Okay, I’m getting pretty fed up with The Comedy of Errors here. Act IV was pretty nuts and I don’t see any way to resolve the story that isn’t just a rushed mess at the end. This act saw everybody get angry with everybody else and both Antipholuses are in danger of going to debtor’s prison. I don’t even really care how this all pans out, because I don’t really care what happens to any of these dummies running around this play. I guess I care what happens to the kitchen maid, but only because I’ve never really met her. You remember the dad from the very beginning of the first act? Yeah, I don’t either.
I wanted to give you a rundown of the act, but every time I try to type out a summary, it gets more confusing than the original text, so I guess Shakespeare is a better writer than I am. The problem is, he shouldn’t have written this particular story. It’s awful and I regret the time I have spent reading and thinking about it. At any rate, Antipholus of Syracuse is trying to leave for home, but is entangled in affairs on Ephesus and Antipholus of Ephesus just wants to go home, but can’t because his wife is angry with him and his courtesan is even angrier. Oh, and both Dromios are beaten several times throughout the act. Why? Because apparently that’s funny.
So, hopefully you see my frustration with this play. Act V is going to be my favorite of the whole play because it’s the end. Other than that, I’m fairly well over this one. Perhaps when I wrap up the whole play a couple entries down the line, I’ll call it “I read The Comedy of Errors so you don’t have to”. That feels nice and bloggy, doesn’t it?
Hey, Shakespeare! 