Shakespeare In Action

Wordy Wednesday

Wordy Wednesday is finally here! The phrase that I have found for you today is one
that is near and dear to my heart. I feel like I definitely use this one a lot,
and I am sure many of you will be able to relate. Our phrase for the week is “wild-goose chase.” The phrase made its first appearance in Romeo and Juliet Act 2, scene 4
by Mercutio. Here is the phrase in its original context:

Mercutio:
Come between us, good Benvolio, my wits faints.
Romeo:
Swits and spurs, swits and spurs, or I’ll cry a match.
Mercutio:
Nay, if our wits run the wild-goose chase, I am done; for
thou hast more of the wild goose in one of thy wits than, I am
sure, I have in my whole five.

The earliest meaning of this phrase referred to a type of horse chase, where a lead horse completed a series of difficult manoeuvres, and all of the horses behind had to follow in the exact same way. Kind of like a much more exciting version of follow the leader! This “chase” was given the term, because the horses were in a formation that was similar to that of flying wild geese. The guys are having an exchange of jokes, and because of the rapid pace the jokes are coming out, Mercutio compares this exchange to a “wild-goose chase.”

However, that meaning seems to have changed over time. What we refer to now as a “wild-goose chase” is a quest that seems to have an impossible or unattainable goal. Something I’m sure we all have experienced at some point in our lives!

I most often find myself on “wild-goose chases” looking for gifts for my brothers. They seem to enjoy video games of that are either super rare or don’t exist anymore! When have you ever found yourself on a “wild goose chase?” Leave a comment and let me know!

Wordy Wednesday

Okay, so we’re a bit belated, but let’s pretend it’s still Wednesday… and get wordy! In honour of our mainstage production of Romeo and Juliet, which is rolling along pretty smoothly so far (knock on wood), we present this week’s phrase:

Good night, good night! parting is such
sweet sorrow,
That I shall say good night till it be morrow.

Have you ever had to leave behind someone you love?

Yep, this is still a popular phrase today. In fact, we’ve already used it twice on this blog! And though we are Shakespeare fans, I’m sure if you pay attention you will hear people all over using this phrase.

The phrase seems straightforward at first – it’s hard to part with someone you love. In the play, Juliet says this to Romeo after the infamous balcony scene where they first confess their love. But how can something that is a “sorrow” still be “sweet,” you ask?

There are a couple of things that make this phrase memorable. For one, the contrast between “sweet” and “sorrow” is arresting – it makes us sit up and take notice. It’s similar to a word like “bittersweet,” or a phrase like “jumbo shrimp.” These are known as oxymorons – words or phrases that contain two contradictory meanings.

When Juliet says, “parting is such sweet sorrow,” she reminds Romeo and herself all over again of her love for him. Parting from him wouldn’t be so sorrowful unless she truly loved him, so even in feeling the pain of separation, she remembers the “sweet” love that they share.

What do you think? Can you feel two such contradictory emotions at once?

Their parting is also more sweet than sorrowful because now they can look forward to seeing each other again. This phrase foreshadows important events in the rest of the play. Before long Romeo and Juliet will have to face a lot of real sorrow – Tybalt and Mercutio’s deaths, and Romeo’s banishment. And in the end they will refuse to be parted even in death.

Another way to think about this is from your own experience. Have you ever had to leave someone behind – friends, family – while jetting off to a new adventure? Here in the Shakespeare in Action office, many of us have come to Toronto from other areas of Canada (or even places like Australia and Asia). I myself am getting ready to move all the way to British Columbia in the fall. While leaving your home and family can be daunting, the knowledge that a new adventure awaits can make parting a “sweet sorrow” indeed.

Wordy Wednesday

Hey everyone!

Today is the opening of Romeo and Juliet! Yay. Don’t forget to come see the play sometime between April 6 – 21. It’s a love story that really wears its heart on its sleeve, which leads us to the theme of this Wordy Wednesday!

The phrase “I will wear my heart upon my sleeve” was first used by Iago, the charming evil villain in Shakespeare’s Othello.  In this scene, he reveals that he is not loyal to Othello, although he pretends to be a devoted friend; he is really working towards his own “peculiar end.” According to Iago, honest men who share their feelings are easy prey for “daws to peck at.” It is safer to lie and hide your true intentions. Therefore, Iago says, “I am not what I am”. Rather than wear his heart openly, he is not what he appears.

It is as sure as you are Roderigo,
Were I the Moor, I would not be Iago.
In following him, I follow but myself;
Heaven is my judge, not I for love and duty,
But seeming so, for my peculiar end;
For when my outward action doth demonstrate
The native act and figure of my heart
In complement extern, ’tis not long after
But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve
For daws to peck at. I am not what I am.