१९ जुलै, २०२४

"One of his signature bits, where an advertising man coaches Abraham Lincoln before the Gettysburg Address..."

"... was a pointed critique of the cynicism of professional politics. 'Hi, Abe, sweetheart' begins the man from Madison Avenue, who encourages him to work in a plug for an Abraham Lincoln T-shirt. When the president says he wants to change 'four score and seven years ago' to '87,' the ad man first patiently explains they already test marketed this in Erie. Then he says: 'It’s sort of like Mark Antony saying "Friends, Romans, countrymen, I’ve got something I want to tell you."'"

Listen to the Abe Lincoln routine here (at YouTube).

I would have blogged that passage anyway, so it is by mere chance that in 2 posts in a row I'm quoting something that contains a quote from Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar." The line quoted above is from Act III, Scene II, with Antony speaking at Caesar's funeral:
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears.
I have come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interrèd with their bones.
In the previous post, Maureen Dowd had written that Trump, at the convention, "played the Roman emperor, like a Julius Caesar who survived that 'foul deed' and 'bleeding piece of earth,' fist in the air, sitting high in the forum, gloating, as his vanquished foes bent the knee." The internal quotes, from Act III, Scene I, are spoken by Antony over the dead body of Julius Caesar:
O, pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth,
That I am meek and gentle with these butchers!
Thou art the ruins of the noblest man
That ever lived in the tide of times.
Woe to the hand that shed this costly blood!
Over thy wounds now do I prophesy,—
Which, like dumb mouths, do ope their ruby lips,
To beg the voice and utterance of my tongue—
A curse shall light upon the limbs of men;
Domestic fury and fierce civil strife
Shall cumber all the parts of Italy;
Blood and destruction shall be so in use
And dreadful objects so familiar
That mothers shall but smile when they behold
Their infants quarter'd with the hands of war;
All pity choked with custom of fell deeds:
And Caesar's spirit, ranging for revenge,
With Ate by his side come hot from hell,
Shall in these confines with a monarch's voice
Cry 'Havoc,' and let slip the dogs of war;
That this foul deed shall smell above the earth
With carrion men, groaning for burial.

IN THE COMMENTS: wsw said:

Lend me your ear.

And Freeman Hunt said:

Trump's first line actually reminded me of "Friends, Romans, countrymen..." He said, "Friends, delegates, and distinguished guests..."

Now, that you mention it, I thought that too. 

And planetgeo writes:

Of course, if Trump was doing his own eulogy using Shakespeare, it would sound more like this:

Thou art the ruins of the noblest man
...some say I'm the noblest
...I wouldn't say it, but some do
That ever lived in the tide of times.
...the times, yeah
...can you believe that New York Times
...terrible, terrible times
Woe to the hand that shed this costly blood!
...actually my blood isn't just costly
...it's great blood
...some say the greatest
...and those bad, bad people are going to pay for it
...bigly

३६ टिप्पण्या:

robother म्हणाले...

I remember preparing to recite that elegy in front of my Freshman class, the shock at the bloody metaphor:
Over thy wounds now do I prophesy,—
Which, like dumb mouths, do ope their ruby lips...

The Bard was no sissy poet. Julius Caesar was standard in Freshman English class for generations. What is taught now I can't imagine. Too triggering.

wsw म्हणाले...

Lend me your ear.

Freeman Hunt म्हणाले...

Trump's first line actually reminded me of "Friends, Romans, countrymen..." He said, "Friends, delegates, and distinguished guests..."

Narr म्हणाले...

Shakespeare is overrated.

narciso म्हणाले...

lincoln was self taught on the bible and classics,

didn't Shakespeare use Plutarch as his source,

tommyesq म्हणाले...

Donald Trump, lend me what is left of your ear.

John henry म्हणाले...
ही टिप्पणी लेखकाना हलविली आहे.
John henry म्हणाले...

I always thought this is what Willie the Shake should have written


Hipsters, flipsters, and finger-poppin' daddies, knock me your lobes;

I came to lay Caesar out, not to hip you to him.
The bad jazz that a cat blows wails long after he's cut out;
The groovy is often stashed with their frames;
(snip)

By pure coincidence Lord Buckley put in an appearance on history of rock and roll podcast yesterday with a bit from The Nazz in the Sly Stone episode.

John Henry

planetgeo म्हणाले...

Of course, if Trump was doing his own eulogy using Shakespeare, it would sound more like this:

Thou art the ruins of the noblest man
...some say I'm the noblest
...I wouldn't say it, but some do
That ever lived in the tide of times.
...the times, yeah
...can you believe that New York Times
...terrible, terrible times
Woe to the hand that shed this costly blood!
...actually my blood isn't just costly
...it's great blood
...some say the greatest
...and those bad, bad people are going to pay for it
...bigly

RCOCEAN II म्हणाले...

Andrea Mitchell has just informed me that this was one of Christopher Marlowe's greatest speeches.

Anyway, I love the "cry Havoc, and let slip the dogs of war" line too.

PM म्हणाले...

Mr Henry: You tryin' to hip me the King of the Dip what the lick is?

GatorNavy म्हणाले...

And Narr picks a fight 4 comments in…

Mal म्हणाले...

His opening lines were "Friends, Delegates and Fellow Citizens"

When I was watching last night, I literally shouted - lend me your ears!

effinayright म्हणाले...

Narr said...
Shakespeare is overrated.
*************
Are you the same commenter who complained that "there's a cliche on every page" of his plays?

heh

Lloyd W. Robertson म्हणाले...

Thanks to tommyesque. The neo-cons say: I want to start another war. Lend me Jenkins' ear.

If Trump had been killed, I don't think his loyalists would have started up rivers of blood. I suspect they would have lived with Nikki or Vivek or whomever. Vance may still have made it to the Veep slot. The ticket would have been easier for the Dems to beat.

In four years as President, Trump never turned any kind of lawfare against any of his enemies.

Lloyd W. Robertson म्हणाले...

Thanks to tommyesque. The neo-cons say: I want to start another war. Lend me Jenkins' ear.

If Trump had been killed, I don't think his loyalists would have started up rivers of blood. I suspect they would have lived with Nikki or Vivek or whomever. Vance may still have made it to the Veep slot. The ticket would have been easier for the Dems to beat.

In four years as President, Trump never turned any kind of lawfare against any of his enemies.

gilbar म्हणाले...

signature bit, where an advertising man coaches Abraham Lincoln before the Gettysburg Address

i thought that bit was Mrs Maisel's husband's bit?

gilbar म्हणाले...

Are you the same commenter who complained that "there's a cliche on every page" of his plays?

and he stole most of his plots from hollywood musicals! Like Kiss Me Kate*

Kiss Me Kate* which stole the plot from 10 things i hate about you!

phantommut म्हणाले...

Maybe off topic, but "Shakespeare didn't write Shakespeare's plays" is one of the great conspiracy theories of all time.

Narr म्हणाले...

"Are you the same commenter who . . . " No, that joke was old long before I arrived.

"And Narr picks a fight 4 comments in."

Lay on, McDuff.

I do like the Sonnets, though.

GatorNavy म्हणाले...

Narr, I’ll bet you read Proust for the brevity

Narr म्हणाले...

GatorNavy, you lose that bet.

doctrev म्हणाले...

RCOCEAN II said...
Andrea Mitchell has just informed me that this was one of Christopher Marlowe's greatest speeches.

Anyway, I love the "cry Havoc, and let slip the dogs of war" line too.

7/19/24, 10:58 AM

And here was me planning to go full on Marc Antony if something terrible had happened. Ah well. Caesar survived, and now the conspirators are fighting more with each other. Next week is gonna be lit.

Tina Trent म्हणाले...

What does "over-rated" mean in this context? Compared with what? To whom? Maybe Aeschylus? Poetry over plays? I prefer poetry, but I read Shakespeare plays (I cannot stand to watch performances of plays. Live performance makes me nervous). I love the Sonnets, but I can think of ten better poets, in my opinion only. Honestly, surprised. There's so much poetry in the plays and theatrical voice in the sonnets.

Narr म्हणाले...

Over-rated in this context means they hold no interest for me.

If drama is your thing, knock yourself out. You have plenty of company.

As for Proust, I never got around to him, and don't think I will; the greatness of 19th C French culture is represented adequately to me by Faure' and Saint-Saens, Debussy and Ravel.

Are we fighting yet?

gpm म्हणाले...

Newhart was undoubtedly the most famous graduate of my Jesuit high school in Chicago. The MSN obituary mentioned that he graduated from Loyola U., but not the high school (which is where Loyola U. got its start). He was also helpful in rescuing the school from a near-fatal financial crisis back in the 70s (going coed in the late 70s was another critical factor).

When I went back for a 50th reunion a couple of years ago, they were expecting their largest freshman class ever after 150 years. The school opened just before the fire, which started about half a mile away, but went in the other direction. The original building is still a significant part of the school.

--gpm

OldManRick म्हणाले...
ही टिप्पणी लेखकाना हलविली आहे.
Tina Trent म्हणाले...

No fighting in the French 19th Century room.

Their music is greater than their poetry or prose.

I don't believe good poetry can be written in the French language.

I like Proust well enough. Bob Newhart's most famous character may have been able to help him.

I had A rebours (Against Nature) forced on me in school and found it edgy. Then I grew up.

RCOCEAN II म्हणाले...

If you don't like Shakespeare or Beethoven, etc. the problem isn't them - its you.

RCOCEAN II म्हणाले...

But trying to argue with people regarding their taste in music, literature, etc. is a waste of time. Millions thought Ishtar was funny, think Neil Sedaka is a great singer, and that Stephen King is the greatest novelist of all time.

Its about as interesting as arguing over what tastes better Oranges or Grapes. But if someone said they liked a big mac over filet mignon, you cant help but wonder

RCOCEAN II म्हणाले...

btw, btw, I was just a local store and saw a man buy a $100 bottle of scotch and an $2 bottle of coca-cola. He said he liked the taste of scotch/coca-cola.

Okey-dokey.

Narr म्हणाले...

I'm with Tina on the live theater thing. Can't stand it.

John henry म्हणाले...

Scotch and fresh coconut water is big down south here.

Bacardi, a fiery Cuban style, is almost universally drunk with coke, juice, mixes like daiquiri or pina colada. It is pretty nasty by itself. It's bottom shelf here.

Puerto Rican style rums like Don Q and especially Ron de Barilito are much smoother and best enjoyed neat, rocks, with splash of water or, my favorite, rocks with juice of half a Puerto Rican lime.

Or, in my younger navy days, straight from the bottle.

40 years without a drink in October. I don't miss it. I do remember it.

John Henry

John henry म्हणाले...

I'm the opposite of Tina.

I've read some of Shakespeare's plays in hs and college because I had to. Tried reading others on my own found the boring.

But I've been draggy to half a dozen live performances over the years. I go because I have to, never expect to like them but always do.

John Henry

TaeJohnDo म्हणाले...

Congrats, John Henry! I'll hit 36 next month.

Tina Trent म्हणाले...

I get it, John Henry. I think my nascent theatrophobia fully bloomed after being forced, via work-required "team-building," to attend a participatory dinner theater event.

I don't think I'm alone in being scarred by that experience.