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As You Like It 10350 Views


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Description:

We're not sure if good ol' Shakespeare would endorse The Bachelor and The Bachelorette , but that's not going to stop us from hosting themed viewing parties every season. The proposals just melt you heart.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:04

As You Like It, a la Shmoop. Being a bride isn't just about showing off

00:09

the ring and receiving gifts with a gracious smile.

00:12

Oh, no. The bride has to pull a wedding together in which everyone has fun, no one gets insulted,

00:19

and the event stays at or under budget.

00:26

And while the end result may be the most awesome celebration ever...

00:30

...you may find yourself wondering if as much thought went into the newlywed couple's decision

00:35

to marry as into the decision to have the bridesmaids wear tangerine-colored dresses.

00:41

William Shakespeare put his thoughts about marriage into his comedic play, As You Like

00:42

It.

00:42

Rosalind and Celia are forced to flee from the usurper Frederick into the Forest of Arden.

00:48

Because Rosalind is disguised as a boy, she has to fight off the attentions of another

00:52

woman while continuing to engage the affection of the man she loves, Orlando.

00:58

Everything turns out fine: everyone marries who they're supposed to and all the villains

01:03

repent of their naughtiness.

01:04

But...what does As You Like It really have to say about marriage?

01:08

At first, it seems as if the play is all in favor of the practice.

01:13

Rosalind and Orlando, Celia and Oliver, Phoebe and Silvius, and Audrey and Touchstone all

01:19

get hitched in the end, presumably to live happily ever after...

01:23

...although given how Shakespeare treats some of the characters in his other plays, that's

01:27

never a safe bet. The problem is that love makes these characters

01:33

act like...idiots.

01:35

You have Rosalind, dressed as a guy, who tries to convince Orlando to let him/her take Rosalind's

01:41

place so he/she and Orlando can act out the relationship Orlando would like to have with

01:46

Rosalind. Awkward.

01:48

You have the shepherdess Phoebe, who's fallen for Rosalind-dressed-as-a-guy, and you'd think

01:54

Phoebe would sense something amiss there, but apparently not.

01:58

You end up with a massive argument in which everyone fights over who's going to marry

02:03

who.

02:04

And let's not forget that As You Like It is rife with jokes about wives cheating on their

02:08

husbands.

02:09

Either Shakespeare was a bit one-note on his humor in this play, or he didn't think much

02:14

of marriage. But maybe what Shakespeare really wants is

02:17

for us to take an honest look at marriage and the person we're going to vow to love

02:21

and cherish for the rest of our lives.

02:24

There's a great deal of disguise and deceit in As You Like It; many of the characters

02:29

are not who they present themselves to be.

02:32

Today's dating world is very much like Shakespeare's play: people will say anything to get a hot

02:37

date.

02:37

Perhaps Shakespeare is encouraging us to truly get to know the people we're attracted to and to understand what

02:48

making a lifelong commitment means so that...

02:51

...if we decide to take that big step and spend thousands of dollars on a beach wedding in

02:56

Cancun, we won't be regretting the expenditure six months later.

03:00

So, what do you think Shakespeare was trying to say about marriage?

03:03

Did he think that wedding vows were a waste of time?

03:06

Or was he pro...putting a ring on it? Shmoop amongst yourselves.

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