Where I Read It Again, And It Got Better

The Two Gentlemen of Verona by William Shakespeare
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

[This is a reread. My review below stands, pretty much; I'll just add that reading it this time from a No Fear edition really is worth it. This is not a difficult play to read, as far as Shakespeare goes, but there were still bunches of lines that I only half understood or just passed over, looking for action. This usually happens when there is simple, everyday language, but it's used in a very different way than what we usually do now. With this help, I understood more of the sarcasm and humor, stuff I didn't even know I missed the first time. Overall, I enjoyed the play more this way, with fewer gaps in comprehension. So--I recommend reading it from these editions. All of Shakespeare. It's not cheating or anything. My preference as a teacher? Read a half page or so in the original, read the modern text on the opposite page (unless you really got all of it the first time), then reread the original bit, or at least skim it. Then go on to the next part in the original language. Best of all the worlds, IMO]
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I should have read this one years ago. It's another very intelligible play (from a 21st century perspective, I mean, especially as compared to more difficult plays) with plot, characters, language, and themes that still readily make sense.

Now I recognize the lines Gwyneth Paltrow's character used to audition in Shakespeare in Love, and I understand some of the plot and setting of Benet Brandreth's Shakespearian historical mystery, The Assassin of Verona. I didn't love that novel, but now I see some of the stuff that didn't work for me comes straight from this play, so I can absolve the author a little...

In this story, a couple of best friends (Proteus, who is changeable, and Valentine, who is a true lover) part a little unhappy with each other because Proteus had fallen in love, and his friend thought that was a betrayal of their friendship. Shortly after Valentine goes to the Duke's court in Milan, Proteus follows, parting sadly with Julia. When he gets there, he joins the service of the beautiful daughter of the duke, Silvia, who is Valentine's love. (Yes, Valentine immediately fell in love, even though he had just chided his friend for that.) Proteus falls in love with her too, betraying both Julia and his best friend. In fact, he reveals the relationship to the duke, getting Valentine exiled so that he can swoop in. Before long, Julia shows up, in disguise, and sees how Proteus has failed her.

Valentine ends up with some nice brigands in the woods, and by the end everybody is out there, getting their heads straight. The conclusion comes very quick--lots of apologies, easy forgiveness, pardons for criminals, and making up all around. It's a happy ending, which I never fault, though I would have liked Proteus to earn it a little more.

But it's fun (ish) to read, and some of the wooing and sarcastic asides that read sort of funny are doubtless improved in a live performance, which I'd like to see sometime.

There's a whole list of continuity errors and naming mistakes throughout (saying Padua when they mean Milan; calling the duke emperor at times; sailing from one land-locked city to another; stuff like that) which could be its own topic. This definitely needed an editor before it went to print, but this is how we got it, and I think it's humanizing. Shakespeare's rough draft errors. LOL.

Good play. It could be a good movie. Maybe it is. As always, I'll go check now. Fingers crossed.

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