As You Like It (Shakespeare, Signet Classic)
A fairly large cast congregates in the Forest of Arden. Most are forgettable, but three stand out. Touchstone, the jester, spars with ribald wit and provides much of the play’s comic feel. Jacques, the melancholic noble, is probably best remembered for his “All the world’s a stage” speech in Act 2, Scene 7. His self-made and self-congratulatory ennui is best cut through by Rosalind when she observes: Rosalind, the real star of the play, is the insightful yet fallible one. In a story about the extremities and faults of love, she is at one once able to parse through everyone’s emotions and still fall victim to her own. Her masquerade throughout most of the play as man named Ganymede contributes to making this play a rather critical, through spotty, examination of traditional romantic love. In some ways, it's sad that our modern and stubborn biases on the role of gender and sexuality are upstaged by this 17th century play.A traveler! By my faith, you have great reason to be sad. I fear you have sold your lands to see other men’s. To have seen much and to have nothing is to have rich eyes and poor hands. Act 4, Scene 1.
In parts, there are some excellent sections, but the whole seems haphazardly combined and the ending rushed.
