The Winter’s Tale

Still on drama. Still on Shakespeare. Still on his later works. This one, The Winter’s Tale,* a true tragedy.

Where the “great tragedies” deal in the truly tragic — and pretty much only the tragic — this true tragedy does more. And less: less tragic. For sure. But more? The more: Recreation. Regeneration. Rebirth.

Ahhh…. makes me reminisce a little. Bear with me, sorry. Anyway. So, I had to pick up that book I read every Christmas break from the time I was about 16 to the when I was probably 22 or 23. So it’s been at least 21 years since I’ve read it. And I must say, when I read, where did the ducks go* that really got me. I guess you had to be there.

Anyway, so back to Shakespeare.

The foolish king, too eager to believe his own stupid fantasies (sound familiar?), suffers great and tragic loss (oh, too familiar). Then later, his colleague, equally foolish (at least at the time), comes very close to suffering his own tragic loss. What is with these king-fools? Really!

But thank goodness! No more tragedy! The foolish kings realize how silly they were and each learns his lesson. Yay! It almost seems too easy.