
the brain awe a man from the career of his humour?
No, the world must be peopled. When I said I would
die a bachelor, I did not think I should live till I
were married. Here comes Beatrice. By this day!
she's a fair lady: I do spy some marks of love in
her.

***

BEATRICE

[Coming forward]
What fire is in mine ears? Can this be true?
Stand I condemn'd for pride and scorn so much?
Contempt, farewell! and maiden pride, adieu!
No glory lives behind the back of such.
And, Benedick, love on; I will requite thee,
Taming my wild heart to thy loving hand:
If thou dost love, my kindness shall incite thee
To bind our loves up in a holy band;
For others say thou dost deserve, and I
Believe it better than reportingly.

***

BALTHASAR (singing)

Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more,
Men were deceivers ever,
One foot in sea and one on shore,
To one thing constant never:
Then sigh not so, but let them go,
And be you blithe and bonny,
Converting all your sounds of woe
Into Hey nonny, nonny.
Sing no more ditties, sing no moe,
Of dumps so dull and heavy;
The fraud of men was ever so,
Since summer first was leafy:
Then sigh not so, & c.

***

BENEDICK
That a woman conceived me, I thank her; that she
brought me up, I likewise give her most humble
thanks: but that I will have a recheat winded in my
forehead, or hang my bugle in an invisible baldrick,
all women shall pardon me. Because I will not do
them the wrong to mistrust any, I will do myself the
right to trust none; and the fine is, for the which
I may go the finer, I will live a bachelor.

***

CLAUDIO
Thus answer I in the name of Benedick,
But hear these ill news with the ears of Claudio.
'Tis certain so; the prince wooes for himself.
Friendship is constant in all other things
Save in the office and affairs of love:
Therefore, all hearts in love use their own tongues;
Let every eye negotiate for itself
And trust no agent; for beauty is a witch
Against whose charms faith melteth into blood.
This is an accident of hourly proof,
Which I mistrusted not. Farewell, therefore, Hero!

***

DON PEDRO

Come, lady, come; you have lost the heart of
Signior Benedick.

BEATRICE

Indeed, my lord, he lent it me awhile; and I gave
him use for it, a double heart for his single one:
marry, once before he won it of me with false dice,
therefore your grace may well say I have lost it.

DON PEDRO

You have put him down, lady, you have put him down.

***

BEATRICE

Speak, count, 'tis your cue.

CLAUDIO

Silence is the perfectest herald of joy: I were
but little happy, if I could say how much. Lady, as
you are mine, I am yours: I give away myself for
you and dote upon the exchange.

BEATRICE

Speak, cousin; or, if you cannot, stop his mouth
with a kiss, and let not him speak neither.

DON PEDRO

In faith, lady, you have a merry heart.

BEATRICE

Yea, my lord; I thank it, poor fool, it keeps on
the windy side of care. My cousin tells him in his
ear that he is in her heart.

CLAUDIO

And so she doth, cousin.

BEATRICE

Good Lord, for alliance! Thus goes every one to the
world but I, and I am sunburnt; I may sit in a
corner and cry heigh-ho for a husband!

DON PEDRO

Lady Beatrice, I will get you one.

BEATRICE

I would rather have one of your father's getting.
Hath your grace ne'er a brother like you? Your
father got excellent husbands, if a maid could come by them.

DON PEDRO

Will you have me, lady?

BEATRICE

No, my lord, unless I might have another for
working-days: your grace is too costly to wear
every day. But, I beseech your grace, pardon me: I
was born to speak all mirth and no matter.

DON PEDRO

Your silence most offends me, and to be merry best
becomes you; for, out of question, you were born in
a merry hour.

BEATRICE

No, sure, my lord, my mother cried; but then there
was a star danced, and under that was I born.
Cousins, God give you joy!

***

DON PEDRO

By my troth, a pleasant-spirited lady.

LEONATO

There's little of the melancholy element in her, my
lord: she is never sad but when she sleeps, and
not ever sad then; for I have heard my daughter say,
she hath often dreamed of unhappiness and waked
herself with laughing.

DON PEDRO

She cannot endure to hear tell of a husband.

LEONATO

O, by no means: she mocks all her wooers out of suit.

DON PEDRO

She were an excellent wife for Benedict.

LEONATO

O Lord, my lord, if they were but a week married,
they would talk themselves mad.

***

BENEDICK

Lady Beatrice, have you wept all this while?

BEATRICE

Yea, and I will weep a while longer.

BENEDICK

I will not desire that.

BEATRICE

You have no reason; I do it freely.

BENEDICK

Surely I do believe your fair cousin is wronged.

BEATRICE

Ah, how much might the man deserve of me that would right her!

BENEDICK

Is there any way to show such friendship?

BEATRICE

A very even way, but no such friend.

BENEDICK

May a man do it?

BEATRICE

It is a man's office, but not yours.

BENEDICK

I do love nothing in the world so well as you: is
not that strange?

BEATRICE

As strange as the thing I know not. It were as
possible for me to say I loved nothing so well as
you: but believe me not; and yet I lie not; I
confess nothing, nor I deny nothing. I am sorry for my cousin.

BENEDICK

By my sword, Beatrice, thou lovest me.

BEATRICE

Do not swear, and eat it.

BENEDICK

I will swear by it that you love me; and I will make
him eat it that says I love not you.

BEATRICE

Will you not eat your word?

BENEDICK

With no sauce that can be devised to it. I protest
I love thee.

BEATRICE

Why, then, God forgive me!

BENEDICK

What offence, sweet Beatrice?

BEATRICE

You have stayed me in a happy hour: I was about to
protest I loved you.

BENEDICK

And do it with all thy heart.

BEATRICE

I love you with so much of my heart that none is
left to protest.

BENEDICK

Come, bid me do any thing for thee.

BEATRICE

Kill Claudio.

BENEDICK

Ha! not for the wide world.

BEATRICE

You kill me to deny it. Farewell.

BENEDICK

Tarry, sweet Beatrice.

BEATRICE

I am gone, though I am here: there is no love in
you: nay, I pray you, let me go.

BENEDICK

Beatrice,--

BEATRICE

In faith, I will go.

BENEDICK

We'll be friends first.

BEATRICE

You dare easier be friends with me than fight with mine enemy.

BENEDICK

Is Claudio thine enemy?

BEATRICE

Is he not approved in the height a villain, that
hath slandered, scorned, dishonoured my kinswoman? O
that I were a man! What, bear her in hand until they
come to take hands; and then, with public
accusation, uncovered slander, unmitigated rancour,
--O God, that I were a man! I would eat his heart
in the market-place.

BENEDICK

Hear me, Beatrice,--

BEATRICE

Talk with a man out at a window! A proper saying!

BENEDICK

Nay, but, Beatrice,--

BEATRICE

Sweet Hero! She is wronged, she is slandered, she is undone.

BENEDICK

Beat--

BEATRICE

Princes and counties! Surely, a princely testimony,
a goodly count, Count Comfect; a sweet gallant,
surely! O that I were a man for his sake! or that I
had any friend would be a man for my sake! But
manhood is melted into courtesies, valour into
compliment, and men are only turned into tongue, and
trim ones too: he is now as valiant as Hercules
that only tells a lie and swears it. I cannot be a
man with wishing, therefore I will die a woman with grieving.

BENEDICK

Tarry, good Beatrice. By this hand, I love thee.

BEATRICE

Use it for my love some other way than swearing by it.

BENEDICK

Think you in your soul the Count Claudio hath wronged Hero?

BEATRICE

Yea, as sure as I have a thought or a soul.

BENEDICK

Enough, I am engaged; I will challenge him. I will
kiss your hand, and so I leave you. By this hand,
Claudio shall render me a dear account. As you
hear of me, so think of me. Go, comfort your
cousin: I must say she is dead: and so, farewell.

***

BENEDICK

Do not you love me?

BEATRICE

Why, no; no more than reason.

BENEDICK

Why, then your uncle and the prince and Claudio
Have been deceived; they swore you did.

BEATRICE

Do not you love me?

BENEDICK

Troth, no; no more than reason.

BEATRICE

Why, then my cousin Margaret and Ursula
Are much deceived; for they did swear you did.

BENEDICK

They swore that you were almost sick for me.

BEATRICE

They swore that you were well-nigh dead for me.

BENEDICK

'Tis no such matter. Then you do not love me?

BEATRICE

No, truly, but in friendly recompense.

LEONATO

Come, cousin, I am sure you love the gentleman.

CLAUDIO

And I'll be sworn upon't that he loves her;
For here's a paper written in his hand,
A halting sonnet of his own pure brain,
Fashion'd to Beatrice.

HERO

And here's another
Writ in my cousin's hand, stolen from her pocket,
Containing her affection unto Benedick.

BENEDICK

A miracle! here's our own hands against our hearts.
Come, I will have thee; but, by this light, I take
thee for pity.

BEATRICE

I would not deny you; but, by this good day, I yield
upon great persuasion; and partly to save your life,
for I was told you were in a consumption.

BENEDICK

Peace! I will stop your mouth.

Kissing her

DON PEDRO

How dost thou, Benedick, the married man?

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Shakespeare's Cymbeline

Cymbeline. William Shakespeare. circa 1611. [Source: Bought]

This was my first time to read Cymbeline. Overall, I liked it. I was able to follow the story, something that is always a bit of concern when exploring Shakespeare on my own. I enjoyed the setting--ancient Britain in the days of conflict with the Roman empire.

Imogen, the daughter of King Cymbeline, is secretly married to Posthumus Leonatus, a Roman soldier. Their marital happiness faces many threats. One unnecessary threat is from one of Leonatus' boasting friends, a certain Iachimo, who boasts he can get Imogen into his bed. It's a wager between the two to see if his wife will be faithful or not. If Iachimo was an honest gentleman to begin with, he wouldn't be boasting or making bets about a woman's virtue and reputation. So you can guarantee Iachimo is NOT honest and won't play fair. In other words, he'll say what he wants even if it is lies through and through. Iachimo brings back his "evidence" and Leonatus drastically orders one of his men to kill his wife. Fortunately, Pisanio, is a good man. He helps Imogen instead of harming her.

Here is where the play gets very messy and oh-so-complicated. I will not try to summarize everything! But Shakespeare presents a tangled affair only to untangle it rather nicely. There are villains--obvious and not so obvious. There is an invading army and a few action-packed battles. Mistaken identities, secrets, and disguises abound. There is even a fake death...

I liked this one. I would have to reread it again to see how it works as a whole. The first time through I was too concerned with what would happen next to think about the mechanics of it.

Quotes:

 "Thither write, my queen, and with mine eyes I'll drink the words you send, though ink be made of gall." (Posthumus to his wife, Imogen)

Cloten: Britain is a world by itself, and we will nothing pay for wearing our own noses.

Belarius: The gates of monarchs are arch'd so high that giants may jet through and keep their impious turbans on without good morrow to the sun. 

Pisanio: The paper hath cut her throat already. No, 'tis slander, whose edge is sharper than the sword, whose tongue outvenoms all the worms of Nile, whose breath rides on the posting winds and doth belie all corners of the world.

 Imogen: Men's vows are women's traitors!

 Imogen: Society is no comfort to one not sociable. 

Imogen: Our very eyes are sometimes, like our judgments, blind.

Imogen: The dream's here still. Even when I wake it is without me, as within me; not imagin'd felt.

Jupiter: Whom best I love I cross; to make my gift, the more delay'd, delighted.

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Rereading Antony and Cleopatra

Antony and Cleopatra. William Shakespeare. 1608. [Source: Bought]

The Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra isn't among my favorite Shakespeare plays--not even close. Still, I thought it would be worth rereading at least once. I find this a messy read simply because it is so complex. Not the "tragic romance" of Antony and Cleopatra, but the constant changing of scenes and the extremely large cast. The play covers several years at least and it is all over the place in terms of setting. Here is my first review. 

Antony and Cleopatra are madly in love with each other. So they say. But actions sometimes speak louder than words. I found Antony to be flawed--greatly flawed in some ways. Cleopatra was equally flawed. I'm not sure there is a "better" person in the relationship. She was manipulative and cruel and prone to nagging. Antony was at the very least selfish and inconsiderate. These two enjoyed fighting and making up again. They may have even loved all the drama.

Lines from the play:

Antony: She is cunning past man's thought.
Enobarbus: Alack, sir, no: her passions are made of nothing but the finest part of pure love: we cannot call her winds and waters, sighs and tears; they are greater storms and tempests than almanacs can report: this cannot be cunning in her; if it be, she makes a shower of rain as well as Jove.
Antony: Would I had never seen her!

Cleopatra: Eternity was in our lips and eyes,

Cleopatra: My salad days, When I was green in judgment:--cold in blood, to say as I said then!

Enobarbus: That truth should be silent I had almost forgot.

Enobarbus: Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale Her infinite variety: other women cloy The appetites they feed; but she makes hungry where most she satisfies

Cleopatra: Give me some music,--music, moody food of us that trade in love.

Antony: If I lose mine honour, I lose myself

Antony: Come, let's have one other gaudy night: call to me all my sad captains;

Antony: Thou art the armourer of my heart.

Agrippa: And strange it is that nature must compel us to lament our most persisted deeds.

Agrippa: A rarer spirit never did steer humanity. But you, gods, will give us some faults to make us men.

Iras: The bright day is done, and we are for the dark. 

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

All's Well That Ends Well

All's Well That Ends Well. William Shakespeare. 1605. [Source: Bought]

I first read All's Well That Ends Well in the summer of 2009. It was, I believe, one of the first Shakespeare plays I read on my own without being in a class and having structured discussions and analysis. It was an interesting read. And an interesting reread for that matter. For Helena, our heroine, is a puzzlement. Is her undeniable love for Bertram her greatest strength or her biggest weakness? Is being willing to go to such great lengths to be with the one you LOVE especially when considered with the obvious fact that he clearly despises you ever a good thing? a healthy thing? And yet, Helena, is resourceful, bold, clever, determined. She has plenty of supporters, people who love and respect her. But Bertram, the man she's OBSESSED with, clearly does not like her--let alone love her. He does not want to be anywhere near her. He is repulsed by her even. Readers know that Bertram is so not worthy of Helena. He doesn't deserve a woman that good. Bertram is clearly a JERK. He's bad news through and through. (I don't know what Helena sees in him! Seriously. It's one thing for his mother to put up with him. But why would any woman choose to look past Bertram's obvious immaturity and jerkiness?!) 

Quotes:

Love all, trust a few,
Do wrong to none: be able for thine enemy
Rather in power than use; and keep thy friend
Under thy own life's key: be check'd for silence,
But never tax'd for speech. 

Countess,
'I have sent you a daughter-in-law; she hath recovered the king and undone me. I have wedded her, not bedded her; and sworn to make the "not" eternal. You shall here I am run away: know it before the report come. If there be breadth enough in the world, I will hold a long distance. My duty to you. Your unfortunate son, Bertram

Look on this letter, madam; here's my passport. 'When thou canst get the ring upon my finger, which never shall come off, and show me a child begotten of thy body that I am father to, then call me husband; but in such a "then" I write a "never." 

'Tis not the many oaths that makes the truth,
But the plain single vow that is vow'd true.

The web of our life is of a mingled yarn, good and ill together: our virtues would be proud if our faults whipped them not; and our crimes would despair if they were not cherished by our virtues. 

Who knows himself a braggart,
Let him fear this; for it will come to pass
That every braggart shall be found an ass.

My first review:

 What does a girl have to do to catch a husband? Apparently a lot if you're a young maiden named Helena. In All's Well That Ends Well, the readers meet a young woman, Helena, who is madly in love with a young man, Bertram. Bertram is, in my opinion, an ass. He is stupid and lusty, and lusty and stupid. And he hangs out with with a truly annoying guy named Parolles. What is keeping these two apart? I mean, besides the fact that Bertram has no interest in her? Well, Helena, though well-beloved by her guardian, The Countess of Rousillon, is not noble by birth. She's the daughter of a very good (but now dead) doctor. And she can't reasonably hope to marry well--let alone marry her dream guy, Bertram, who is a Count (the son of the (above) Countess). So what's a girl to do, I say?!

Well, if you're Helena, you'll think up a couple of schemes. Scheme #1 being that you will head off to the King of France, who is conveniently dying, cure him with your father's wonderful secret remedies, and earn his devotion, respect, and favor. Once you've been granted the hand of ANY man in the kingdom, then you can go about nonchalantly (or maybe not so much) choosing the man you've loved all along, which in Helena's case is Bertram. Is Bertram extra-stupid, or is he just a typical guy in need of a couple years maturity? I'll leave that up to others to decide. Meanwhile, his response to Helena--and to the King--is to throw a temper tantrum, sulk and pout, and stomp off stealthily (again, not so much) to a whole other country--but not before he says, "I do."

Having won her husband in name only, Helena returns to the Countess who is pleased to see her but annoyed with her son for being the way he is. (He probably needed more spankings, perhaps?) After receiving a letter from him that he will not be her true husband until she has his ring on her finger and his child in her womb, she runs away to plot more schemes. The Countess is upset to see her go, but not too distressed since she has a full-time Clown to entertain her and make bawdy jokes night and day.

Bertram and his companions are in Florence, in the army, and when they're not off, you know, fighting, he is busy trying to have his way with various women. One woman that he is wooing is named Diana, she is the daughter of a widow woman. This widow-woman just happens to meet up with Helena--Helena has followed her husband secretly to Florence--and oh the plotting that these two do!

Can Helena (with some help, of course) win her husband's heart?

My thoughts on All's Well That Ends Well:

This is my first time with this play. I was a little nervous tackling it all on my own. But it was surprisingly easy to follow. At least surprisingly easy to follow....for being Shakespeare. I think the fact that it is a comedy, and that the jokes still translate (at least relatively so) as funny all these centuries later just shows you how some things never change. Is Helena stupid for loving a man who doesn't love her back? Should the Countess--or the King, or the Widow--have just told her that 'he's just not that into you'? Does Helena's loving Bertram make her weak by today's standards? Shouldn't Bertram have some say in who he marries? After all, it is his life. And couldn't Helena's persistent devotion be seen as proof of how stubborn she is? And if she's stubborn about this, she could very well turn out to be stubborn in everything else. I'm not saying Helena's wrong, not really, every single character--almost every single character anyway--seems to praise Helena as being the essence of a good woman, a great woman, an amazingly wonderful woman. But does the reader have enough proof that this is so? She does save the King's life, and that is something, and while her motives may be double in nature--wanting the king's favor to grant her Bertram--she probably does want to see him live for his own sake. And she does save the king by her own skill, her own smarts, so that says something: she is smart in some things at least. Why does she love Bertram? Why is he 'the one' for her? What makes him so wonderful in Helena's eyes? (Fortunately, Shakespeare was no Stephenie Meyer else all Helena's speeches would talk about his eyes.) Do we as readers need to know? It's always nice if we're shown why a hero and heroine belong together. (I think that is why I heart Much Ado About Nothing so much!!!) If the reader comes to feel what the heroine feels, then we have a connection with both hero and heroine. It makes for a more satisfying story. And that is something that is definitely lacking in All's Well That Ends Well. Helena loves him. End of story. Throw a party.

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With a title like "All's Well That Ends Well," I feel it's not much of a surprise that things end well. For me to be convinced that things were really well, I'd need to feel that Bertram grew up...at least grew up a little. What has Bertram done to prove to readers that he is good-husband-material? Nothing. At all. Sure, he says he'll be a good and true husband to her. But really, what else can he say with all his boasting of how he came to care for her only after Helena's "death"? He could talk big to his mother and to his king when he thought his wife was dead. Yes, I repented of not loving her. Yes, I'm a fool. But having come to love her though too late, I'm a better man now. Can I get married to this other chick, now? I'm suspicious of Bertram still. Why? Because he's not honest. That and he's stupid. He's stupid for thinking he can get away with telling lie after lie. (I wouldn't have been surprised to hear him say emphatically and imploringly, I did not have sex with that woman.) Bertram's also insulting. Not only does he insult Helena (a few times to her face, but mostly by letter), he's insulting to Diana as well. When Diana is before the king, confessing all, he uses the old sure-but-she's-just-a-whore excuse. Of course, Diana wasn't a whore. She's a maiden still, as the reader well knows. (I personally would have written in a few face slaps. You know how Jack Sparrow is always getting his face slapped by women he's done wrong, well, Bertram needs a comeuppance.) Can Helena change Bertram? Really? Truly? Is a happily ever after likely here?

Have you read All's Well That Ends Well? Did you like it? What do you think are the chances for these two being happy together? Have you seen a good production of this play? I'd love to hear about it if you have! If you've not read the play (or even if you have, I suppose), what is it about Shakespeare that you love or hate most?

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Twelfth Night

Twelfth Night. William Shakespeare. 1601-02. 272 pages. [Source: Bought]

If music be the food of love, play on;

I've always loved that line: "If music be the food of love, play on;" but I have to admit I love it even more after falling in love with this little music video.

This is one of the Shakespeare plays with cross-dressing. I love this Dorothy Sayers' quote in Whose Body: "I'm sure if I'd been a Shakespeare hero, the very minute I saw a slim-legged young page-boy I'd have said: "Odsbodikins! There's that girl again!"

Twelfth Night is one of the Shakespeare comedies that I am quite familiar with. I think this was my fourth time to read it. I don't love it because it's romantic or oh-so-magical. Of the couples that end up together, I'm not sure any of them are truly, deeply in love with each other. I don't doubt for one second that Viola loves the Duke (Orsino). But as for the Duke's oh-so-easy transference of love from Olivia to Viola, whom he has only known as Cesario, I'm not convinced. Same goes with Olivia's transference of her affections from Viola (dressed as Cesario) to Sebastian. Sebastian, well, he gets an instant wife, I'm not sure he's complaining though. The happy endings are rushed and superficial perhaps.

I think the reason I keep reading Twelfth Night is that it's enjoyable, entertaining, fun. It's also one of the few Shakespeare plays that I've seen performed. It's a merry little play with clever little exchanges between characters. I just like it.

Favorite quotes:

If music be the food of love, play on;

O spirit of love, how quick and fresh art thou!

If you be not mad, be gone; if you have reason, be brief:

It shall be inventoried; and every particle and utensil labeled to my will: as item, two lips indifferent red; item, two grey eyes with lids to them; item, one neck, one chin, and so forth. 

Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.

Them that dally nicely with words may quickly make them wanton.

Words are very rascals.

Words are grown so false I am loath to prove reason with them.

I would you were as I would have you be!

Love sought is good, but given unsought is better. 

Example of banter:

Duke: I know thee well. How dost thou, my good fellow?
Clown: Truly, sir, the better for my foes and the worse for my friends.
Duke: Just the contrary; the better for thy friends.
Clown: No, sir, the worse.
Duke: How can that be?
Clown: Marry, sir, they praise me and make an ass of me; now my foes tell me plainly I am an ass: so that by my foes, sir, I profit in the knowledge of myself, and by my friends I am abused; so that, conclusions to be as kisses, if your four negatives make your two affirmatives, why then, the worse for my friends and the better for my foes.  

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

William Shakespeare's Star Wars (2013)

William Shakespeare's Star Wars. Ian Doescher. 2013. Quirk. 176 pages. [Source: Review Copy]

I really LOVED this adaptation of Star Wars A New Hope. It is somewhat faithful to the movie and somewhat faithful to Shakespeare. I appreciated the movie being broken down into five acts and many scenes.

Strengths:

• Loved the reflectiveness of the characters
• R2-D2 had some great soliloquies
• Appreciated many of the asides and many of the soliloquies
• Loved finding my favorite lines and seeing how they were changed or transformed
• Some of the scenes were just giddy-making
• The illustrations!!! Oh some of these were just WONDERFUL. 

Weaknesses:

• The use of the chorus was annoying at times (sometimes worked, sometimes didn't)
• The ending was weaker than the beginning (the last few scenes were more tedious to read)
• Would be best if reader was familiar with all the films and had read/seen Shakespeare previously

 Favorite quotes:

Luke: -- I wonder who she is.
Whoever she may be, whatever is
Her cause, I shall unto her pleas respond.
Not e'en were she my sister could I know
A duty of more weight than I feel now.
It seemeth she some dreadful trouble hath--
Mayhap I should replay the message whole. (33-4)

Obi-Wan: ... In his beginning I shall find my end;
This business shall reveal my final stage.
Yet in my closing scenes perhaps I'll write
A worthy ending to my mortal days: (47)

Luke: ... Adventure have I ask'd for in this life,
And now have I too much of my desire.
My soul within me weeps; my mind, it runs
Unto a thousand thousand varied paths.
My uncle Owen and my aunt Beru,
Have they been cruelly kill'd for what I want?
So shall I never want again if in
The wanting all I love shall be destroy'd.
O fie! Thou knave adventure! Evil trick
Of boyhood's mind that ever should one seek
To have adventure when one hath a home--
A family so kind and full of love,
Good, steady work, and vast, abundant crops--
Why would one give up all this gentle life
For that one beastly word: adventure? Fie!
But soft, my soul, be patient and be wise.
The sands of time ne'ever turned backward yet,
And forward marches Fate, not the reverse.
So while I cannot wish for them to live,
I can my life commit unto their peace.
Thus shall I undertake to do them proud
And take whate'er adventure comes my way.
'Tis now my burden, so I'll wear it well,
And to the great Rebellion give my life.
A Jedi shall I be, in all things brave--
And thus shall they be honor'd in their grave. (64-5)

Han:...I either shall destroy her, or, perhaps,
I may in time begin to like the wench! (117)

Luke: Peace, 3PO! Lend ears and not thy voice! (122)

© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Much Ado About Nothing

Much Ado About Nothing. William Shakespeare. 1599.

This "review" assumes you know the story, I provide no summary. These are just my ever-rambling thoughts on rereading my most-favorite-and-best Shakespeare play. 

Much Ado About Nothing has to be my favorite, favorite, favorite Shakespeare play! Why? Well, it's not exactly because of Claudio and Hero, the young couple whose courtship and marriage we're supposed to be celebrating merrily. Hero just isn't as interesting a character as her cousin, Beatrice. And Claudio, well, Claudio is a little clumsy. I'm thinking not only of the fact that he believes the worst of Hero and plays a big, big role in slandering her. Though, of course, that might be what first comes to mind. But I'm thinking of the fact that he's easily led by others. First, he's seeking approval for making the match, wanting--needing--to have everyone tell him and reassure him that Hero is a good woman, that the match would be a good one, that marriage would be good for him. So with the full approval of his superior (superior in many ways, I imagine) Don Pedro, the proposal is arranged. But while Claudio is waiting and waiting and anxiously waiting to hear her answer, he listens to Don John. And in an instant he thinks the worst of his friend. Yes, as Beatrice points out, Claudio controls his jealousy, his temper, being merely "civil." But still, you can tell he's struggling to keep composed. When he learns the truth, all is well again, crisis averted, normalcy returned. With sweet, sweet Hero by his side, Claudio becomes merry-hearted once again. But the next time Don John comes whispering in his ear, what happens again? Does he trust sweet, sweet Hero? No. Now, in his defense, Don John did arrange things cleverly. So it's not like Claudio is completely, completely, completely an idiot for falling into this trap. For acting on it in the way he did, perhaps. Could he have handled things better? Definitely! The non-wedding screaming match can be a little too much. With practically every character having a temper tantrum all at once. While we're considering different options, Margaret could have told someone, anyone--either privately or publicly--the truth. Granted, she was probably humiliated and ashamed and wanting to hide until the storm passed. But still. She knew the truth and did nothing. And I do have a hard time with Leonato and his response to the big reveal. Seriously. She's your own daughter and you automatically assume the worst and side with Claudio, Don Pedro, and Don John?! Really?! After knowing her all those years, those many many years. After knowing how sweet and gentle and passive and obedient and silent she is, was it in her nature at all to suddenly act so contrary? I mean it's one thing for other people to think the worst of you when they hear the worst of you, but for your very own father to act in such a way, it's just insane. No wonder Hero fainted away. I do have to admire Beatrice, not to mention the friar, for being the only logical, sane people at the affair. Both know that Hero is innocent, truly innocent, that it would be impossible for Hero to be other than what she is. Now, Beatrice is more fiery about defending her, but, I can't say that I exactly blame her. Because that's who Beatrice is.

I think I've talked about Hero and Claudio enough. The heart of Much Ado About Nothing, of course, is Beatrice and Benedick. I love, love, love this couple. In fact, I'm not sure three loves are enough. They are truly one of my most favorite couples ever. I just LOVE and ADORE them both. I love their scenes. I love their banter. I love what they bring out in each other. Their scenes definitely are giddy-making. And their scenes are so joyful, so wonderfully and perfectly joyful. I love how their "courtship" is carried out. And part of me wishes to know more about their past. Because I have suspicions that she's loved him a good long time. When she says, "I know thee of old." I believe her, I do. I think she's had her heart broken by him, whether he knew it or not, in the past. And I think she's doing the best she can to hide how she *really* feels about him.

Much Ado About Nothing is a play that I just LOVE. It's one of those practically-perfect-in-every-way plays. And while I don't love each and every scene, some being quite tedious, if you've read it or watched it, you can probably guess which scenes, but it is because of the foolish obnoxious characters or "guards" or "watchmen" that Hero's reputation is saved, so I can't complain too much.


© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Othello

Othello. William Shakespeare. 1603.

This "review" assumes you know the story. I did not include any summary. Just my rambling thoughts on rereading this play. 

I happened to read Othello and Much Ado About Nothing within days of each other. Both plays are rereads for me, though, I admit it has been years since I read them. One thing that I do get each time I read or reread Shakespeare are how similar his plays are to one another. In the case of Othello and Much Ado About Nothing, both are about jealousy--though in different degrees, of course. Claudio jumps to the conclusion that Hero is unfaithful, unchaste, unworthy, etc. Claudio at least sees with his own eyes a woman he believes to be Hero caught in the act with another man. Othello, well, a mere flimsy suggestion will do to enrage him to the point where he kills. Of course, the difference between the two plays are night and day. Much Ado About Nothing has mirth, joy, pure delight, pure comedy. It has two strong, very strong, romances at its core. Yes, it has its dark moments, it has moody moments, moments where it could technically go either way--tragedy or comedy. One other small observation, Iago is jealous in Othello, obviously, every scene he's in drips with it really. But I think Much Ado About Nothing has that as well, though we don't know the details exactly, Don John being only newly "reconciled" to his brother Don Pedro. It doesn't take anyone very long to realize that this reconciliation is a joke. Don John's hostility barely being concealed at any moment in time. Iago definitely, definitely has the better lines and makes for a much better villain.

I am going to try to focus more on Othello now, I promise. So what did I think of Othello? Well, what I noticed this time was how doomed Desdemona was practically from the start. Which dared me to consider was her father right for half a minute? Was the marriage unwise on her part? Was marrying Othello the biggest mistake of her life? Did it *have* to be? Or did it just turn out that way? Lest you think that I have any liking for her father, I don't, I really don't. Because he plants a seed in Iago's favor. He TELLS his new son-in-law, DON'T TRUST MY DAUGHTER FOR HALF A MINUTE. She's not trustworthy. She's not worthy. She's a liar. She may outwardly show obedience for a time, but don't let that fool you. Of course, he didn't exactly use those words, but the point is the same. He told Othello that Desdemona would do wrong by him, that it was just a matter of time before he came to regret this marriage. He slanders his daughter, ruthlessly slanders his daughter. And though Othello doesn't seem to take this "advice" seriously, you add in another person with the same kind of "advice," the same kind of "wisdom," the same kind of lies, and Desdemona is doomed. Because Othello apparently trusts Iago five-hundred-times more than he'll ever trust his wife. Why? Well, who knows?! Iago's just good like that. Iago can say anything, do anything, and people just love and adore him and think he's telling the truth. Of course, the audience isn't fooled because Iago is transparent with them. (Much like Don John is transparent to the audience.) So is there a person Iago doesn't manipulate in this play? I'm not sure there is. Iago uses his wife to help condemn Desdemona (much like Margaret unknowingly helps condemn her mistress, Hero). By giving her husband the handkerchief, by giving it to him without considering what he'll use it for, she sets in place her mistresses downfall. For Iago will plant the handkerchief on Cassio and use it as the primary evidence against Desdemona. Though if Emilia hadn't given him that, he'd have been resourceful in coming up with plan B, I'm sure.

So how do I feel about Othello as a person? Well, I can't really sympathize with him. Maybe I should, maybe I'm supposed to, but, really I just see him as a jerk with a quick temper, a dark, dark, very-dark violent side. I see him quick in his judgments. I see him as a person with big, big issues. Why doesn't he trust his wife? Is there any reason in the world that she has given him? Other than the fact that she doesn't volunteer forth the information, hey, by the way, dear, I lost the handkerchief you gave me when we first started courting, could you help me find it? I don't know where it's gotten to. Othello just strikes me as too moody, too mentally-unstable to ever be a good husband.

But I don't doubt for a second that Desdemona *did* love him in spite of his flaws. And if she could talk beyond the grave, I'm sure she'd forgive him for killing her. She's just like that. She doesn't care how Othello treats her really, he's just her everything.

So while I don't necessarily "like" any of the characters in this one, well, like in the traditional sense. I do think it's got some great, great lines in it. I think Shakespeare did a good job with it. 

© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Twelfth Night

Twelfth Night. William Shakespeare. 1601-02. 272 pages.

If music be the food of love, play on;

I recently treated myself to a reread of Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night. Now Twelfth Night is not one of my favorite, favorite Shakespeare comedies. (That would be Much Ado About Nothing followed by A Midsummer Night's Dream.) But it is one I have read several times before. And it does have some GREAT scenes in it. (It is also the only Shakespeare I've seen performed on stage.)

Viola and Sebastian are brother and sister. Each think the other has perished in the shipwreck. Viola arrives in Illyria and decides to disguise herself as a young man taking the name Cesario. She enters the service of the Duke (Orsino). One of her tasks is to woo a young woman still in mourning, Olivia. Cesario delivers Orsino's messages just as he asks, but her heart isn't exactly in it. For she has fallen for the Duke herself, a matter only complicated by the fact that Olivia has fallen in love with her. Not that Olivia knows she's fallen in love with a woman-in-disguise. (I'm reminded of a Dorothy Sayers quote!!!) But still. Meanwhile, the audience becomes aware that Sebastian is very much alive and is also in Illyria. He has become friends with Antonio. That covers the "romance" of the play. (I'll leave it up to you to decide if it's truly-truly romance.) The comedy, for the most part, focuses on a cast of side characters mostly attached to Olivia's household. These include Malvolio, Maria, Sir Toby Belch, Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and Feste. Essentially, a group of people team up to make a big, big fool of Malvolio.

Read Twelfth Night

• If you enjoy a light blend of romance and comedy; the language is very beautiful in places--love the opening line!!! And some of the scenes are just very funny! 
• If you're a fan of William Shakespeare

© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

William's Midsummer Dreams (MG)

William's Midsummer Dreams. Zilpha Keatley Snyder. 2011. Simon & Schuster. 224 pages. 

It was on a Saturday near the end of September when the doorbell at 971 Eleanor Street rang long and loud, and then rang again. 

In William S. and The Great Escape, William and three of his siblings (Jancy, Buddy, and Trixie) escaped their abusive home and traveled on their own--with a little "help" from a friend, Clarice--to see their Aunt Fiona. They were hoping, of course, that she would be willing to open her home to them. She was. And for the first time in a long time--since the death of his mother--William was able to feel good about his life, his situation.

The first thirty-two pages of William's Midsummer Dreams rushes the reader through nine months of their lives in their new home. (Chapter four, for example, takes us from mid-October to mid-June.) The focus--if you can call anything that abbreviated focused--is on William counting down the days until summer. He is oh-so-excited about the opportunity to audition for a role in Mannsville's summer production of A Midsummer Night's Dream that it is all he can think about, dream about, or talk about. His sister, Jancy, is understandably annoyed. (I thought it was understandable anyway!) He's memorized every one of Puck's lines, every one of his cues. He's READY. He's more than ready. But he can't help being nervous too.

He'll be spending most of his summer vacation in Mannsville with Clarice, Miss Scott, and the rest of the cast and crew. He'll be living his dream, acting in a real production with real actors.

So the novel is ALL about William's adventures in the theatre. The drama that happens on stage and off stage.

If you like Shakespeare OR the theatre OR historical fiction set in the 1930s OR family stories about brothers and sisters, then William S. and The Great Escape and William's Midsummer Dreams may be books you'd enjoy.

Did I like it? Yes. I definitely liked it. I am not sure that I absolutely loved it. (I was a little hesitant about the beginning, it didn't get off to the best of starts.) But. For the most part, I did enjoy this second book about William. I didn't realize until I finished this one how much I missed Jancy and Buddy and Trixie. The novel didn't have quite the same charm as the first one. But what it lacks in family drama, it makes up for in the theatre. 

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Manga Shakespeare: As You Like It (YA)

Manga Shakespeare: As You Like It. William Shakespeare. 2009. Ill. Chie Kutsuwada. Adapted by Richard Appignanesi. 208 pages.

As I remember, Adam, it was bequeathed me by will a thousand crowns to breed me well.

A romantic comedy. I must admit I like Shakespeare's romantic comedies a bit more than his tragedies. This was my first time reading "As You Like It." And I must say I liked it overall. A bit complicated perhaps. But it works.

There are four couples sharing the stage in this one, but I suppose the main focus of this one is on Rosalind and Orlando. Do you think that their path to love and happiness will run smooth?

This one also stars the melancholy Jacques, who was very appropriately illustrated in this one.

All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. At first the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms.
And then the whining school-boy, with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress' eyebrow. Then a soldier,
Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the cannon's mouth. And then the justice,
In fair round belly with good capon lined,
With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modern instances;
And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slipper'd pantaloon,
With spectacles on nose and pouch on side,
His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice,
Turning again toward childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion,
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Manga Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing (YA)

Manga Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing. William Shakespeare. 2009. Ill. Emma Vieceli. Adapted by Richard Appignanesi. 208 pages.

Don Pedro of Aragon comes this night to Messina.

Without a doubt Much Ado About Nothing is my favorite and my best when it comes to Shakespeare. The love story between Beatrice and Benedick is among my favorite of all times. Of course, this isn't their story alone. There's also Hero and Claudio's romance. But. For me, this one is all about Beatrice and Benedick. And how hate can melt away into love...with a little help from their (interfering) friends.

I haven't always loved Manga Shakespeare. Some adaptations work better for me than others. Some I really don't quite understand or get. And others I think are quite well done. This one, Much Ado About Nothing, is practically perfect. (My second choice would probably be A Midsummer Night's Dream.) I even loved the art by Emma Vieceli. You can see sample spreads here. The story was easy to follow. And I found it easy to recognize the characters. (Something that can be more than a little tricky with other Manga Shakespeare titles. And since there is no he said, she said, if you don't recognize the character based on the art alone, then you can get a little confused as to who's saying what.)

Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more,
Men were deceivers ever,
One foot in sea and one on shore,
To one thing constant never:
Then sigh not so, but let them go,
And be you blithe and bonny,
Converting all your sounds of woe
Into Hey nonny, nonny.
Sing no more ditties, sing no moe,
Of dumps so dull and heavy;
The fraud of men was ever so,
Since summer first was leafy:
Then sigh not so, & c.

So I'd definitely recommend Much Ado About Nothing, any way you can get it. The original play, the manga adaptation, and, of course, the movie.



© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Manga Shakespeare: Julius Caesar (YA)

Julius Caesar (Manga Shakespeare) Mustashrik (Illustrator). Richard Appignanesi (Text). 2008. Abrams. 208 pages. (YA)

The people of Rome celebrate Julius Caesar's triumph over his rival, Pompey, but some loyal republicans fear Caesar's ambition...

I finally read Manga Shakespeare's edition of Julius Caesar. (Others in the series which I've read and reviewed are Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Hamlet, and Romeo and Juliet.) I haven't always been the biggest fan of the series. I'll be honest. I like reading the text. It is reader friendly for the most part. And it does make it easier to grasp the important, the significant bits of the original plays. But the illustrations I have a tougher job appreciating. And I think that is mostly me. I am not a fair judge (at all, not even a little bit) of the illustrations. Here is a page where you can see the artwork for yourself and judge. You'll see some sample page spreads.

Have you been required to read this Shakespeare play for school? I know it was part of the requirements back when I was in high school. The only thing I really took away from it then was "Beware the Ides of March." That and the fact that we had to memorize Antony's little speech:

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you Caesar was ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault,
And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest--
For Brutus is an honourable man;
So are they all, all honourable men--
Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me:
But Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
He hath brought many captives home to Rome
Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill:
Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?
When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept:
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff:
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
You all did see that on the Lupercal
I thrice presented him a kingly crown,
Which he did thrice refuse: was this ambition?
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And, sure, he is an honourable man.
I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,
But here I am to speak what I do know.
You all did love him once, not without cause:
What cause withholds you then, to mourn for him?
O judgment! thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;
My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,
And I must pause till it come back to me.

Do you have any memories (good or bad) of reading Julius Caesar?

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Much Ado About Shakespeare

The Little Bookworm is hosting the Much Ado About Shakespeare Challenge. September 1, 2009 - April 26, 2010. Read or watch six Shakespeare-related-items. Post links to reviews here.

1) A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)
2) A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935)
3) William S. and the Great Escape. Zilpha Keatley Snyder.
4) Manga Shakespeare: Julius Caesar
5) Saving Juliet by Suzanne Selfors
6) Manga Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing
7) Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet by Erin Dionne
8) Romeo's Ex: Rosaline's Story. By Lisa Fiedler.

"Read 6 of any Shakespeare's works or any book inspired by a Shakespeare play. You can also watch any movie from or inspired by a Shakespeare play." and "Need some suggestions, check here or here for movies and books check here or here. These lists are intended as inspiration and are by no means comprehensive."

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Taming of the Shrew

Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew.

Why Taming? Why now? I realized this weekend that I had one more Shakespeare play due before the Shakespearean Summer challenge closes tomorrow. Knowing that I'd never be able to handle a new-to-me play, I decided to go with one I'd not blogged about before. Plus, I've had this desire to watch Ten Things I Hate About You for a week or so. And this is the perfect excuse for why it needs to happen now.

Chances are you're aware that this Shakespeare play is a bit controversial with modern readers. What is Shakespeare saying about women? And what's up with this "cruel to be kind" notion of wooing?

The story, quite simply, concerns two sisters. The oldest, Katharina (aka Kate), is known for her sharp tongue, her wit, her sassy and all-too-disagreeable ways. She has a mind of her own, and she's not afraid to tell you where to go. The youngest, Bianca, is the favorite. She supposedly is beautiful and perfect and just so darn likable that she's got a long list of would-be-suitors. The father won't allow Bianca to marry until Katharina does.

Enter Petruchio. A man who has "come to wive it weathily" in Padua. He's determined to marry Kate--he insists on calling her Kate--and "tame" her. To turn her into a good little wife, one who will do his bidding.

Of course there are other characters--some more comical than others--but I've always focused on Kate and Petruchio. Bianca and her suitors? Well, to be honest, they bore me. So she's beautiful? Big deal. So a dozen guys want her? So what?! Can she hold her own in conversation? Kate, on the other hand, has always been an interesting character to me.

There are all sorts of things I could try to say about this one. It's a comedy. You can tell these lines are supposed to come across as funny. (You can almost always tell where Shakespeare wanted a laugh track inserted.) Should the relationships be taken seriously? Is this a true romance? Is there anything in the play itself that shows that Kate really and truly loves Petruchio? Or that he loves her? Most of his 'wooing words' came before the ceremony, and most were spoken in jest. Or at least Kate took them that way. (Should readers???) Didn't he just say he came to wive it wealthily? Didn't he agree to marry her before he even met her once the dowry had been agreed upon? Isn't this more about pride than love? What about respect? We get the idea that Kate is at the very least showing respect to him outwardly. But is there any indication that he respects her?

I remember I had a point I wanted to get across when I began...

What struck me this second (or is it third?) time through is that neither Bianca nor Kate are exactly as they appear. Kate isn't really a shrew. And Bianca isn't little miss perfect. The father doesn't really get his daughters. It makes me think that maybe there was labeling going on. If this "shrewishness" wasn't brought about in a big case of sibling rivalry where the dad was fanning the flames. No one likes to be labeled 'the shrew.' No one likes to be treated so condescendingly. The way this dear-old-dad spoke about his daughter was embarrassing and shameful. If this is what he tells strangers, I can only imagine the kind of stuff he says in private.

But does her marriage put her in a better place? I just don't know. I think, in a way, they're equally matched. But will they have their happily ever after? Will he treat her with kindness and respect now that he's "tamed" her? Now that he's proven his case, will he stop testing her, pushing the boundaries to see just how far she'll submit?

And what about Bianca? What is she really like? Is she selfish and stupid and shallow? What kind of wife will she make? If all her worth is tied up into her beauty, what will happen when her looks start to fade? Doesn't a wife need to be more than a pretty face?

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Antony and Cleopatra

Shakespeare. William. 1608?. Antony and Cleopatra.

Nay, but this dotage of our general's
O'erflows the measure: those his goodly eyes,
That o'er the files and musters of the war
Have glow'd like plated Mars, now bend, now turn,
The office and devotion of their view
Upon a tawny front: his captain's heart,
Which in the scuffles of great fights hath burst
The buckles on his breast, reneges all temper,
And is become the bellows and the fan
To cool a gipsy's lust.

Antony and Cleopatra is a tragedy. One of those Shakespeare plays that end with a massive heap of bodies. Personally--each to their own and all--I'm not all that into Shakespeare's tragedies. Even those tragedies that are reportedly tragic love stories. I suppose they're human enough stories--tales of men and women with natural flaws and the unfortunate circumstances that ultimately lead to hopelessness, despair, and death for those involved.

Cleopatra and Antony are lovers doomed for a tragic end. And they are to blame in part--as most 'tragic lovers' are, I suppose. Antony loves Cleopatra well enough in his own way. But he also loves himself, his sense of duty to his country, his glorious political and military career. He likes to be thought well of. He likes being a Roman hero, a political somebody. Cleopatra, likewise, is a political somebody. She understands--in a way--because she definitely has her own sense of love and duty for her country, for Egypt. Both lovers have big egos and the personalities and temperaments that go along with them. I would classify both as high-maintenance; neither would be easy to live with. (Personally, even without outside influences l think these two could not have had their happily ever after.) The problem with these two is a sense of imbalance. Each have two selves: the public persona and the private individual. So their love affair bleeds through into both. Their relationship has just as much to do with politics and power and authority and military majesty as it does the bedroom.

So who is Cleopatra? Is she "cunning past man's thought" or "a wonderful piece of work"? Who is Mark Antony? Is he "a man who is the abstract of all faults"? Does she bring out the best or the worst in Mark Antony? For that matter, does he bring out the best or worst in her? Is their affair one based on love or lust. Oh, I'm not denying that there is plenty of lust to go around. Their relationship is a passionate one. But does it go beyond that? How true is their love? How solid is it? Does their 'love' for one another make them weak or strong? Is Cleopatra right to mistrust Antony? Is she right to believe the old saying, once a cheater always a cheater. If he really, truly loves Cleopatra why is it so easy for him to agree to marry someone else?

What did I think of this one? Well, I liked parts of it. There were some lines that were just beautiful. Lines like, "the bright day is done, and we are for the dark" and "eternity was in our lips and eyes." But did I like the characters? Not really. Cleopatra was manipulative--that is when she wasn't being a nag. Did she have every reason in the world to be jealous and suspicious? Sure. I think she had more than a little reason. What with him having been married when their relationship began. And then after his first wife died, having him choose to marry another woman instead of her. Anytime he is away from her, she's suspicious. She always thinks the worst. If it weren't so tragic, it would be funny. The way she carries on. Antony was just stupid. I'm sorry, that's the way I see it. He chose not to think with his brains. And that's all I have to say about that. If I had to pick a favorite character it would be Enobarbus.

Have you read this one? Did you think it was romantic? Did you like Antony and Cleopatra as a couple?

This is one I read for Liv's Shakespearean Summer challenge.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

All's Well That Ends Well

Shakespeare, William. All's Well That Ends Well.

What does a girl have to do to catch a husband? Apparently a lot if you're a young maiden named Helena. In All's Well That Ends Well, the readers meet a young woman, Helena, who is madly in love with a young man, Bertram. Bertram is, in my opinion, an ass. He is stupid and lusty, and lusty and stupid. And he hangs out with with a truly annoying guy named Parolles. What is keeping these two apart? I mean, besides the fact that Bertram has no interest in her? Well, Helena, though well-beloved by her guardian, The Countess of Rousillon, is not noble by birth. She's the daughter of a very good (but now dead) doctor. And she can't reasonably hope to marry well--let alone marry her dream guy, Bertram, who is a Count (the son of the (above) Countess). So what's a girl to do, I say?!

Well, if you're Helena, you'll think up a couple of schemes. Scheme #1 being that you will head off to the King of France, who is conveniently dying, cure him with your father's wonderful secret remedies, and earn his devotion, respect, and favor. Once you've been granted the hand of ANY man in the kingdom, then you can go about nonchalantly (or maybe not so much) choosing the man you've loved all along, which in Helena's case is Bertram. Is Bertram extra-stupid, or is he just a typical guy in need of a couple years maturity? I'll leave that up to others to decide. Meanwhile, his response to Helena--and to the King--is to throw a temper tantrum, sulk and pout, and stomp off stealthily (again, not so much) to a whole other country--but not before he says, "I do."

Having won her husband in name only, Helena returns to the Countess who is pleased to see her but annoyed with her son for being the way he is. (He probably needed more spankings, perhaps?) After receiving a letter from him that he will not be her true husband until she has his ring on her finger and his child in her womb, she runs away to plot more schemes. The Countess is upset to see her go, but not too distressed since she has a full-time Clown to entertain her and make bawdy jokes night and day.

Bertram and his companions are in Florence, in the army, and when they're not off, you know, fighting, he is busy trying to have his way with various women. One woman that he is wooing is named Diana, she is the daughter of a widow woman. This widow-woman just happens to meet up with Helena--Helena has followed her husband secretly to Florence--and oh the plotting that these two do!

Can Helena (with some help, of course) win her husband's heart?

My thoughts on All's Well That Ends Well:

This is my first time with this play. I was a little nervous tackling it all on my own. But it was surprisingly easy to follow. At least surprisingly easy to follow....for being Shakespeare. I think the fact that it is a comedy, and that the jokes still translate (at least relatively so) as funny all these centuries later just shows you how some things never change. Is Helena stupid for loving a man who doesn't love her back? Should the Countess--or the King, or the Widow--have just told her that 'he's just not that into you'? Does Helena's loving Bertram make her weak by today's standards? Shouldn't Bertram have some say in who he marries? After all, it is his life. And couldn't Helena's persistent devotion be seen as proof of how stubborn she is? And if she's stubborn about this, she could very well turn out to be stubborn in everything else. I'm not saying Helena's wrong, not really, every single character--almost every single character anyway--seems to praise Helena as being the essence of a good woman, a great woman, an amazingly wonderful woman. But does the reader have enough proof that this is so? She does save the King's life, and that is something, and while her motives may be double in nature--wanting the king's favor to grant her Bertram--she probably does want to see him live for his own sake. And she does save the king by her own skill, her own smarts, so that says something: she is smart in some things at least. Why does she love Bertram? Why is he 'the one' for her? What makes him so wonderful in Helena's eyes? (Fortunately, Shakespeare was no Stephenie Meyer else all Helena's speeches would talk about his eyes.) Do we as readers need to know? It's always nice if we're shown why a hero and heroine belong together. (I think that is why I heart Much Ado About Nothing so much!!!) If the reader comes to feel what the heroine feels, then we have a connection with both hero and heroine. It makes for a more satisfying story. And that is something that is definitely lacking in All's Well That Ends Well. Helena loves him. End of story. Throw a party.

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With a title like "All's Well That Ends Well," I feel it's not much of a surprise that things end well. For me to be convinced that things were really well, I'd need to feel that Bertram grew up...at least grew up a little. What has Bertram done to prove to readers that he is good-husband-material? Nothing. At all. Sure, he says he'll be a good and true husband to her. But really, what else can he say with all his boasting of how he came to care for her only after Helena's "death"? He could talk big to his mother and to his king when he thought his wife was dead. Yes, I repented of not loving her. Yes, I'm a fool. But having come to love her though too late, I'm a better man now. Can I get married to this other chick, now? I'm suspicious of Bertram still. Why? Because he's not honest. That and he's stupid. He's stupid for thinking he can get away with telling lie after lie. (I wouldn't have been surprised to hear him say emphatically and imploringly, I did not have sex with that woman.) Bertram's also insulting. Not only does he insult Helena (a few times to her face, but mostly by letter), he's insulting to Diana as well. When Diana is before the king, confessing all, he uses the old sure-but-she's-just-a-whore excuse. Of course, Diana wasn't a whore. She's a maiden still, as the reader well knows. (I personally would have written in a few face slaps. You know how Jack Sparrow is always getting his face slapped by women he's done wrong, well, Bertram needs a comeuppance.) Can Helena change Bertram? Really? Truly? Is a happily ever after likely here?

Why did I feel inspired to read this play? Well, I'm in Liv's A Shakespearean Summer Reading Challenge.

Have you read All's Well That Ends Well? Did you like it? What do you think are the chances for these two being happy together? Have you seen a good production of this play? I'd love to hear about it if you have! If you've not read the play (or even if you have, I suppose), what is it about Shakespeare that you love or hate most?

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

A Shakesepearan Summer

Liv is hosting "A Shakespearean Summer" reading challenge. Here are her rules for the challenge:

So onto the rules. 1. You must read three plays by Shakespeare between June 1st and August 31st. There's a list of all of his stuff toward the bottom of this page. 2. After you've finished reading one, do a post about it on your blog. Link back to this original post in your own post so people can see what it's all a part of. 3. If you don't have a blog, leave your thoughts in the comments of this post so there's some sort of documentation. 4. The Sparknote versions of the plays can count. Because yes, Shakespeare is hard to understand and sometimes we might need a little help along the way. I know that I'll be reading some Sparknotes. 5. Have fun.

Lisa Mantchev--one of my favorite, favorite, favorite people. (And no, she didn't give me a cupcake to say that!) is the sponsor for the challenge. And successful participants who complete the challenge are entered to win some prizes. And since one of those prizes is an autographed hardback copy of Eyes Like Stars, I am so there!

My three plays:

1. All's Well That Ends Well
2. Antony and Cleopatra
3. The Taming of the Shrew



© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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