I almost missed Sonnet Day.

May 20, the anniversary of the first publication of Shakespeare’s Sonnets by Thomas Thorpe in 1609. Over four centuries later, these 154 little poems still manage to capture the full range of human emotion—love, jealousy, beauty, time, mortality—and yet somehow, I nearly let the day slip by without notice.

We Should Celebrate Sonnet Day More

It’s easy to celebrate Sonnet Day — just recite a sonnet. Over the years I’ve seen a number of projects (including Sir Patrick Stewart, during the pandemic) recite all the sonnets. I’m way too much the introvert to ever pull off something like that.

The closest I ever came was at my wedding, where I “recited” Sonnet 17:

Who will believe my verse in time to come
If it were filled with your most high deserts?
Though yet, heaven knows, it is but as a tomb
4Which hides your life and shows not half your parts.
If I could write the beauty of your eyes
And in fresh numbers number all your graces,
The age to come would say “This poet lies;
8Such heavenly touches ne’er touched earthly faces.”
So should my papers, yellowed with their age,
Be scorned, like old men of less truth than tongue,
And your true rights be termed a poet’s rage
12And stretchèd meter of an antique song.
 But were some child of yours alive that time,
 You should live twice—in it and in my rhyme.

And by “recite” in this case I don’t mean “Stood up with a microphone in front of everybody,” I mean, “Whispered it in her ear during our first dance.” See earlier note about life as an introvert.

It’s funny, though — that was 25 years ago. Now, in the context of just talking about Shakespeare, I’ll knock out a sonnet at the drop of a hat. I don’t have that many of them memorized that I can do the whole thing, but I’m usually good for at least an 18 or a 29. I think that raising my kids on Shakespeare, literally singing Sonnet 18 to them for years, probably had something to do with that.

Singing it? Oh my, yes. David Gilmour’s rendition used to be my ringtone.

Truthfully, I hadn’t listened to that version in years. I’m glad I took the time to write this post and find it, I’ve got it playing in the background now and it’s quite the trip down memory lane.

Everybody knows 18, though, so when it comes time to get down and discuss favorites I head for 29. I do love a good sonnet set to music, so for something really different from the above enjoy Rufus Wainwright’s version:

Love love love it.

To wrap this post up, however, I think we’ll leave the last word to the living legend herself, Dame Judi Dench. On a recent episode of the Graham Norton Show, she pulled off an impromptu Sonnet 29 that still stops me in my tracks when I hear it. Seriously, you could dissect it in a classroom. The pause on “thee”. The way she says “lark”. Seriously, chills. Every time.

Happy Sonnet Day, everybody. Shakespeare makes life better.

Is it that time again already? I think I’ve been celebrating Shakespeare’s Birthday almost as long as I’ve been celebrating my own children’s birthdays. Luckily, I don’t spend as much on gifts for him 🙂

It’s going to be a quiet year for us. In past years, I’ve had days dedicated to Shakespeare, where I’ve done marathon posting or spent the day on social media. But, as long-time readers know, I’ve been out of work for 8 months and only recently started a new job! So, naturally, my focus is now (and has been, for the last few weeks) on that. I hope I’ll be forgiven.

That doesn’t mean I’ll let the day go unmarked, though. I’ve got a few ideas for posts. I’ll keep an eye on social media and stay as active as I can.

What’s everybody else doing? Who’s got big plans??

This post is full of spoilers for White Lotus Season 3. You have been warned.

So Season 3 of the hit Max show White Lotus aired its finale this week, and everybody’s talking about how Shakespearean it was. I … didn’t see it. I mean, I saw the show, we were riveted to the show. But at no point did I think, “Oh look, I think that’s a Shakespeare reference.” And I mean come on, we *look* for stuff like that.

Just for something to work off of I’m going to use this article from USA Today which claimed that the finale featured “several plot lines mirroring Shakespearean tragedies,” and how “fingerprints of English playwright William Shakespeare are all over” it. You decide.

Not All Poison Is Romeo and Juliet

A family having a “run-in with poison” is not something that “could be seen as a callback to Romeo and Juliet.” Literally nothing lines up. Father can’t stand the idea of his family’s unhappiness when they learn he’s lost everything, so he tries (and fails) to poison them in a murder suicide situation. It’s like Romeo finding an alive Juliet and poisoning her because he can’t think of a way out of their situation. Not how the story goes. Father character also changes his mind and nobody dies, definitely not how Shakespeare’s version goes.

Nothing From Nothing Equals King Lear?

The show ends with the soundtrack song “Nothing from nothing leaves nothing,” which, of course, must be a deliberate King Lear reference, right? Does it matter that it’s set to a woman who has just come into possession of five million dollars seems to be sailing off to her happily ever after? Sure, she abandoned love (and any sense of moral code she may have had). But how, other than the words, does that say King Lear? Does literally anyone walk away from that play with even the illusion of a brighter future?

No One’s Father Died Before Hamlet

Lastly, we can talk about the one that seems to have the most claim to a Shakespeare connection. Rick is looking for revenge for his father’s murder. Foul and most unnatural murder? We never find out. There’s no brother/uncle. Rick knows who killed his father because his mother told him. Oh, and he’s indecisive about what his revenge will be. So … Hamlet?

While Hamlet carries out his revenge plot to fruition, he dies in a duel just like Rick, with both of them throwing away the love they had to avenge their father.

Uh, wow, hold on. Rick dies when he’s shot in the back, trying to flee the scene and save his girlfriend, who may or may not still be alive, I’m not sure we know for sure. How does either of them throw away the love they had? It’s not like Rick pulls Chelsea in front of him as a shield. Once he knows she’s done, in fact, he immediately stops shooting and tries to get her to safety. Hamlet, on the other hand … Ophelia’s dead and gone when he finally gets his chance for revenge. It’s actually his mother’s death that spurs him into action.

Rick and Ophelia end up in the water, which is supposed to mirror the famous Millais portrait of Ophelia. Visually, sure. Except it’s Hamlet/Rick who gets the visual shot, not Ophelia. And neither of them drowns, both of them had been shot. Rick’s still floating, so he’s hardly the case that the poor wretch was pulled to his muddy death by his heavy soaked garments.

Maybe It’s Me

Like I said, I normally watch tv with my “Shakespeare radar” turned up pretty high. When I saw the new Snow White movie I spotted some As You Like It parallels. But I understand what I’m looking at — just because *I* see it, doesn’t mean the creators intended it that way. If you reach far enough it’s easy to turn anything into Shakespeare.