Mojo, The Bard, & Me

 

Today’s Totally Random Line(s)      

                                  

And why, I pray you? Who might be your mother

That you insult, exult, and all at once,

Over the wretched? What, though you have no beauty,--

As, by my faith, I see no more in you

Than without candle may go dark to bed,

Must you be therefore proud and pitiless?

 

-Rosalind 

As You Like It              Act III, Scene v, Line 36

 

I like this speech. Silvius is pleading with Phebe to give him a chance with her, but Phebe wants no part of him. Silvius has just asked Phebe to take pity on him because he loves her, and she has replied that she will not return that love or take pity on him. And that’s where Rosalind comes in. She starts in with today’s lines, laying into Phebe, and continues for another twenty-three lines, ending with

Cry the man mercy; love him; take his offer;
Foul is most foul, being foul to be a scoffer.—
So, take her to thee, shepherd:—fare you well.

Rosalind obviously has no high opinion of Phebe.

Remember now, that Rosalind is dressed as a man and, you guessed it, Phebe falls for him/her, or should I say them. Lots of cross-dressing in Will’s works, eh? Kind of gets me to wondering about what was going on back there in merry ol’ England in the 1590’s.

Today's lines could get us into a long and serious discussion about sexuality, transgenderness... you name it. But that would be way too much for me to get into this morning. How about for now we take a look at these guys and gals and ask the question: Do we think that any of them are attracted to one of their mates who's not traditional in their sexual orientation? Of course, that leads to a more interesting question: If they were so attracted, who's going to tell them that they're wrong for that? Not me!