As You Like It by William Shakespeare
"All the world's a stage
And all the men and women are merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages"
Yay! I have finally finished reading my first Shakespeare play off of my own back and although it was hard, I loved it. After finally being taught how to actually read and enjoy Shakespeare in A2 literature I set myself a target for the summer which I am slowly accomplishing.
It's supposed to be a comedy and if I had read it with others then I might have seen the humour but it was hard to understand some parts so I was constantly referring to the internet which possibly made it lose the humour. It's also a romance, although Shakespeare didn't categorise it as that! I'm not usually into romances and I think that's why it took me so long to get through it because I have little interest in them.
The lack of deaths surprised me and made me realise that Shakespeare doesn't need to kill everyone like he did in King Lear. However, like in King Lear there are too many disguises which you lose track off sometimes so need to keep paying attention.
The play is about Rosalind, a banished daughter falling in love with the banished son Orlando. It is about people having to change not only their values but also their identity to save their true selves. Rosalind is supported by Celia, her cousin.
"Tears do not become a man"
I love this quote because it doesn't just have to be used for a man but also anything. Crying just makes you feel worse when that act in itself is in no way productive.
I hope you enjoyed this as hopefully there will be more reviews on Shakespeare as I am planning to cram as much reading in before September.
