Paul wrote: "I don't know how many of you here are British or American and how familiar you are with the British pantomime tradition. In addition, I doubt that the pantomime tradition goes back as far as Shakes..."
Paul, I'd like to return to the issue of Leontes, and whether his conversions are convincing or not. I still have to say, from a psychological perspective, his sudden relinquishing of his conviction about Hermione's infidelity at the end of act three still strikes me as false. The problem is that Leontes comes across as a "stubborn" character. He has invested so much of his own self image in the notion that he has rightly discovered his wife's betrayal, that I can't believe he would so quickly reverse his idea about that. It would reverse a psychological inertia that does not seem like it could be budged so suddenly, regardless of the impetus (such as the oracle, Mamillius' death, and apparently Hermione's as well.) To accomplish that reversal would require one thing-- Time. And of course Time is the chorus that opens up act four. After 16 years, Leontes' change comes across as perfectly plausible.
I think this is not intended to be deep, realistic, character drama. It is more of a "fairy tale" as someone mentioned earlier. Leontes could be introduced as "Once upon a time there was a king who became convinced that his wife had been unfaithful with his closest friend..." In a fairy tale you simply accept certain premises as given. Leontes' jealousy and his change fall into that category. ]]>
Ray
read and liked
Bill 's
review of The Lantern-Bearers and Other Essays:
"Stevenson is a fine essayist, an excellent stylist who finds a middle way between the aggressive bumptiousness of Macaulay and the effete languor of Wilde. He believes in manliness, like any good Victorian, but his concept of manliness is roomy enou...more "
"Stevenson is a fine essayist, an excellent stylist who finds a middle way between the aggressive bumptiousness of Macaulay and the effete languor of Wilde. He believes in manliness, like any good Victorian, but his concept of manliness is roomy enou...more "
bookshelves: classic, drama, shakespeare
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bookshelves: fantasy, librivox
[This is review of the Librivox audiobook version of The Princess and Curdie.:] The Princess Irene's magical grandmother sends the miner boy, Curdie, on a quest, accompanied by a curious beast named Lina. After a series of adventures, Curdie must help the ailing king, Irene's father, confront treason and corruption within his once great kingdom. A wonderful children's fantasy story, with strong allegorical tones. One can easily see why MacDonald was a significant influence on C.S. Lewis for his Narnia books. The unhurried reading for this Librivox recording by Lizzie Driver is delightful, full of wonderfully realized characters.
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bookshelves: horror
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Thanks, all, that sounds easy! ]]>
bookshelves: classic, currently-reading, drama
"Antigone" by Sophocles, (play read 20090807) ****. Antigone's two brothers have killed each other in a battle for kingship over Thebes. Creon, the new king, issues an edict that the body of the usurping brother, Polynices, should not be given the honors of burial but must be left out to the ravages of the elements and wild animals. Placing her duty to family and to the gods higher than her obedience to the state, Antigone refuses to heed Creon's command and buries her brother. Antigone's and Creon's combined pride, stubbornness, and refusal to compromise results in yet another tragedy for the lineage of Oedipus. [Though Campbell's verse translation is somewhat old-fashioned, it suits the Greek tragedy genre very well and makes for an enjoyable read.:]
"King Oedipus" by Sophocles, (play read 20090830) ****. King Oedipus tries to discover and root out the cause of a plague, sent by angry gods, which afflicts his kingdom of Thebes. As the play progresses, this task increasingly dovetails with Oedipus' ominous-- and finally tragic--quest for self-discovery. Oedipus has lived his whole life to avoid fulfilling the prophecy that he would murder his father and marry his mother; but in trying to escape it, he has unwittingly brought it about. Forget the Freudian overlays. This is all about how even the cleverest, most capable individual can never escape the inevitability of fate, because they can never escape who they are.
"Electra" by Sophocles (play, read 20091108) ***. Electra lives under the sway and control of her mother, Queen Clytamnestra, and King Aegisthus, both of whom killed Electra's father, Agamemnon, when he returned from Troy. Electra's life is consumed with mourning for her dead father and with longing for her brother Orestes to return and revenge Agamemnon's death. Finally Orestes does return in secret and kills both Clytamnestra and Aegisthus. In one scene, Clytamnestra admits to her daughter openly that she killed Agamemnon, but she justifies the act as vengeance for Agamemnon's sacrifice of their daughter, Iphigenia. There is also a stark contrast made in the play between Electra who is unconsolable in grief and outspoken about her mother's and step-father's brutal crime, and her sister, Chrysothemis, who recognizes the futility (and outright danger) of railing against a situation that cannot be changed. Electra wilfully prolongs her sense of righteous anger and filial duty, even at the risk of her life, while Chrysothemis simply tries to get along under circumstances she dislikes but which are beyond her control.
"The Trachinean Maidens" by Sophocles (play, read 20091113) **. Deanira, faithful wife of Hercules, waits at home while her husband is abroad performing his fabled labors. After a very prolonged absence, Deanira rejoices to hear that her husband is about to return, but she soon despairs because he has brought with him a second, much younger wife. Foolishly following the advice of Hercules' former rival (a centaur killed by Hercules years earlier), Deanira sends a cloak with the rival's blood as a "love charm" to compel her husband's affection. With his dying words to Deanira, however, the rival had set in motion a scheme to kill Hercules. Instead of winning back her husband's love, the cloak dooms Hercules to an agonizing and prolonged death. Realizing her mistake, Deanira kills herself. While it is interesting to see that the "trophy wife" scenario dates at least as far back as ancient Greece, and Deanira has some worthy meditations on the unfairness of growing old, the play as a whole is not very compelling. ]]>
Martin wrote: "
... a bit more.
I mention Black Ram partly to remind you guys that there is Life outside America (joke), partly as a plug because I'm a sponsor.
They also did an excellent Twelfth Night earlier ..."
Great, Martin, so there'll be at least 3 of us for "The Winter's Tale" discussion... I've never been to Norwich, but if I do go there, I will definitely look up the Black Ram! (Any pubs nearby?)
Cheers,
Ray
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