Monthly Archives: October 2014

Shakespeare is so funny guys

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Seriously, he totally is. I went to go see The Tempest at bard on the beach during the summer, and it was funny! Like, legitimately, I laughed through two-thirds of it funny. I think that sometimes people can get so wrapped up in the idea of Shakespeare as this important literary figure that they forget that his plays were meant not only to be thought-provoking, but also entertaining. It can be hard to see some of his humor in his plays because of the old-timey language, but once you get past that, you really see how fun he is. Seeing his plays acted out makes you see how many puns and sex jokes there are in his plays, and let me tell you: there are A LOT of puns and sex jokes. Even the serious plays (especially the serious plays). On that note, you should totally read this article (http://www.cracked.com/article_20501_7-filthy-jokes-you-didnt-notice-in-shakespeare.html) if you haven’t already—it’s a really good breakdown of Shakespeare’s humor.

As for the Tempest—I feel bad admitting this, but until the lecture, I had no idea there were any other interpretations of it besides just… a story about a wizard? As I was reading it last week, I never thought of it as a play about plays, or a critique of master-slave relations. I just thought it was a play about this wizard who is trapped on an island, and how his daughter finds love.

Also, there was Caliban, who I kinda felt bad for, but not really? I mean, I don’t think he deserved to be enslaved, but he also tried to rape Miranda, which is something I am really not OK with.

What do you guys think?

The Chorus in Antigone

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Reading Antigone, I was surprised at the effect (or lack thereof) the chorus had on the rest of the play.  I have never before read a Greek play, and was taken aback at how the chorus was used. The only other story I’ve read that involved a chorus was the Penelopiad, in which the chorus played a much different role. There, it was used to give another perspective on the events in the novel. In Antigone, the chorus seemed somewhat pointless. They didn’t bring up any points I though needed to be addressed, and were very wishy-washy about who they supported.  The chorus didn’t add anything to the play, didn’t introduce any new perspectives or lead the reader to new understandings. It makes me wonder if the play would maybe even have benefited from having the chorus removed.