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Cobbe Portrait of William Shakespeare
Author Archives: Dennis Abrams
“I’ll to the Tuscan wars and never bed her.”
All’s Well That Ends Well Act Two By Dennis Abrams Act Two: The King agrees to Helen’s treatment and to her request that if she succeeds, he will guarantee her the husband of her choosing. He rapidly improves under her … Continue reading
“Twas pretty, though a plague,/To see him every hour, to sit and draw/His arched brows, his hawking eye, his curls,/In our heart’s table – heart too capable/Of every line and trick of his sweet favour.”"
All’s Well That Ends Well Act One By Dennis Abrams ——————————– MAJOR CHARACTERS Countess of Roussillon, a widow Bertram, Count of Roussillon, the Countess’s son Helena, a doctor’s daughter and the Countess’s servant Lavatch, a clown in the Countess’s service … Continue reading
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Tagged act one, All's Well That Ends Well, Bertram, Comedy, Elizabethan theater, entertainment, Hamlet, Helena, language, literature, Parolles, problem play, religion, Shakespeare, William Shakespeare, writing
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“Fundamentally, we seem to misunderstand “All’s Well That Ends Well,” from Samuel Johnson, master of all Shakespeare critics, down to the present.”
Introduction to All’s Well That Ends Well By Dennis Abrams —————— On the surface, it’s a simple tale of a poor physician’s daughter who finds her prince and succeeds in marrying him, but exposed along the way is the realization … Continue reading
Shakespeare Sonnet #135…Plus a Bonus!
William Shakespeare SONNET 135 Whoever hath her wish, thou hast thy ‘Will,’ And ‘Will’ to boot, and ‘Will’ in overplus; More than enough am I that vex thee still, To thy sweet will making addition thus. 4 Wilt thou, whose … Continue reading
“All of them die: the noble ones and the villains; the level-headed ones and the madmen; the empiricists and the absolutists. All choices are bad.”
Othello Act Five, Part Two By Dennis Abrams ——————– Let’s start by finishing up with Jan Kott: “They talk about her even before she has appeared. They shout that she has run away with a Negro. Her image is already … Continue reading
“Then must you speak/Of one that loved not wisely but too well/Of one not easily jealous…”
Othello Act Five, Part One By Dennis Abrams Act Five: At Iago’s bidding, Roderigo attacks Cassio but only managed to wound him, and in the confusion that follows Iago stabs Roderigo to death. Othello, meanwhile, is about to kill the … Continue reading
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Tagged Act Five, Cassio, drama, Elizabethan theater, Elizabethan tragedy, Hamlet, Iago, language, literature, one that loved not wisely but too well, Othello, othello and desdemona, renaissance humanism, Samuel Johnson, Shakespeare, tragedy, William Shakespeare, writing
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“The world’s history is just that of spiders and flies.”
Othello Act Four, Part Two By Dennis Abrams For today’s post, we’re going to be looking at Othello from two very different angles – contemporary and old school. First, from Polish avant-garde activist, critic, and theoretician, from his book Shakespeare … Continue reading
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Tagged Act Four, Desdemona, drama, Elizabethan theater, Elizabethan tragedy, entertainment, Iago, Iago and Othello, Jan Kott, King Lear, language, literature, Macbeth, Othello, othello and desdemona, renaissance humanism, Shakespeare, shakespearean tragedy, tragedy, William Shakespeare, writing
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“Lie with her? Lie on her?”
Othello Act Four, Part One By Dennis Abrams ———————- Act Four: Iago continues to fuel Othello’s growing jealousy, to the point where he collapses in a fit. When he recovers, Iago “arranges” for him to overhear a meeting with Cassio, … Continue reading
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Tagged A.C. Bradley, Act Four, Desdemona, drama, Elizabethan theater, Elizabethan tragedy, entertainment, Falstaff, Hamlet, Iago, language, literature, Othello, renaissance humanism, Shakespeare, Shakesperean tragedy, The Moor of Venice, tragedy, Venice, william hazlitt, William Shakespeare, writing
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“Villain, be sure thou prove my love a whore,/Be sure of it; give me the ocular proof:”
Othello Act Three, Part Two By Dennis Abrams ————————– Othello persuades himself that he is acting rationally by demanding “some proof” of Desdemona’s infidelity, but he fails to take into account Iago’s skill at manipulation – or the mysterious workings … Continue reading
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Tagged absolute horror, Act Three, Cyprus, Desdemona, drama, Elizabethan theater, Falstaff, Hamlet, Henry IV, holy writ, Iago, jealousy, language, literature, Othello, politics, religion, renaissance humanism, Shakespeare, temptation scene, The Moor of Venice, torture, tragedy, Venice, waterboarding, William Shakespeare, writing
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“O, beware, my lord, of jealousy!/It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock/The meat it feeds on.”
Othello Act Three, Part One By Dennis Abrams ———————————- Act Three: When Desdemona intervenes on Cassio’s behalf, Iago suggests to Othello that she is doing so for reasons that go beyond mere friendship. Othello is resistant to Iago’s suggestion at … Continue reading
