Saturday Morning Book Review

Measure for Measure, by William Shakespeare

Shakespeare has done it again. Is it that human nature as always been the same or that he just knew the very souls of men. In Measure for Measure the message is an old one straight from the Bible; “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone.” (Holy Bible KJV 8:7) People should think about their own indiscretions, before they condemn others. I guess New York governor, Eliott Spitzer, never read this play, because if he had, he surely would not be in the trouble that he is in today. And, as always, you have to ignore Shakespeare’s treatment of women and look at the big picture meaning of the play. I have to remember every time I encounter Shakespeare that he did not know any better. This is the way women were treated and if we don’t continue to visit these classic works, we run the chance of forgetting how much progress we have made as women. We also need to remember that there are still places in this world were women are still treated as property with little or no rights. Measure for Measure is a great read and a good watch. I will add links to both the Folgers Classic version and the BBC video to Favorites-Book Review. You can also read it for free at www.gutenberg.org.

Peace,
Laura