Breaking Down the Bard - Tarry, rash wanton!

The first Shakespeare play I ever did was A Midsummer Night's Dream, when I was in sixth grade. I've done it several times over as an adult, and there is one line that was completely butchered - in meaning AND pronunciation - in two of the productions I've done: Tarry, rash wanton!

These are three words that are pretty much extinct in our modern world, strung together. It's not really surprising that it trips people up all the time, but since Midsummer is among the most popular of Shakespeare's plays in both schools and professional theatre, you should definitely know what it means.

Tarry means "stay". Rash means "hasty" or "impulsive". Wanton is not to be confused with the delicious Chinese food dumpling (wonton); and it is pronounced WAHN-tuhn. Wanton has a few different meanings, ranging from a wild and carefree person, to a tomboy, to a sexually promiscuous woman. If you want to learn how to use Alexander Schmidt's Lexicon, which can help you understand just about any word as used by Shakespeare in the contexts of his plays, I have a step-by-step guide here.

Each production can choose which interpretation of wanton they prefer, but a loose "translation" could be:

"Hang on, you reckless skank!"

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Breaking Down the Bard - Quatrains

Last week on Breaking Down the Bard, I explained couplets, or two lines of verse in a row which have an ending rhyme. This week, we'll be looking at another popular rhyme structure in Shakespeare's works: quatrains.

Luciana (The Comedy of Errors)
If you did wed my sister for her wealth,
Then for her wealth's sake, use her with more kindness:
Or if you like elsewhere, do it by stealth,
Muffle your false love with some show of blindness

See how "wealth" rhymes with "stealth" in the first and third lines, and "kindness" with "blindness" in the second and fourth lines? These four lines of alternating ending rhymes make a quatrain.

Here's another way to visualize it:
___________ A
______________B
____________A
______________B   

Lysander (A Midsummer Night's Dream)
Fair love, you faint with wand'ring in the wood:
And to speak troth I have forgot our way.
We'll rest us, Hermia, if you think it good,
And tarry for the comfort of the day.

Getting the hang of this? "Wood" rhymes with "good," and "way" rhymes with "day."

Quatrains can even be shared among characters:

Romeo (Romeo and Juliet)
Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?

Juliet
Ay, pilgrim, lips that they must use in prayer.

Romeo
O then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do,
They pray - grant thou, lest faith turn to despair. 

Romeo and Juliet are so in tune with each other that they can rhyme while they flirt! 

Now you can identify what a quatrain is, and you're going to impress everyone when you're doing tablework for your next show!

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Breaking Down the Bard - Couplets

There are two main styles of poetic rhyming that we find in Shakespeare's verse: couplets and quatrains. Being able to easily and quickly identify them will make you look like an absolute rock star in any cold-reading audition, and give you opportunities for some really fun choices.

Today, we're going to look at couplets, sometimes called "rhyming couplets" (which is redundant, but whatever), or "heroic couplets". A couplet is where the endings of two lines of verse in a row rhyme with each other. For example:

Helena (A Midsummer Night's Dream)

Wherefore was I to this keen mockery born?

When at your hand did I deserve such scorn?

Claudius (Hamlet)

My words fly up, my thoughts remain below.

Words without thoughts never to heaven go.

Luciana (The Comedy of Errors)

Gaze when you should, and that will clear your sight.

Antipholus of Syracuse

As good to wink, sweet love, as look on night.

See that? "Born" rhymes with "scorn", "below" with "go", and "sight" with "night". 

Characters can speak in pairs of couplets at length in a monologue - the above couplet of Helena's is from a longer speech of couplets.

Couplets are sometimes used to indicate the end of a scene, or before a shift in the action, like the couplet from Hamlet's Claudius. The scene is mostly rhyme-free, but given a nice "button" with couplets right at the end.

Other times, couplets are shared throughout the scene and among characters. This can be a lot of fun to play with, as it could mean that the characters are on the same level, and in agreement, or sparring, kind of like a rap battle, or that they're in love. Looking at a few additional lines from the same scene of The Comedy of Errors demonstrates this type of back-and-forth.

Luciana

What, are you mad that you do reason so?

Antipholus of Syracuse

Not mad, but mated - how, I do not know.

Luciana

It is a fault that springeth from your eye.

Antipholus of Syracuse

For gazing on your beams, fair sun, being by.

Luciana

Gaze when you should, and that will clear your sight.

Antipholus of Syracuse

As good to wink, sweet love, as look on night.

Luciana

Why call you me love? Call my sister so.

Antipholus of Syracuse 

Thy sister's sister.

Luciana

              That's my sister.

Antipholus of Syracuse 

                              No;

The scene continues, with Antipholus trying to woo Luciana, but did you see that exquisite shared line of verse just now? Thy sister's sister. / That's my sister. / No; is all one line of verse, rhyming with the previous line: Why call you me love? Call my sister so. I think this could be really hot in performance, as the pace seems to quicken!

Next week on Breaking Down the Bard: Quatrains!

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Breaking Down the Bard - Soft

Romeo

He jests at scars that never felt a wound.

But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?

It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.

Olivia

Thy tongue, thy face, thy limbs, actions and spirit

Do give thee fivefold blazon. Not too fast! Soft, soft!

Unless the master were the man. How now?

Even so quickly may one catch the plague?

Gloucester

And thus I clothe my naked villainy,

With odd old ends stol'n forth of holy writ,

And seem a saint, when most I play the devil.

But soft, here come my executioners.

How now, my hardy, stout, resolved mates,

Are you now going to dispatch this thing?

The word "soft" is already in your vocabulary as the antonym of "hard", and the opposite of "loud". But when you run across this word in Shakespeare's text used as you see in the examples above, it doesn't really seem to mean "cushy" or "quiet". Sometimes, words that used to have several definitions have only maintained a few of them as time passed and language has evolved, so we need to dig a little deeper to understand the true meaning of a seemingly familiar word in its 400-year-old context.

This is an instance where Alexander Schmidt's Lexicon doesn't offer a lot of help:

However, a father and son pair of Shakespeare scholars, David Crystal and Ben Crystal, explore the possible meanings a bit further in their glossary, Shakespeare's Words. (Their website is a phenomenal resource, and can be found here.) Check out the fourth "soft" down:

In the above instances (and many more), the word "soft" is spoken as a sort of interjection. It interrupts the action, and shows a shift in the direction that the scene is about to go. 

In Act II, Scene 2 of Romeo & Juliet, Romeo is hiding from his friends, Benvolio and Mercutio, who were loudly searching for him and mocking him. The appearance of Juliet surprises him. Whether he anticipated her arrival or he just lucked out, this is an exciting change of events, so Romeo's "But soft" is basically another way to say "hold up", or "hang on"!

Olivia is having an exciting moment for her "Soft, soft!" in Twelfth Night's Act I, Scene 5. Although she has sworn off courtship to mourn her father and brother, when she meets the Viola (in disguise as "Cesario"), she is smitten. Alone onstage, she recalls portions of their previous conversation and then lists several of Cesario's best attributes before saying "Not too fast! Soft, soft!" She may be sprung, but she's practically saying "slow your roll!" She hardly knows the guy, but she can't deny her feelings, which propels a lot of action in this play .

Finally, in Richard III, Act I, Scene 3, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, is bragging about how well he is fooling everyone into thinking that he's a good guy in one of his several soliloquies. Then, the two murderers he has hired to kill his brother arrive, and he shifts back into the scene with "But soft, here come my executioners." He might as well say, "wait a moment" as he turns the focus to these new characters.

When you see "soft" used in this way, especially in a soliloquy or aside, be on the lookout for a change in the energy and direction of the scene. Think of it as "hold up", "wait", "just a sec", or even "slow your roll, girlfriend", and you'll help the audience follow your character's journey!

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Breaking Down the Bard - Fair

Helena (A Midsummer Night's Dream)

How happy some o'er othersome can be!

Through Athens, I am thought as fair as she.

But what of that? Demetrius thinks not so...

Audrey (As You Like It)

Well, I am not fair, and therefore I pray the gods make me honest.

Chorus (Romeo & Juliet)

Two households, both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene...

You may have guessed that the word "fair" is ALL OVER THE PLACE in Shakespeare's plays. It's a word that we, in the 21st century, primarily use to mean "just, in accordance with the rules or standards; legitimate." And sure, it often means that in Shakespeare's text, too, but it also has a few other definitions, most notably "beautiful", "of a white complexion", and "clear, unspotted, pure." Sometimes, it even means "kind", "good", or even "honorable." 

(Side note: Alexander Schmidt's Shakespeare Lexicon and Quotation Dictionary is a great resource - and here's how to use it.)

One thing that we have to be aware of when we approach Shakespeare's plays 400+ years after they were written is the ideals of the people presenting the plays and the intended audience. Shakespeare's audience seemed to enjoy, appreciate, and idealize their definition of beauty. This type of "fair" includes people of a pale complexion (particularly ladies), and people with blonde hair.

This is especially apparent in a play like A Midsummer Night's Dream, where the two young ladies, Hermia and Helena, are rivals. Helena mentions in her soliloquy at the beginning of the play that "through Athens, I am thought as fair as she". As the play progresses, we see numerous references to Hermia being darker in color (in hair or skin, it isn't specified): "Not Hermia, but Helena I love./ Who will not change a raven for a dove?" is Lysander's love declaration to Helena. As the "dove" in this metaphor, she would be more "fair" (light in color) than a "raven", and therefore more beautiful to Elizabethans than the darker Hermia.

In As You Like It, Audrey says that she is "not fair", which probably means "not beautiful", but also likely means "not pale." Many characters we meet in the Forest of Arden are shepherds and goatherds, and they would spend a great deal of time in the sun. To many Elizabethans, being pale was part of being ideally beautiful, so the idea of Audrey using "fair" in the "pale/beautiful" context holds up. In the same play, Phebe is insulted when her features are described as dark: "He said mine eyes were black and my hair black..." The amazing thing about Shakespeare's writing is that even though his characters' ideals of beauty may be different from what ours currently are, he makes it abundantly clear that this is what matters in this particular society of the play!

In these instances and many others, "fair" is a synonym for "beautiful." This can apply to objects as well as people:

Proteus (The Two Gentlemen of Verona)

But pearls are fair...

Sometimes, "fair" means "good":

Olivia (Twelfth Night)

Let thy fair wisdom, not thy passion, sway

In this uncivil and unjust extent

Against our peace.

Finally, let's look at the opening lines from Romeo & Juliet. "Fair Verona" could mean a great many things: a beautiful city, a just and lawful place, a place without blemish (i.e. nothing bad happens here), it's elegant, and even fortunate. Any and all of these choices are accurate descriptions of the Verona we see in the text - until things go horribly wrong! 

"Fair" is a very common word in Shakespeare's plays, and now you'll have a jumping off point for what it means in different contexts!

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My Not-So-Guilty Pleasure

I am a sap for all things motivational and inspirational. The Olympics. Hallmark commercials. Quote images on Instagram. These are things that make me feel all the feels, and I am not too ashamed to admit it. The worst offender at the moment is the quote images on Instagram. I love love LOVE quote images. I don't even care if it's a famous person's quote or not; if the pic is pretty and there are words, there's a 90% guarantee I'll double-tap that.

Side note: I hate when quotes are attributed to someone who never said them, but that's another post.

I am fully aware that most of these are cliches, and not particularly well thought out. I don't care. It's my not-so-guilty pleasure, just like yours might be watching Empire or singing along to the Spice Girls' first album in your car. Here's what goes through my head:

This one. YES! Life is hard but DON'T YOU DARE GIVE UP! Also, pretty blue sky and lake and is that a sailboat? Where is that? I want to go to there!

This is SO TRUE! Also, I want to go hiking so bad! When will winter be over?! Oops, I guess that was kind of like "counting the days", wasn't it? Look how green and lush it is!

A SUNSET! I love sunsets! I want to be an adventurer, with someone who calls me "darling", like we're in a movie in the 1940's with those adorable Mid-Atlantic accents!

I like what I do! That's why I'm so happy!!! This quote GETS ME. Also, mountains. *sigh*

OMG a DEER! And it's in the forest and it's magical! I want to do all the things that are good for my soul - like finding that deer in that forest and hugging it.

... It pretty much goes on like that until my boyfriend gives me a look that means "get off your phone and have a human conversation, please." I know that some of them are absolutely lame, but I still like them!

What are YOUR guilty pleasures? Are you as obsessed with motivational quote images as I am?

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Breaking Down the Bard - Doubt

I'm sure you're aware that Shakespeare's English and our modern English have a lot of differences; "thee", "thou", "wherefore", etc. There are plenty of words that Shakespeare used that we don't use anymore, but there are others that have lasted 400 years, and have evolved over that time... kind of like how "literally" can also now mean "figuratively". No matter how you feel about it, languages change and evolve over time.

Today, we're going to look at one such word: doubt. To us, this word commonly means "to hesitate to believe". Back in Shakespeare's day, doubt had another meaning: "to fear, or be apprehensive about, suspect", as well as the meaning that has endured to modern day.

Take this line from Hamlet, Act I, Scene 2:

My father's spirit - in arms! All is not well,

I doubt some foul play. Would the night were come!

Till then, sit still my soul. Foul deeds will rise,

Though all the earth o'erwhelm them to men's eyes.

When Hamlet says "I doubt some foul play", we need to think critically about which definition of doubt he means. I think an easy way to do this is to replace the word "doubt" with the word "fear", and see if it makes sense:

My father's spirit - in arms! All is not well,

I fear some foul play. Would the night were come!

Then try the same line with "don't believe" in place of "doubt":

My father's spirit - in arms! All is not well,

I don't believe some foul play. Would the night were come!

The "fear" version makes sense, where as "don't believe" doesn't, so now we know that Hamlet is worried that something bad is going on, and can't wait to see for himself what's going on and if the ghost will come back tonight.

Next time you see "doubt" in your lines, you can quickly determine which definition is intended, and you'll be sure to impress!

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