The Comedy of Errors [Paperback]

William Shakespeare (Author), Harry Levin (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1989

Hilarious fun, this early comedy is filled with the merry violence of slapstick and farce. When two sets of twins, separated and apparently lost to each other, all end up in the rowdy, rollicking city of Ephesus, the stage is set for mix-ups, mayhem, and mistaken identity--plus the timeless puns, jokes, gags, and suspense that makes this play a wonderful theatrical frolic and a brilliant tour de force of language and laughter.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Signet Classics; Revised edition (1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451523113
• ISBN-13: 978-0451523112
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #451,272 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in April 1564, and his birth is traditionally celebrated on April 23. The facts of his life, known from surviving documents, are sparse. He was one of eight children born to John Shakespeare, a merchant of some standing in his community. William probably went to the King's New School in Stratford, but he had no university education. In November 1582, at the age of eighteen, he married Anne Hathaway, eight years his senior, who was pregnant with their first child, Susanna. She was born on May 26, 1583. Twins, a boy, Hamnet ( who would die at age eleven), and a girl, Judith, were born in 1585. By 1592 Shakespeare had gone to London working as an actor and already known as a playwright. A rival dramatist, Robert Greene, referred to him as "an upstart crow, beautified with our feathers." Shakespeare became a principal shareholder and playwright of the successful acting troupe, the Lord Chamberlain's Men (later under James I, called the King's Men). In 1599 the Lord Chamberlain's Men built and occupied the Globe Theater in Southwark near the Thames River. Here many of Shakespeare's plays were performed by the most famous actors of his time, including Richard Burbage, Will Kempe, and Robert Armin. In addition to his 37 plays, Shakespeare had a hand in others, including Sir Thomas More and The Two Noble Kinsmen, and he wrote poems, including Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece. His 154 sonnets were published, probably without his authorization, in 1609. In 1611 or 1612 he gave up his lodgings in London and devoted more and more time to retirement in Stratford, though he continued writing such plays as The Tempest and Henry VII until about 1613. He died on April 23 1616, and was buried in Holy Trinity Church, Stratford. No collected edition of his plays was published during his life-time, but in 1623 two members of his acting company, John Heminges and Henry Condell, put together the great collection now called the First Folio.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Farce and Confusion, December 5, 2008

By 

Neri "Neri" (Himeji, Japan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Comedy of Errors (Signet Classics) (Mass Market Paperback)

The model for Shakespeare's "Comedy of Errors" was the Roman playwrite Plautus' 220 B.C. play "Menaechmi" about a long lost twin who comes into the town of his sibling and farcical misadventure happens. Shakespeare's favorite book, as a young student, was an English translation of Ovid's Ovid's Metamorphoses "Metamorphoses" by Arthur Golding, so Shakespeare may have seen copying from Roman writers as a winning formula.

It is a straight forward comedy, seemingly, with servant and messanger Dromio - whose name conjures up the idea of a race track to some of the Elizabethian audiance familiar with Latin - and that is what the two Dromios do, is run around like on a race track. It is likely one of Shakespeare's first plays and one that can most be taken at face value in that the play says what it means; there is seemingly little hidden meaning.
Asimov's Guide to Shakespeare: A Guide to Understanding and Enjoying the Works of Shakespeare
Meaning by Shakespeare


However, when Antipholus of Syracuse questions Luciana I got the feeling the author was weighing other things as well, especially after watchingIn Search of Shakespeare Luciana represented the new Elizabethian world while Adriana represented what was before and what Shakespeare may have felt secret loyalties towards, his Catholic faith, while at the same time relishing and thriving in the new Elizabethian world of education and Protestantism; with split feelings and duel identity himself. The play may have more meaning than it seems.

The BBC production of this play was zesty fun with a cast of heavy weight Shakespearian players mixed with lively crew, but an often extemporanious seeming production. Roger Daultrey (of The Who) suprisingly pulls his own weight, the supporting cast are super.The Complete Dramatic Works of William Shakespeare Comedy of Errors

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Shakespeare's First, February 10, 2009

By 

Stefan Yates (Manhattan, KS United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Comedy of Errors (Signet Classics) (Mass Market Paperback)

I went into this fairly skeptical of how much I would actually enjoy it. I was told that it was Shakespeare's first play and that the only reason that my instructor was having us read it was because it is actually being performed here on campus and we are required to attend the one-night-only performance. Not a glowing recommendation to have before starting a book!

The play is surprisingly easy to follow and understand. The humor is actually funny and I found myself chuckling out loud and enjoying the many puns and instances of word play that take place throughout caused by the many mistakes in identity that occur due to the presence of two sets of long separated twins. The play does require the reader/viewer to suspend reality in order for the premise to work, but all in all, it's quite entertaining and worth checking out if you're interested in this sort of thing.