Love's Labor's Lost
is one of the comedy plays of
Shakespeare, and one of the earliest too. I read this as part of
Let's Read Plays event, and have been enjoying it so much. But it's
also different from other comedies I've read.
 |
| David Tennant as Berowne |
First
of all, the synopsis. Ferdinand, the king of Navarre, proposed an
oath that he and his friends would dedicate 3 years for studying,
during which time no woman should come to the court. Two of the
king's friends, Longaville and Dumaine, hastily agreed and signed the
pact, while Berowne stated that it wouldn't be wise. He also reminded
the king that he should meet a lady anyway, namely, the daughter of
the king of France. The king amended the pact, but still insisted
upon the carrying out of it. Berowne, being a good friend to the
king, signed it anyway. But he also added, “although I seem so
loath,/I am the last that will last keep his oath.”
Well,
the day after, the Princess of France came with her three
ladies-in-waiting. The king paid her a visit (with his three friends
too) and talked a bit about the matter of state. Just that? Well, it
might seem so, but the friends of the king closed the meeting with
inquiring Boyet (the Princess' man) about the who the ladies were.
Not
long after, Berowne railed about his love for Rosaline, one of the
Princess' ladies-in-waiting, and then he overheard how actually all
of them had broken their oath (including the king, who was in love
with the princess). Haha. It's honestly the funniest scene in the
play. They concluded that it was wrong to propose such oath at the
first place, and they would try to win the hands of their ladies.
Now,
this play is different from Shakespeare's typical comedy – it
doesn't end with a marriage (or some marriages). Also, there are
Latin verses scattered here and there, making the play even less
enjoyable for a commoner like myself. Some say that this play was not
written for common people after all. It was for scholars or so.
One more thing. The end of this play is actually a cliffhanger. There's a lost play of Shakespeare entitled Love's Labor's Won, suspected to be the sequel of this play. It makes this play somewhat 'not final'. Any odea what Shakespeare might have written in the lost play? No, it's not like how it is in Doctor Who.
One more thing. The end of this play is actually a cliffhanger. There's a lost play of Shakespeare entitled Love's Labor's Won, suspected to be the sequel of this play. It makes this play somewhat 'not final'. Any odea what Shakespeare might have written in the lost play? No, it's not like how it is in Doctor Who.
Posts
Love's Labor's Lost, a play whose sequel is lost. And I think I'm going to get lost when I read this, as I don't think it's translated in NFS. Interesting though...
ReplyDeleteHaha. It's so so very funny. At least the fourth act of it. Berowne is such a cute character. Almost like Benedick in MAAN. ;)
DeleteIt is sometimes suggested that Much Ado About Nothing is an alternate title for Love's Labor's Won. I like this idea. It was written at the right time and has a similar light touch and wit. LLL feels complete to me and, I fear, would lose some of it's appeal in a sequel. MAAN has many similarities to LLL, including, as you mentioned the similarity of Berowne and Benedick. I think they might work well as companion pieces. But nobody really knows and it is just one theory among many.
ReplyDeleteThat's an interesting idea. It's also true I cannot help thinking about Benedick when reading Berowne's lines. When it comes to Shakespeare, there are som many theories out there, right?
Delete