Thursday, April 09, 2009

Shakespeare: The Merry Wives Of Windsor

The Merry Wives Of Windsor is a trivial piece of nothing. There's a legend that Shakespeare was specially requested to write a play to continue the life of Sir John Falstaff, and this play has the feeling of something written for a motive other than writing something great.

The play may be the first occurrence of the phrase "The world is my oyster". It has a different tone than we see it today, though:
"Why, then the world's mine oyster,
Which I with sword will open."
That is to say, "the world will be my source of money, which I'll get through violence."

20 Down, 17 To Go
Next Up: Julius Caesar

No comments: