Thursday, August 02, 2007

Slings and arrows of outrageous cliches

Wherein I'd also recommend "whips and scorns of time" and "fardels bear"


Start with Hamlet, then do whatever you want with it.

the slings and arrows of life in the theater:
A rose by any another name would smell as…gimmicky. Apparently the Stratford Festival, the celebrated Canadian classical theater festival on which my TV drug of choice (“Slings & Arrows”) is based, is changing its name to stick the Bard into the title.

About Freaks and Geeks:
but don't we all remember the slings and arrows of teen life and carry them with us for the rest of our days in ways large and small?

Something British:
I can think of only one great body which seems immune to slings and arrows. Year after year, and decade after decade, the National Trust sails on, its oak leaf symbol apparently secure in our regard and affection.

Baby boomers:
The vanity of baby boomers as they cope with the slings and arrows of aging can be a tricky matter.

From Australia:
So in my perfect world when Howard loses the election some time in October he will suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous blame for losing.

Lindsay Lohan:
As strong as women actually are – they grow and nurture the children, they survive the piggish slings and arrows of amorous, instinctual males – society loves to turn them into Cupie Doll drones, waiting for “daddy” or “big brother” to step in and rescue them.

Linux kernal hackers:
Apparently, you need to be a brave soul, one immune to the slings and arrows of critics, to post to that list.

Homer Simpson:
Noble Homer would suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune in every episode, but, with the promise of nothing more than a doughnut, would always rise to fight another day.

Catherine Zeta Jones movie:
This time, the star is not a rat-wunderkind who rides in the hair of a teenage boy but an uncompromising Ayn Rand purist who would rather blow up a building (or stab a raw steak into a table, but same difference) than suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous patrons.

2 Comments:

Blogger justkim said...

To be fair, it's not Shakespeare's fault he's been co-opted by morons. He's just so darn eloquent. It should be a testament to his talent that even idiots can quote The Bard 400 years later.

It's such a shame that everyone only remembers the hooks though. The the "rose by any other name" for example The best parts of that mini-logue are toward the beginning and end.

Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father, and refuse thy name. Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I will no longer be a Capulet! 'Tis but thy name that is my enemy. Thou art thyself, though, not a Montague. Montague! What's Montague? It's neither hand nor face nor arm nor any other part belonging to a man. Be some other name! That which we call a rose by another name would smell as sweet. So Romeo would, were he not Romeo called, retain that dear perfection which he owes without that title. Romeo! Doff thy name. And for that name, which is no part of thee, take all myself!

(Forgive the lack of line breaks. I don't remember where they go.)

Here you've got mild sexual innuendo (our Juliet would never be so crude as to suggest as other parts "Montague" isn't) and a plea of passionate longing, bordering on debasement. Pretty heady stuff for a young girl.

But all anyone wants to remember is Juliet want to know "where" Romeo is and "a rose by any other name..." Bah!

So much beauty here.

8/02/2007 08:33:00 PM  
Blogger justkim said...

Today I heard an ad on the radio for a hair salon chain. I'm not kidding even a little bit when I tell you that the ad closed with :And to quote Shakespeare, 'Get thee to a Hair Cuttry!'." I winced.

8/12/2007 02:39:00 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home