I can’t say I’m surprised at the dark ending Titus Andronicus treated me to, but that didn’t make it any less disturbing. Here at the end, we have a very poor attempt at subterfuge, the most unrepentant villain I have ever seen, and murders heaped upon murders. The act starts with Lucius hanging out withContinue reading “As bad as it gets”
Category Archives: Shakespeare
The Goths are coming!
The Andronici begin to get back on their feet here in Act IV. I’m all for death and misery in a tragedy, but I was starting to wonder what else could go wrong for Titus without actually killing him. Turns out the destruction of his family and the betrayal of the country he has servedContinue reading “The Goths are coming!”
Surely this is rock bottom
Titus Andronicus continues to decline through the third act. More hands come off and now we add some heads to boot. The Andronici find themselves in deepest mourning and yet, I have the feeling that things can still get worse. Act III is only two scenes and the first one is a doozy. The youngContinue reading “Surely this is rock bottom”
A dark turn
To be fair, I never expected a Shakespearean tragedy to be a barrel of laughs, but Act II of Titus Andronicus went places I was not expecting. I was not overly surprised that there was rape and murder, but I was thrown by the cruelty displayed by some of the characters and even though justContinue reading “A dark turn”
Two weddings and two funerals
Titus Andronicus starts off with a bang and gives us life, death, politics, and betrayal all in one big scene before the Capitol in Rome. The play opens with Saturninus and Bassianus, sons to the recently deceased emperor, arguing over who gets the throne now. Marcus Andronicus, brother to the titular Andronicus, says to waitContinue reading “Two weddings and two funerals”
I read The Comedy of Errors (so you wouldn’t have to)
Wow. I don’t know what to say beyond what’s already been said. The Comedy of Errors was an absolute mess. From the flat characters to the ridiculous setup then right down to all’s well that end’s well final act, I felt nothing so much as confused and irritated. When I began this project, I knewContinue reading “I read The Comedy of Errors (so you wouldn’t have to)”
That was disappointing
I cannot fully express to you how happy I am to be done with The Comedy of Errors. The plot was so confusing and the characters so flavorless that I didn’t find myself enjoying it at all. As I suspected, Act V was hurried mop-up of the plot, consisting of only one scene in whichContinue reading “That was disappointing”
Just open the door!
I knew chances would be slim that I would find The Comedy of Errors funny, but I did not realize how infuriating I would find it. These characters are so far up their own doublets that they can’t solve the most basic problems set before them. Problems such as why everyone is acting like theyContinue reading “Just open the door!”
Poor communication skills = comedy
Act II of The Comedy of Errors was simply an escalation of the confusion sown in the first act. We find our characters getting increasingly angry with one another while refusing to listen to a single goddamn thing anyone else says. I know this is a form of comedy that has lasted into the modernContinue reading “Poor communication skills = comedy”
It’s complicated
Ah, what a relief to move on from the War of the Roses to something a little more lighthearted. The Comedy of Errors is a play that I was wholly unfamiliar with before this reading and what I know so far is that it is really complicated. The first act is incredibly short, but thereContinue reading “It’s complicated”
Hey, Shakespeare! 