By a Woman Writt

1973, 1974 Penguin edition
edited by Joan Goulianos
By a Woman Writt [sic]: Literature from Six Centuries by and about Women
Original price unknown, bought used for $4.25
Worn paperback
C+

Goulianos selects women's writings in English from 14th-century Margery Kempe to modern poet Muriel Rukeyser, so this collection is understandably uneven.  I most enjoyed Aphra Behn, Lady Mary Wortley Montague, and Sylvia Ashton-Warner.  In the introduction, Goulianos suggests some themes, like fear and motherhood, but I don't feel like there's enough commentary or organization here.  Also, she doesn't give dates to all the pieces, and sometimes not even birth or death dates for the authors, so my labels are limited to the wider eras and I can't include the 20th-centuries decades, other than the 1970s of course.  (Not that there aren't a lot of labels on the post anyway.)  This is a serviceable introduction to women's literature, deliberately omitting some of the better known writers (although Wollstonecraft and daughter Mary are here), without going overly obscure.

The Winter's Tale

1594-1611
Shakespeare
The Winter's Tale
C-

While certainly a continuation of Shakespeare's midlife slump, this is a definite improvement over the somewhat similar Pericles (a king's wife and daughter disappear for about fifteen years, presumed dead), even if Leontes is a jealous idiot for half the play.  Credit goes to the comic relief:  Autolycus the pedlar, the Shepherd, and the latter's son the Clown.  Also, things aren't quite so far-fetched and there's a lot less distasteful material.  And, yes, this is the play that J. K. Rowling took Hermione Granger's first name from, as well as being the drama with the wonderful stage direction "Exit, pursued by a bear."  Plus, there's a certain d-word that will make you blink in surprise in Act IV, scene iv.

Hamlet

1599-1601
Shakespeare
Hamlet
B

Like Romeo and Juliet, this is perhaps overquoted but still remains entertaining.   The bloodbath ending is a bit over the top, though nowhere in the neighbourhood of Titus Andronicus.  Also, Ophelia's fate is probably the most tragic and/or unnecessary, because she's the most innocent of the characters.  And the side-trip to England, which seems only there so WS can make affectionate fun of his countrymen, is a bit odd.  On the plus side, the dialogue, Hamlet's especially, is clever and multi-layered.  Plus, Polonius is a delight in all his hypocrisy and thick-headedness.

As You Like It

1599
Shakespeare
As You Like It
B

A bit slow to get going, but the Cesario courtship training and the "Rosalind" doggerel are great.  Also, probably the best female friendship in all of Shakespeare.  The "mewling and puking" seven ages speech is in this one.  Possibly the best "fool," too.

The Passionate Pilgrim

1599
Shakespeare
The Passionate Pilgrim
B-

The "Venus & Adonis" stuff is handled better here than in the longer version, and there are some nice insights into relationships.  The most "human" poem so far.

Julius Caesar

1599
Shakespeare
Julius Caesar
D+

Although this has the "friends, Romans" etc., speech, it's otherwise flat.

Henry V

1599
Shakespeare
Henry V
D+

The title character is more of a jerk than in the other plays.  Otherwise, this is pretty boring.

Much Ado About Nothing

1598
Shakespeare
Much Ado About Nothing
B


Good, solid romance/farce, where the darker subplot blends in well.  The Benedick & Beatrice love-hate relationship of course has influenced rom-coms for over four centuries, and it's a relief to see how witty the original is.  (Well, as original as WS gets.)

The Merry Wives of Windsor

1597
Shakespeare
The Merry Wives of Windsor
C+

I suspect that this play is better on stage than on page.  It's an OK farce but the subplot is forgettable and probably needs to be seen.  (What colour was Anne Page wearing if not white or green?)  Also, funnier than any joke in the play is Kaiser Wilhelm's joke about The Merry Wives of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.

Henry IV, Part 2

1596-1597
Shakespeare
Henry IV, Part 2
C

The strongest part here is the father-son relationship between the two Henrys, and more should've been done with that.

Henry IV, Part 1

1596
Shakespeare
Henry IV, Part 1
C+

The main interest here is Prince Hal and Falstaff, but it's hard to warm up to nobles who go in for petty crimes.

The Merchant of Venice

1596
Shakespeare
The Merchant of Venice
C+

Whether or not the Shylock plot is anti-Semitic, it's less interesting than the Portia plot.  Lots of memorable quotes but I didn't feel invested in most of the characters.

King John

1596-1597
Shakespeare
The Life and Death of King John
C+

This history play has no connection to the War of the Roses, for a change.  "The Bastard" (son of Cordelion, Richard I) steals all his scenes.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

1595
Shakespeare
A Midsummer Night's Dream
B


This is both a farce and a fairytale, with the play within a play getting a deserved MST3K treatment.  The plot hangs together better than it should, maybe because it's all a dream.  And of course there's the "What fools these mortals be" line.

Romeo and Juliet

1593-1595
Shakespeare
Romeo and Juliet
B

OK, so the title characters are two teens who are too hormone-clouded to think, "Oh, maybe I should verify that he/she is actually dead before I off myself."  Still, this play has a lot of justly famous lines and vivid characters, particularly the Nurse.  Aside from the ending, the plot is stronger than most of WS's.

Richard II

1595
Shakespeare
Richard II
C+

Mostly notable for the "This England" speech.  Does a decent job of explaining how the whole Lancaster vs. York thing got started.

Love's Labour's Lost

1594-1595
Shakespeare
Love's Labour's Lost
C+

Lots of wordplay, not much plot, except in the cliffhanger ending.

The Rape of Lucrece

1594
Shakespeare
The Rape of Lucrece
F

While I suppose parts of this are well written, this poem is alternately creepy and boring.  I really don't want to read about how gorgeous a rape victim's hair is, nor do I want to hear that she has to kill herself because she's no longer "pure" for her husband.  Yes, it's a product of its time, but I'm not of that time and couldn't wait for this poem to be over.

The Comedy of Errors

1594
Shakespeare
The Comedy of Errors
C+

Although the double twinning is a cute gimmick and WS keeps it clear who's who, there's a bit too much of people going back and forth in this play.  ("Go now and don't return until you explain why you left and then returned to talk to someone who wasn't really me.")  Also, beating the servants kills my farce buzz.

Venus and Adonis

1593
Shakespeare
Venus and Adonis
D

Early poem by WS, with a classical setting.  And I just don't care.  Adonis is some prude who'd rather go hunting than shag a goddess, and then I'm supposed to feel bad for overly aggressive Venus when Adonis dies.  That said, some of the adjectives are nice.