Episode 36 - The Merry Wives of Windsor

Merry wives, jealous husbands, faeries and a wedding! This play - rumored to be written at the behest of Queen Elizabeth herself - is a comedy unlike any of the others in Shakespeare's repertoire. An almost proto-restoration play about class, fidelity, and trust, it's a forward looking play that retains the very serious ability to make us laugh.

This week we talk about the themes, comedy, and characters present in the play, especially around gender and jealousy. Join us for an exploration of this rarely produced, but very gratifying play.

Notes: 

• Thankfully (and unbeknownst to Lindsay at the time of recording), the Folger Shakespeare library has put their "A Modern Perspective" set of essays online, and we encourage you to check out the one dedicated to this play.
• Lindsay also located this wonderful mini-essay online (also from Folger) that dives into what makes this comedy so different from Shakespeare's others.

Ancient Bickerings: 

• Our question was a simple one: who are the more untrustworthy characters of the play? The men or the women?