http://thereformedbroker.com/2009/05/28/quick-shakespeare-lesson-for-the-troglodytes/ I’d prefer not to lump myself in with the “troglodytes”, but this post does make me curious.  I think most of the regular readers here recognize the problem with the quote – people take “winter of our discontent” out of context, and never follow up with the “made glorious summer” bit. What I just learned, I think, is that “winter of our discontent” is not a standalone phrase that generically means “period of time when we are generally gloomy and unhappy with how things are going.”  I realize that in order to understand what’s being said in the play itself you have to put them together, but I guess I always kind of figured that it was two separate things – this period of our life is coming to a close because this new, happier day is dawning. What the blog poster argues, which is new to me, is that “winter” itself implies the transition, so it is not appropriate to just use it by itself.  It’s not translated as “This dark time for us is coming toa a close because of this new dude…” but more accurately, “This transition out of  our dark time has been brought about…”  If you look at it that way, it doesn’t make sense to use it by itself. Did I understand that correctly?  Do you use “winter of our discontent” as a period of time, or as the ending of one?

Ok, it seems that Shakespeare Musicals are now coming out of the woodwork.  Shall we make a list? Rockabye Hamlet The Two Gentlemen of Verona by Galt McDermott (cowriter of HAIR) The Boys From Syracuse (Comedy of Errors) Kiss Me Kate (Taming Of The Shrew)   What else?  I’m not terribly interested in just coming up with a Google list, I’m sure that already exists.  I’d like to hear people’s personal experiences with shows they’ve seen, or maybe even been a part of.  What’s good?  What’s ridiculous? Oh, and let’s not forget Gilligan’s Island…

I know we just did “Wedding Sonnets”, but reading Bardisms recently got me thinking about all those great couple-liners strewn throughout the works that can be used for so much more than just standing up and doing a reading (ala Sonnet 116). So I’m curious to open it up a bit more broadly.  Think about all the different spots in a wedding where a nice Shakespaere quote might fit : * formal reading to those in attendance * a toast, either before or after the ceremony * well wishes from a guest as the videocamera and microphone are passed around * advice for parents to children * lines spoken directly from husband to wife, or vice versa * notes of thanks from wedding couple to groomsmen / bridesmaids ..and so on. For instance on the card for one of my groomsmen, who I knew would “get it”, I wrote “We few, we happy few, we band of brothers, for he who stands with me today shall be my brother.”  I then went on to explain to him my subtle joke – I’d left out the “shed blood” part, figuring there’ll be plenty of that now that I’m married. *badump* So who else has got some good lines?  Pick a context (“advice from father to son”, etc…) and then let us have it.

http://www.vqronline.org/blog/2009/05/26/pound-of-flesh/ This article starts out like it’s going to give us a lesson in cliches that come from Shakespeare, but it’s actually about politics and finance.   Technically it’s both, as the author’s point is that people are using the expression “pound of flesh” so much that they’re starting to use it wrong.

But Mr. Barbera warned against overconfidence, saying that Treasury officials thought they would carefully exact only a pound of flesh from Wall Street by letting Lehman fail, helping teach other investment banks not to take excessive risks. ‘But,’ he said, ‘it turned out not to be a pound of flesh that was taken. It was a ton.’

I could see where that would bug me, too. :-/