Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
Signet / New American Library (1965), Edition: New Ed, Paperback, 176 pages
Description
Drama. Fiction. HTML: The Comedy of Errors is one of Shakespeare's most popular short comedy plays. The plot is driven by two cases of mistaken identity and witty pun-drenched dialogue. Antipholus of Syracuse and his servant of Dromio of Syraceuse visit the town of Ephesus, not realizing that this is the home of Antipholus of Ephesus and Dromio of Ephesus, their twin brothers lost to them at sea years before. Before reuniting, the doppelgangers cause chaos amongst friends and family when they all assemble in Ephesus..
User reviews
LibraryThing member crazyjerseygirl
The story follows that of Platus' Menaechmi, but has little to offer. It is not one of Shakespeare's finest. Much of the dialouge is 'one-liners' and the jokes are bad. I would recommend it for those readers who are familiar with Shakespeare, especially those who want to write. Though the play may
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be easier to understand than the heavier tradgies and the later comedies, it may turn a new reader off of Shakespeare because of it's base humor and Deux ex Mechnae ending. If the immortal bard can make a living after writing this, we all have a chance! Show Less
LibraryThing member Coach_of_Alva
This short adaptation of Shakespeare’s slapstick play about two sets of twins had me laughing at old school sound effects.
LibraryThing member wealhtheowwylfing
Really excellent insults and figures of speech throughout a ridiculous play. This play should not be performed "straight," or read silently--you need a framing device, or great physical comedy, or *something* to bring it up to the level of Shakespeare's other plays. Because there really isn't much
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to this farce, and what little substance there is, is a bit sketchy (ah, beating one's slave--hilarity!). Also, I hate mistaken identity stories, so I was prejudiced against this from the start. Show Less
LibraryThing member lizpatanders
This play probably ties with Twelfth Night for my favorite Shakespeare play of those that I've read. The concept of people constantly mixing up two twins and this wreaking lots of havoc may not be the most advanced ever, but Shakespeare plays it out really well here.This play lives up to its status
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in the comedy of category. I found the humor very situational, and at times couldn't help but laugh at the irony of the characters' circumstances.I also thought that the characterization was quite well done here. The reader actually does get a fair amount of insight into Adriana's marriage with Antipholus of Ephesus and her feelings. I felt that I also got good insight into why things were happening because Shakespeare partially develops these charactesr by talking about the problems (and their anxieties regarding them) which they need to eliminate to avoid being arrested.I also thought this play was a quick read over all. I thought that the characters kept the reader engaged, as did the plot. It left me wanting to know what happened. Even if this play is a comedy, I think there's lots of other good reasons to enjoy it! Show Less
LibraryThing member BrynDahlquis
Great fun! Bit hard to get into at first, but it's hilarious once you do. I feel very sorry for everyone in this play, but that doesn't make it any less funny.
LibraryThing member amerynth
I wasn't surprised to learn that "Comedy of Errors" is one of Shakespeare's early plays. It really seemed unpolished compared to some of his best-known work.
I guess my major objection was with the whole switcharoo premise, which seemed so implausible that I couldn't suspend that much disbelief.
I
I guess my major objection was with the whole switcharoo premise, which seemed so implausible that I couldn't suspend that much disbelief.
I
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perhaps might have enjoyed a performance of the play more than a read of it. Definitely one of my least favorites of the Shakespeare plays I've read. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookworm12
Have you ever seen the 1988 movie Big Business? If you have then you know the general idea of this play’s premise. Two sets of twins are born in the same place on the same night. One set of twins is wealthy, the other is not. The twins are separated at birth and one brother from each set end up
The play is one big case of mistaken identity. Friends, lovers, foes, everyone is completely confused as they run into the brothers and mistake them for their twin. I think this would be an incredibly entertaining play for kids to see, especially if they’re new to Shakespeare’s work. It’s easy to follow and contains lots of big laughs.
In later plays the Bard uses cases of mistaken identity and sets of twins to aid a larger story. This play feels like an early draft of the greater work to come, but it lacks the depth of his other plays.
BOTTOM LINE: This is the shortest and shallowest of Shakespeare’s comedies. I have a feeling it would be really fun to see performed live, but it doesn’t work as well in the written form.
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growing up together as servant and master. Just to add to the confusion, the twins from each pair have the same name. The play is one big case of mistaken identity. Friends, lovers, foes, everyone is completely confused as they run into the brothers and mistake them for their twin. I think this would be an incredibly entertaining play for kids to see, especially if they’re new to Shakespeare’s work. It’s easy to follow and contains lots of big laughs.
In later plays the Bard uses cases of mistaken identity and sets of twins to aid a larger story. This play feels like an early draft of the greater work to come, but it lacks the depth of his other plays.
BOTTOM LINE: This is the shortest and shallowest of Shakespeare’s comedies. I have a feeling it would be really fun to see performed live, but it doesn’t work as well in the written form.
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LibraryThing member AliceAnna
Obviously an earlier work. More slapstick than his more sophisticated humor in his later works. The unfortunate servants serve as the receiving end of a Punch and Judy show. I don't recall that type of humor in his other works. But the "punderful" use of the English language is there from the
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start. Not a very compelling play, but fun nonetheless. Show Less
LibraryThing member vicarofdibley
another of the 1890 wee books from the same series, wonder what else is out there
LibraryThing member wilsonknut
This is one of Will's earlier comedies. There's a lot of slapstick, insults, and raunchy humor. This has the classic line, "She is spherical, like a globe. I could find out countries in her."
LibraryThing member StefanY
I went into this fairly skeptical of how much I would actually enjoy it. I was told that it was Shakespeare's first play and that the only reason that my instructor was having us read it was because it is actually being performed here on campus and we are required to attend the one-night-only
The play is surprisingly easy to follow and understand. The humor is actually funny and I found myself chuckling out loud and enjoying the many puns and instances of word play that take place throughout caused by the many mistakes in identity that occur due to the presence of two sets of long separated twins. The play does require the reader/viewer to suspend reality in order for the premise to work, but all in all, it's quite entertaining and worth checking out if you're interested in this sort of thing.
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performance. Not a glowing recommendation to have before starting a book!The play is surprisingly easy to follow and understand. The humor is actually funny and I found myself chuckling out loud and enjoying the many puns and instances of word play that take place throughout caused by the many mistakes in identity that occur due to the presence of two sets of long separated twins. The play does require the reader/viewer to suspend reality in order for the premise to work, but all in all, it's quite entertaining and worth checking out if you're interested in this sort of thing.
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LibraryThing member katieloucks
Absolutely loved it!! I loved the doubles!!!
LibraryThing member baswood
The Comedy of Errors (Arden Shakespeare)
The Comedy of Errors BBC teleproduction 1983
WHEN IS A FARCE NOT A FARCE
The answer to this question could be when it is written by Shakespeare. People who read and enjoy Shakespeare do so for many reasons, not the least of them are the language, the imagery
The play is set in the mercantile port of Ephesus at some period in classical history: Aegeon a merchant from Syracuse has been arrested and sentenced to death as a result of a trade war between the two city's. He tells a story of how he has landed in search of his identical twin sons and their twin slaves who he has not seen for a number of years as they were separated as a result of a shipwreck. Unbeknown to him one of the twins is a prosperous merchant in Ephesus and the other twin has just landed in search of his brother and family. Both are called Antipholus and both of the slaves are called Dromio and they are so alike that they cannot be told apart. The Syracusan Antipholus is mistaken for the Ephesusian Antipholus and the twin brothers cannot even tell the Dromio brothers apart. The brothers do not get to meet until the end of the story and so in the meantime confusion reigns with even Adriana the wife of Antipholus of Ephesus mistaking his twin for her husband. All the action takes place during one eventful day that is to end with the execution of the hapless Aegeon.
There is a long speech at the very start of the play where Aegon tells the story of his lost family, it is a kind of info-dump that sets the scene, but also hints at possible misfortunes or misadventures. The comedy gets going as soon as Dromio from Ephesus sees Antipholus from Syracuse and mistakes him for his master and urges him to return home to his mistress Adriana; who is impatiently waiting to eat lunch. Antipholus is more concerned with the result of an errand that he has sent his Dromio on involving a hefty sum of money. From this moment on Shakespeare keeps the two sets of twins apart with the result that no one seems to be making any sense, but it usually ends with one of the Dromios getting a beating. The stuff of a knockabout farce and when jewellery, sums of money, unpaid debts, a courtesan and a schoolmaster and conjuror become involved then the humour goes into some sort of overdrive. The Dromio twins have an uneasy relationship with their masters who value them for their wit and service, but do not suffer their foolishness gladly. The repartee between master and slave sparkles with wit and invention as each of the Antipholuses who are touchy at best become mad with rage at the confusion and their inability to understand what is going on. Complications follow on hard on the heels of each other until both sets of brothers find themselves under restraint for disturbing the peace. The misadventures are all to do with the mistaken identity, there are no conniving servants or malicious traders involved, no plots to relieve the brothers of their money, but Antipholus of Syracuse soon becomes convinced witchcraft is involved and Antipholus from Ephesus becomes paranoid.
Shakespeare ramps up the comedy as the play progresses, but there are deeper issues involved. Antipholus of Ephesus relationship with his wife Adriana comes under scrutiny, she is not just impatient for his lateness in returning for lunch but sees this incident as a reflection of the state of her marriage. This is not helped when after persuading the wrong Antipholus home to dinner she effectively locks her husband out in the street while her guest makes eyes at her sister Luciana. Adriana complains to Luciana that husbands have too much freedom:
"ADRIANA. Why should their liberty than ours be more?"
Luciana puts her straight in a speech which is of it's time:
"Why, headstrong liberty is lash'd with woe.
There's nothing situate under heaven's eye
But hath his bound, in earth, in sea, in sky.
The beasts, the fishes, and the winged fowls,
Are their males' subjects, and at their controls.
Man, more divine, the master of all these,
Lord of the wide world and wild wat'ry seas,
Indu'd with intellectual sense and souls,
Of more pre-eminence than fish and fowls,
Are masters to their females, and their lords;
Then let your will attend on their accords.
ADRIANA. This servitude makes you to keep unwed.
LUCIANA. Not this, but troubles of the marriage-bed."
The outrageous beatings suffered by the Dromio twins at the hands of masters and mistresses are stock in trade for Elizabethan comedy, but this feels overdone. The treatment of servants which in many instances were little more than slaves during the period were known to be harsh, but the Antipholus twins seem to want it both ways, in one instance they are encouraging their Dromios to be friendly and engage in witty conversation while in the next instance they become annoyed, which soon results in physical abuse. The Dromios are the the most impressionistic and sympathetic characters in the play and contrast with the more aloof and cold personalities of the Antipholus twins.
The city of Ephesus is a proto-capitalist credit dependent economy. Stability and credit worthiness are everything; as soon as a suspicion of indebtedness is cast then a victim is identified. Everyman has his price. The poor unfortunate Aegeon who is bound to be executed could buy off his execution if he could raise 100 ducats, but no one in the city deems him credit worthy. Antipholus of Ephesus is a product of the city his scheme to repair his relationship with Adriana is to have a gold chain made for her and he knows this will be accepted, but when this chain gets caught up in the confusion of the mistaken identities he is in trouble. Antipholus is almost reduced to apoplexy, he becomes incandescent with rage.
The Comedy of Errors is one of Shakespeares earliest plays, perhaps the first comedy that he wrote, probably dating from mid 1594, but could have been a couple of years earlier. It has remained a popular play although in the nineteenth century stripped down and rewritten as a farce imbued with sentimentality. The Boys from Syracuse is a 1940's musical based on the play, but there have been plenty of modern productions that have used much of the original text of the play to make a comedy with added depth. I watched the 1983 BBC production starring Michael Kitchen as the Antipholus twins and an excellent Roger Daltry as the Dromio twins. Directed by James Cellan Jones this production not only made me laugh out loud, but also enabled me to appreciate the structure of the play. This is a comedy first and foremost but it also has other things to say and it all bubbles up to a climax and then a denouement that works particularly well. This production is particularly strong in focusing on the troubled relationship between Antipholus and Adriana, but never loses the fun of the comedy: the witchcraft is treated as a bit of a sideshow but is ever present and the intervention of Doctor Pinch is impressive.
The Arden Shakespeare dates from 2017 and is edited by Kent Cartwright. As usual the background information and notes are extensive with all you need to know to enjoy the play. There is no shortage of information on the internet if you find yourself struggling with the introduction that can be a little over intellectualised. The text however is clear and the notes on the same page as the text work well. This play is superbly entertaining and Shakespeare packed much into what is his shortest play. I loved it and so 5 stars.
The Comedy of Errors BBC teleproduction 1983
WHEN IS A FARCE NOT A FARCE
The answer to this question could be when it is written by Shakespeare. People who read and enjoy Shakespeare do so for many reasons, not the least of them are the language, the imagery
Show More
and the poetry. There are also the wonderful stories the subtle plotting and the resolutions that always seem to make perfect sense of what has gone before. Shakespeare is read also for his his commentary on the human condition, his is a voice that can leap across 420 odd years of time and still make sense to many of his readers in the 21 century. The problems with this aspect is that many readers expect too much from him and worry about those aspects of life in Elizabethan times that are frankly abhorrent to many of us today. Because in my view the value of Shakespeare is also in his acute observations of Elizabethan life and his ability to write plays that were entertaining to the audience that watched them. They would have been able to relate to the events on the stage and recognise issues that impacted on their lives and those of the social spheres above or below them, but there are some aspects that make the modern viewer/reader uneasy, squirming perhaps in their seats. The Comedy of Errors can be one of those plays: slavery, marriage and mercantilism all seem to hold us back from laughing out loud at the farce of the mistaken identities that form the central structure of the play.The play is set in the mercantile port of Ephesus at some period in classical history: Aegeon a merchant from Syracuse has been arrested and sentenced to death as a result of a trade war between the two city's. He tells a story of how he has landed in search of his identical twin sons and their twin slaves who he has not seen for a number of years as they were separated as a result of a shipwreck. Unbeknown to him one of the twins is a prosperous merchant in Ephesus and the other twin has just landed in search of his brother and family. Both are called Antipholus and both of the slaves are called Dromio and they are so alike that they cannot be told apart. The Syracusan Antipholus is mistaken for the Ephesusian Antipholus and the twin brothers cannot even tell the Dromio brothers apart. The brothers do not get to meet until the end of the story and so in the meantime confusion reigns with even Adriana the wife of Antipholus of Ephesus mistaking his twin for her husband. All the action takes place during one eventful day that is to end with the execution of the hapless Aegeon.
There is a long speech at the very start of the play where Aegon tells the story of his lost family, it is a kind of info-dump that sets the scene, but also hints at possible misfortunes or misadventures. The comedy gets going as soon as Dromio from Ephesus sees Antipholus from Syracuse and mistakes him for his master and urges him to return home to his mistress Adriana; who is impatiently waiting to eat lunch. Antipholus is more concerned with the result of an errand that he has sent his Dromio on involving a hefty sum of money. From this moment on Shakespeare keeps the two sets of twins apart with the result that no one seems to be making any sense, but it usually ends with one of the Dromios getting a beating. The stuff of a knockabout farce and when jewellery, sums of money, unpaid debts, a courtesan and a schoolmaster and conjuror become involved then the humour goes into some sort of overdrive. The Dromio twins have an uneasy relationship with their masters who value them for their wit and service, but do not suffer their foolishness gladly. The repartee between master and slave sparkles with wit and invention as each of the Antipholuses who are touchy at best become mad with rage at the confusion and their inability to understand what is going on. Complications follow on hard on the heels of each other until both sets of brothers find themselves under restraint for disturbing the peace. The misadventures are all to do with the mistaken identity, there are no conniving servants or malicious traders involved, no plots to relieve the brothers of their money, but Antipholus of Syracuse soon becomes convinced witchcraft is involved and Antipholus from Ephesus becomes paranoid.
Shakespeare ramps up the comedy as the play progresses, but there are deeper issues involved. Antipholus of Ephesus relationship with his wife Adriana comes under scrutiny, she is not just impatient for his lateness in returning for lunch but sees this incident as a reflection of the state of her marriage. This is not helped when after persuading the wrong Antipholus home to dinner she effectively locks her husband out in the street while her guest makes eyes at her sister Luciana. Adriana complains to Luciana that husbands have too much freedom:
"ADRIANA. Why should their liberty than ours be more?"
Luciana puts her straight in a speech which is of it's time:
"Why, headstrong liberty is lash'd with woe.
There's nothing situate under heaven's eye
But hath his bound, in earth, in sea, in sky.
The beasts, the fishes, and the winged fowls,
Are their males' subjects, and at their controls.
Man, more divine, the master of all these,
Lord of the wide world and wild wat'ry seas,
Indu'd with intellectual sense and souls,
Of more pre-eminence than fish and fowls,
Are masters to their females, and their lords;
Then let your will attend on their accords.
ADRIANA. This servitude makes you to keep unwed.
LUCIANA. Not this, but troubles of the marriage-bed."
The outrageous beatings suffered by the Dromio twins at the hands of masters and mistresses are stock in trade for Elizabethan comedy, but this feels overdone. The treatment of servants which in many instances were little more than slaves during the period were known to be harsh, but the Antipholus twins seem to want it both ways, in one instance they are encouraging their Dromios to be friendly and engage in witty conversation while in the next instance they become annoyed, which soon results in physical abuse. The Dromios are the the most impressionistic and sympathetic characters in the play and contrast with the more aloof and cold personalities of the Antipholus twins.
The city of Ephesus is a proto-capitalist credit dependent economy. Stability and credit worthiness are everything; as soon as a suspicion of indebtedness is cast then a victim is identified. Everyman has his price. The poor unfortunate Aegeon who is bound to be executed could buy off his execution if he could raise 100 ducats, but no one in the city deems him credit worthy. Antipholus of Ephesus is a product of the city his scheme to repair his relationship with Adriana is to have a gold chain made for her and he knows this will be accepted, but when this chain gets caught up in the confusion of the mistaken identities he is in trouble. Antipholus is almost reduced to apoplexy, he becomes incandescent with rage.
The Comedy of Errors is one of Shakespeares earliest plays, perhaps the first comedy that he wrote, probably dating from mid 1594, but could have been a couple of years earlier. It has remained a popular play although in the nineteenth century stripped down and rewritten as a farce imbued with sentimentality. The Boys from Syracuse is a 1940's musical based on the play, but there have been plenty of modern productions that have used much of the original text of the play to make a comedy with added depth. I watched the 1983 BBC production starring Michael Kitchen as the Antipholus twins and an excellent Roger Daltry as the Dromio twins. Directed by James Cellan Jones this production not only made me laugh out loud, but also enabled me to appreciate the structure of the play. This is a comedy first and foremost but it also has other things to say and it all bubbles up to a climax and then a denouement that works particularly well. This production is particularly strong in focusing on the troubled relationship between Antipholus and Adriana, but never loses the fun of the comedy: the witchcraft is treated as a bit of a sideshow but is ever present and the intervention of Doctor Pinch is impressive.
The Arden Shakespeare dates from 2017 and is edited by Kent Cartwright. As usual the background information and notes are extensive with all you need to know to enjoy the play. There is no shortage of information on the internet if you find yourself struggling with the introduction that can be a little over intellectualised. The text however is clear and the notes on the same page as the text work well. This play is superbly entertaining and Shakespeare packed much into what is his shortest play. I loved it and so 5 stars.
Show Less
LibraryThing member bobbybslax
A short farce with a lot of double entrendres, "The Comedy of Errors" remains less significant than many of Shakespeare's best works, but it's enjoyable and quick to finish.
LibraryThing member mkfs
A good page of fat jokes, and no end of a-woman's-role-in-marriage repartee, but overall a rather mindless play. The introduction in the Norton Shakespeare struggles to find depth, citing the issue of identity which The Bard clearly doesn't grapple with here.
LibraryThing member cbl_tn
Shakespeare set this farce about identical twins in the ancient world. Early in the play, the father of one set of twins explains how the pairs were separated in a ship wreck. This background prepares the audience for scene after scene of mistaken identity as the Syracusan and Ephesian pairs move The Syracusan pair had been traveling for several years in search of their lost twins, so why didn’t it occur to them that their twins were living in Ephesus when all these strangers thought they were someone else?
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about Ephesus. I read along as I listened to the Arkangel audio production and laughed aloud at the characters’ confusion. It doesn’t pay to think too deeply about the plot. Show Less
LibraryThing member Castlelass
I had previously read many of Shakespeare’s works but somehow missed this one. It is based on a case of mistaken identity of two sets of twins with the same names. It takes place in Ephesus (in Greece at the time, now part of modern-day Turkey). In Act I, the father of one set of twins explains
One of my favorite passages shows his beautiful writing style (said by one of the main characters to his wife):
“No; It is thyself, mine own self’s better part,
Mine eye’s clear eye, my dear heart’s dearer heart,
My food, my fortune, and my sweet hope’s aim,
My sole earth’s heaven, and my heaven’s claim.”
And he sure had a way with pithy observations:
“Ill deeds are doubled with an evil word.”
“No evil lost is wail’d when it is gone.”
“He must have a long spoon that must eat with the devil.”
“Time comes stealing on by night and day.”
“Was there ever any man thus beaten out of season,
When in the why and the wherefore is neither rhyme nor reason?”
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how they were separated during a storm as infants. I enjoyed this short humorous play. I particularly enjoyed being reminded of how plays were written in verse at the time. So many of our still-used phrases originated with Shakespeare, including the title. My edition included a biography of Shakespeare, a history of theatre in London during his lifetime, and annotations explaining portions of the narrative. All were worth reading. I was initially concerned that the “old English” would be difficult to decipher but found it rather easy to figure out what was happening. I think this play would be better seen than read, since a lot of the humor is based on mistaking one twin for another. One of my favorite passages shows his beautiful writing style (said by one of the main characters to his wife):
“No; It is thyself, mine own self’s better part,
Mine eye’s clear eye, my dear heart’s dearer heart,
My food, my fortune, and my sweet hope’s aim,
My sole earth’s heaven, and my heaven’s claim.”
And he sure had a way with pithy observations:
“Ill deeds are doubled with an evil word.”
“No evil lost is wail’d when it is gone.”
“He must have a long spoon that must eat with the devil.”
“Time comes stealing on by night and day.”
“Was there ever any man thus beaten out of season,
When in the why and the wherefore is neither rhyme nor reason?”
Show Less
LibraryThing member meandmybooks
Fast and facile. A Shakespearean sit-com – clever and silly, but with no depth. This one, more than most, I think, needs to be seen performed to be properly appreciated – I imagine all the mix-ups might be quite entertaining, properly acted. Unfortunately I read it, along with a Librivox
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recording by a cast that included some really talented readers, some who were clearly new to the English language, and a robot. In fairness I'll admit that I'm generally luke-warm on the comedies, aside from “Much Ado, so my lack of enthusiasm probably doesn't say much about the actual merits of this play. Show Less
LibraryThing member cmbohn
Not one of Shakespeare's best. Two pairs of twins were separated shortly after birth, one pair gentlemen and one pair servants. They are reunited after a series of confusing events and mistaken identity.
It wasn't a bad play, and would probably be funnier on stage, but it didn't seem enough of a
It wasn't a bad play, and would probably be funnier on stage, but it didn't seem enough of a
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plot for 5 whole acts. Show Less
LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
A very early Shakespeare play. Two sets of identical twins, separated at birth, show up in the same city-state, afloat in time, partaking of the classical world, and current (1590's ) politics. there is confusion, a mortal peril, and romantic confusions. Not his best work, but it shows promise, as
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the case turned out. i read it at least four times. Say, 1592 for the writing? Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original publication date
1623 (Folio)
1623
Physical description
176 p.
ISBN
0451000501 / 9780451000507