Shakespeares The Comedy Of Errors

Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors

The Comedy of Errors was Shakespeare's first comedy. It is a light yet dramatic play about a family of twins, their parents, and their twin servants, who have been separated for over twenty years due to a tragic accident at sea.

The story, following the usual format of Shakespeare's work occurs and is concluded all in one day. The twins run into each other the whole day through and are mistaken for each other more than once. This confusion makes the tragedy all the more hilarious. The action is ended in a dramatic and whirlwind ending. All matters are cleared up, although the sanity still remains on the brink of collapse. However, the tone of the play is overall cheerful and upbeat and the ending maintains the mood.

I particularly enjoyed the confusion that identical twins caused even to their close family members. The fact that Shakespeare was able to make the dialogue fit in with the scenarios made the action even more comic. The idea of the plot, although not completely original is still unique and is still used in modern work, such as the TV sitcoms like "Sister, Sister." Something that surprised me in the play was Adriana's character. She was insecure and portrayed the typical damsel in distress. She was completely dependent on her husband and this fact alone made the play somewhat out of date. Shakespeare is said to be "not of an age, but for all times," but Adriana's character, in my opinion, would not fit in to the modern world. I feel the most important part of the play is the message it conveys and should be used as a moral today. The whole play is based on family members who are trying to reunite. The play says that even though there are troubling issues in our lives, we must remember our