jenni3penny's review
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
charlottesometimes's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
mora55's review against another edition
not to be a snob but this one would have been better if shakespeare had written all of it. turns out almost all the parts i disliked were fletcher. he lacks nuance.
gillothen's review against another edition
4.0
Shakespeare's last play, a collaboration with Fletcher, who definitely seems to have been channelling *early* Shakespeare in his bits, while the Man himself writes in his familiar, convoluted late style. Weird plot taken from Chaucer lacks the level of psychological realism one might have expected from Will, but there's some extremely good verse in it.
Read as the final text in the Shakespeare Institute group read of the Complete Works, October 2018 - March 2019.
And again as part of the SI online reading marathon during the locked-down summer of 2020. Some really good readers somewhat shifted my feelings about the play; I found the Jailer's Daughter plot very moving, while the testosterone poisoning of the lead characters was even more repellent.
Read as the final text in the Shakespeare Institute group read of the Complete Works, October 2018 - March 2019.
And again as part of the SI online reading marathon during the locked-down summer of 2020. Some really good readers somewhat shifted my feelings about the play; I found the Jailer's Daughter plot very moving, while the testosterone poisoning of the lead characters was even more repellent.
muchadoaboutnothing's review against another edition
„you know what bro“
„what bro“
„if i had to choose between you and the world, i‘d choose the world“
„bro…“
„you know why bro“
„why bro“
„because you‘re my world bro“
„b r o“
— arcite and palamon in prison, probably
„what bro“
„if i had to choose between you and the world, i‘d choose the world“
„bro…“
„you know why bro“
„why bro“
„because you‘re my world bro“
„b r o“
— arcite and palamon in prison, probably
danilanglie's review against another edition
4.0
This may be the most "obscure" of Shakespeare's plays, because it wasn't actually attributed to Shakespeare's canon for a long stretch. I knew absolutely nothing about it going in, and after finishing it, I have to say I'm pleasantly surprised.
This play touches on some of the same themes that Shakespeare likes to look at a lot. People in disguises, women being sold off into marriage, and, most strikingly, the platonic love between two men vs. the romantic love between a man and a woman. The same theme is explored in [b:The Two Gentlemen of Verona|82346|The Two Gentlemen of Verona|William Shakespeare|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327936223s/82346.jpg|1070598], but honestly I think it works better here. There's more time spent showing the true friendship and respect that the two cousins have for one another, and their reconciliation has a tragic twist to it, as one of them lies dying. It was something of a novel experience to read a Shakespeare play and legitimately not know how it was going to end. Obviously the plot is ridiculous and makes very little sense, but I was still kind of... touched? by how it all turned out.
I could have done without the whole subplot with the crazy jailer's daughter though. That was just kind of odd.
This play touches on some of the same themes that Shakespeare likes to look at a lot. People in disguises, women being sold off into marriage, and, most strikingly, the platonic love between two men vs. the romantic love between a man and a woman. The same theme is explored in [b:The Two Gentlemen of Verona|82346|The Two Gentlemen of Verona|William Shakespeare|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327936223s/82346.jpg|1070598], but honestly I think it works better here. There's more time spent showing the true friendship and respect that the two cousins have for one another, and their reconciliation has a tragic twist to it, as one of them lies dying. It was something of a novel experience to read a Shakespeare play and legitimately not know how it was going to end. Obviously the plot is ridiculous and makes very little sense, but I was still kind of... touched? by how it all turned out.
I could have done without the whole subplot with the crazy jailer's daughter though. That was just kind of odd.
tiny_brain_energy's review against another edition
Content: *
Length: *
Writing: *
Yep, I knew it. My tiny brain can't handle this. I read the 1894 editon. I could not follow conversations, so I skipped parts. I'm not going to rate this. Just because I had trouble with this edition, that doesn't mean it's horrible or anything. It's just me. At least I read (most) of it, and completed the ebook.
Length: *
Writing: *
Yep, I knew it. My tiny brain can't handle this. I read the 1894 editon. I could not follow conversations, so I skipped parts. I'm not going to rate this. Just because I had trouble with this edition, that doesn't mean it's horrible or anything. It's just me. At least I read (most) of it, and completed the ebook.
greenwoodspicers's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
sofiacanread's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
luciesjesse's review against another edition
3.0
another one i read for school but i loved this one so much. also it’s gay as shit.