Today’s Totally Random Lines
This should be the same voice of Friar John.—
Welcome from Mantua: what says Romeo?
Or, if his mind be writ, give me the letter.
Friar Laurence
Romeo and Juliet Act V Scene ii, Line 2
And here comes the part that makes this
play a tragedy. Or maybe it should be called The Comedy Of The Friars?
In any event, recall that Romeo’s
been banished, and Friar Knucklehead Laurence has concocted a plan whereby
Juliet fakes her death with a sleeping potion, and then Romeo will come back
and meet her at the graveyard and they can run away together. So the Friar
sends a message to Romeo in Mantua via Knucklehead # 2 (aka Friar John) to let Romeo
in on the plan. Now Knucklehead #2 is back and Knucklehead # 1 is looking for
Romeo’s response. But, uh oh, now what? Did you deliver the letter to Romeo, Friar
John?
Going to find a barefoot brother out,
One of our order, to associate me,
Here in this city visiting the sick,
And finding him, the searchers of the town,
Where the infectious pestilence did reign,
Seal’d up the doors, and would not let us forth;
So that my speed to Mantua there was stayed.
Long story short, Tony, long
story short. What happened to the letter?
I could not send it,- here it is again,-
Nor get a messenger to bring it to thee,
So
fearful were thy of infection.
Oh, you gotta be kidding me. So this guy had one job in this play: get the message to Romeo. Well, here comes the tragedy: Romeo doesn't get the message from Friar Laurence (or John), but he does get the public news that Juliet is dead. So he’ll show up at the graveyard, where she hasn’t woken up yet, thinking she’s really dead, and… well, you know the rest.
Gotta love those Friars.
I think you're
being a little unfair to the friars, Mr. Blagys. They clearly did the best they
could. Sort of like you automatically assumed it was my fault for chewing on
your shoe laces when the lace broke.
Oh, for cryin' out loud Mojo, you know you chewed that lace!
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