Hamlet, a man of many puns

Hamlet uses many puns as he interacts with his family.  For example, when his mother and stepfather/uncle confront him about his continuing mourning for his father, he tells them that he is not in shadow, but "too much in the sun."  He could be saying that he is surrounded by happy people, but he is also commenting on the fact that his mother remarried to his uncle.  Another example is when he says "A little more than kin, and less than kind," again commenting on his relationship with Claudio.  It is interesting to see how Hamlet uses this technique to help fake his madness

Merchant of Venice or Stratford?

Okay, I meant to write up about this as soon as I got home on Saturday, but I ended up spending pretty much the entire weekend sleeping.  Something about two hours in the car, I guess. . .
Anyway, I went to see the BYU production of the Merchant of Venice, a play that was specifically aimed at kids.  They did a fairly good job of simplifying some of the more complex concepts for the kids, and even went so far as to get some of the kids to participate as minor characters.  It was cute to watch them interact with the kids, especially the shy ones.  There were times when I didn't quite understand what they were saying, but the body language made a huge difference in understanding some of the passages I had read previously.  There are three important things I wanted to talk about:  Antonio being Antonia, the use of necklaces to designate allegiance to a country, and Shylock as a character.

The first thing I noticed while reading the program was that Antonio, from the original play, had become Antonia in this adaptation.  At first I assumed that they must have had more girls than guys, but that didn't answer all of my questions.  Then, as I was watching the part of the play where Bassanio says that he would pay any price, even losing his wife, to save his friend, I suddenly understood Portia's jealous reaction.  Bassanio and Antonia had been friends for years.  Portia had only just been married to Bassanio, and didn't know him very well.  Maybe Antonia also liked Bassanio, and that was why she was so sad at the beginning of a play.  When Antonia was Antonio, there was almost a hint at a gay theme in the play.  This way, it is easier for my mind to grasp the love triangle that could exist between these three.

When reading the play, it upset me that Shylock had to give up his religion to save his life.  Watching the production brought this point home.  The important people of the land wore necklaces with a blue star on them.  Shylock, being from another land, wore one with an orange spiral.  When Shylock swears fealty to the dominant culture, he throws down his necklace and his hat.  The imagery there almost made me cry.  By taking away his religion, or his culture, Antonia and the Duke were taking away his very identity.  This did not strike me as fair at all.

The idea of fairness brings me to my third observation.  At first glance, one sees that Shylock showed no mercy, and so little mercy was shown to him.  Then I started thinking, what if one person had shown kindness to Shylock, instead of pulling him down, ostracizing him and insulting him.  Maybe, he would not have been so bitter towards Antonia and all that she stood for.  Maybe then he would have shown mercy towards her, instead of demanding a pound of her flesh.  It is hard to say what could have happened.

Portia and Ophelia: Honor and Duty

Okay, my next series of posts will be comparing different characters, mostly ones from plays we have read :D
The first duo I am doing is Portia and Ophelia.  Both girls chose to follow the wishes of their fathers, with drastically different results.  One ends up "happily?" married, while the other goes crazy and dies.  I think the main difference between the two girls is that Ophelia is docile and unsure of herself, while Portia is confident and daring.  While Ophelia stars in a tragedy, Portia is part of a comedy.  Ophelia follows the traditional role of a woman, while Portia bounces between being the dutiful woman and breaking tradition.  Ophelia has a pure heart, and is confused when her love rejects her, while Portia sets up her husband by tricking him into giving away the ring he swore to never remove from his finger.  While both girls are seemingly victimized by the decrees of their fathers, the differences in their personalities and actions make Ophelia the more favorable female of the two.

The Bountiful Tempest or A Bountiful Winter's Tale

This clip just goes to show that you can never be too careful, especially when it comes to storms.   I am still counting it as a post for today:

This is on a road many people take home from the temple.  Although I felt bad for the people in the cars, it was also pretty funny. 

The Merchant of Venice: Racist?

The merchant of  Venice plays off some racist stereotypes.  Shylock is the "evil" Jewish money lender, and Antonio is the "good" friend who is victimized by Shylock.  However, if it weren't for Shylock's adament demand that he be given a pound of Antonio's flesh, I might have actually liked him.  It sounded as though Antonio said some pretty derogatory things about Shylock and his fellow Jews.  Antonio also looked down on their profession of lending money with interest.  Although the interest rates seem high now, they were fairly normal back in that time, and money lending was one of the few ways Jews were able to make a profit.  To see some common ways that Europeans set Jews apart, check out the following link:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/heritage/episode4/presentations/4.3.6-1.html
For more about Jewish Stereotypes, check out this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereotypes_of_Jews
I also just read Alicia Tovar's blog.  She discusses more about what sort of statement Shakespeare is trying to make in his play.  Here is the link:
http://tovaralicia382.blogspot.com/2012/01/shylock.html?showComment=1327469270057#c278187373941382486

David Tenant, Hamlet, Doctor Who, and Shakespeare

Okay, the first clip is of my all time favorite actor performing Hamlet's "To Be or Not To Be" speech.  The second is a Doctor Who episode where he goes back in time to meet Shakespeare, and gives him some good ideas and some good quotes.  Maybe someday I will actually post stuff about the play we are actually reading :D

Winston Churchill Speaks Henry V

Although Winston Churchill used different words, he delivered an almost identical message to the St. Crispin's Day Speech:

Shakespeare:

"From this day to the end of the world,

But we shall be remembered—

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;

And gentlemen in England now a-bed

Shall think themselves accursed, they were not here

And hold their manhood cheap whiles any speaks

That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s Day."

Winston Churchill:
"These are not dark days, these are the greatest days our nation has ever lived; and we must thank God that we have been allowed, each of us according to our stations, to play a part in making these days memorable in the history of our race."

Both speak of the importance of the day, and the glory and pride people who participated in the wars would be able to enjoy.  This  is just one of many examples of ways Shakespeare is easily applied to modern situations.  In King Henry V, Shakespeare writes stirring speeches that not only fire up Henry's army, but also stir the audience.  When I listened to the Saint Crispin's Day Speech, I almost cried.  Although I never would have chosen to read this book on my own, I am very glad that we read it in this class.  It has changed my opinion of Shakespeare's historical plays.

Here is the speech online.  I would like to point out the music that accompanies it.  It starts out with strings, which gives you a sense of tense, melancholy emotion.  As the speech begins to climax, trumpets begin to play, which changes the tense melancholy sound to one filled with hope and power.  It is truly inspirational.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-yZNMWFqvM