William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare:

(Stratford-upon-Avon, ± 23 April OS 1564, baptised 26 April 1564 – there, 23 April 1616)
English playwright, poet and actor.

What should we speak of when we are as old as you? When we shall hear the rain and wind beat dark December? How in this our pinching cave, shall we discourse the freezing hours away?

Photo: Aranka Margittal. **Meaning**: The text evokes themes of: *Old age and wisdom:* Reflection on the experiences and conversations that occur as time passes. *The influence of nature:* Rain and wind symbolize the challenges and transience of life. *Existential questions:* The “constricting cave” can symbolize the limitations and isolation of aging. **Origin:** From the play *“King Lear.”* It is often interpreted as a moment of introspection where the characters reflect on the cycle of life and the changes that old age brings. **Author:** *William Shakespeare:* One of the greatest playwrights and poets in English literature, active in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. *Conclusion:* Shakespeare’s work offers a profound reflection on the human experience, and this particular passage invites us to reflect on old age, nature, and the conversations we have about our lives.

With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.

How like a winter hath my absence been. From thee, the pleasure of the fleeting year. What freezings have I felt, what dark days seen? What old December’s bareness everywhere.

If music be the food of Love, Then Play On.

The course of true love never did run smooth.

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, and summer’s lease hath all too short a date.

O! how much more doth beauty beauteous seem By that sweet ornament which truth doth give.

Truth hath a quiet breast.

Love is not love which alters it when alteration finds.

Men are April when they woo, December when they wed. Maids are May when they are maids, but the sky changes when they are wives.

Photo: Fabio Jock. **Meaning 📖 :** The quote is a metaphorical observation about how people change as their relationship status changes, specifically from the courtship stage to marriage. It uses the months of the year to symbolize emotional states. *‘Men are April when they court’:* 🌞 *‘April’:* Symbolizes spring, a time of blossoming, hope, freshness and youthful energy. *💐 Meaning:* When a man woos (tries to seduce or win over) a woman, he is charming, attentive, full of life and promise, just like spring. He shows his best side. *‘December when they get married’:* ❄️ *‘December’:* Symbolizes winter, a time of cold, darkness, and often a more sober or reserved atmosphere. 💍 *Meaning:* Once the man is married and the *‘loot is in’*, his attitude may change. He becomes more serious, perhaps more distant, or less romantic. The excitement of the hunt is over and the reality of everyday life (winter) sets in. *‘Maids are May when they are maids’: 🌸 ‘May* (May)’: Another spring month, often seen as the most beautiful and flowery month, a time of pure innocence and beauty. 🎀 *Meaning:* When a young woman (*“maid” or “maiden”* in the context of the times) is still unmarried, she is seen as at her most beautiful, full of promise, innocence and vivacity, similar to the month of May. *‘but the sky changes when they are wives’ : 🌦️ ‘The sky changes’:* This suggests a change in the atmosphere or state of mind. It’s not the constant ‘May’ sunshine anymore. 👰 *Meaning:* Once the woman gets married and takes on the role of wife, her attitude or how she is perceived changes. The idealization of the *“maid”* phase gives way to the complexities and responsibilities of marriage, which can lead to mood swings or a change in her character (the air that changes). In summary: The quote is a somewhat cynical or pragmatic view of the transience of romantic ideals and the down-to-earth reality that often follows marriage. It suggests that the passion and charm of courtship (spring) inevitably gives way to the more austere reality of married life (winter/changeable skies). **🎭 The Origin and Author:** The quote was written by *William Shakespeare. Play: “As You Like It” Context: The quote is from ‘Act IV, Scene 1’.*
In this scene, the character Rosalind is disguised as a young man named Ganymede. Her lover, Orlando, does not know she is Rosalind and asks Ganymede to help him woo *“Rosalind”* (by pretending Ganymede is Rosalind). In this particular passage, Rosalind (as Ganymede) warns Orlando about the unreliability and fickleness of men and women in love, using the familiar metaphors of the months.

April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.

Photo: James Baldwin. **Meaning: 📜 🌸** *The meaning is as follows:* *Rejuvenation and Vitality:* The quote describes how the month of April, a symbol of the full bloom of spring, brings renewed vitality and freshness (*“spirit of youth”*) to all of nature. *Contrast in the Sonnet:* In the context of Sonnet 98, however, this description is ironic or even melancholic. The speaker is separated from his beloved in the spring (*“From you have I been absent in the spring”*). Despite all the liveliness and beauty of April, the speaker cannot truly enjoy it because his beloved is not present. The liveliness of nature actually emphasizes his own sense of loss and *‘wintery’* emptiness, even in the midst of the blooming spring. **🖋️ Origin and Author:** This quote was written by the world-famous English poet and playwright *William Shakespeare.* It comes from one of his most famous works: **Work:** *Sonnets: (a collection of 154 sonnets). Specifically: Sonnet 98. Published: 1609.* 🌿 *The Original English Text:* The full opening stanza of Sonnet 98 reads:
*“From you have I been absent in the spring,*
*When proud-pied April, dressed in all his trim,*
*Hath put a spirit of youth in every thing,*
*That heavy Saturn laughed and leaped with him.”*

How much more doth beauty beauteous seem by that sweet ornament which truth doth give.

All things that are, Are with more spirit chased than enjoyed.

There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.

O, while you live, tell truth, and shame the Devil!

Nor airless dungeon, nor strong links of iron Can be retentive to the strength of spirit.

I were but little happy, if I could say how much.

No legacy is so rich as honesty.

We are such stuff As dreams are made on, and our little life Is rounded with a sleep.

Friendship, not by wisdom, is easily dissolved by foolishness.

There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

Doubt thou, the stars are fire; Doubt that the sun doth move; Doubt truth to be a liar; But never doubt I love.

Hell is empty and all the devils are here.

Truth is truth To the end of reckoning.

True, I talk of dreams, Which are the children of an idle brain, Begot of nothing but vain fantasy, Which is as thin of substance as the air And more inconstant than the wind.

If we are true to ourselves, we can not be false to anyone.

Daffodils That come before the swallow dares, and take The winds of March with beauty.

Photo: Heidi Samuelson. **Meaning 🌼📜 🤔:** This saying is a poetic hymn to the first spring flowers, in this case the daffodil. It carries a deeper meaning: *Braving the elements:* Daffodils bloom early in spring, when the weather can still be unpredictable and bleak (*“the winds of March”*). They have the courage to bloom before other symbols of spring, such as the swallow, arrive. *Beauty and resilience:* The sentence emphasizes that these flowers not only survive, but actually *“receive”* the harsh winds with beauty. They transform a cold time into something beautiful. Metaphor for courage and hope: It is often seen as a metaphor for people or ideas that are brave enough to emerge first in difficult times, paving the way for the warmth and beauty that will follow. 🏛️ **The Origin:** The original text comes from William Shakespeare. It is an excerpt from his play *“The Winter’s Tale”,* one of his later works (a *“romance”*). 🖋️ The English Original Text. The quote is from Act 4, Scene 4. It is spoken by the character Perdita, a young woman who, unknowingly, is a princess but has been raised by shepherds. She hands out flowers and describes their beauty: “Daffodils, That come before the swallow dares, and take The winds of March with beauty…” (In modern English spelling and punctuation). **✍️ Author:** William Shakespeare. Birth/Death | 1564 – 1616 | | Occupation | Playwright, poet, actor | Nickname | The Bard of Avon (The Bard of Avon) | Known Works | Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Sonnets. *Shakespeare’s Impact:* He is considered the greatest playwright of all time and his work has had an inestimable influence on the English language and world literature. His ability to understand human nature and express it in beautiful poetry, as in this quote about the daffodils, is legendary.

Beware the ides of March.

Photo by bookofdaystales.com. **Meaning 🎭:** The expression *“Beware of the Ides of March”* means that you must be alert to danger or misfortune on a specific, often predetermined, date. It is a warning to be cautious, because something negative might happen. **📜 Origin:** The origin of this expression lies in ancient Rome and is directly connected to the assassination of Julius Caesar. *Ides of March:* This refers to the 15th day of the month of March in the Roman calendar. At that time, months were divided into *“kalendae”* (the first day), *“nonae”* (the 5th or 7th day), and *“idus”* (the 13th or 15th day). The Ides of March fell on March 15. *Divination:* According to tradition (and later recorded by writers such as *Plutarch*), Julius Caesar was warned by a diviner to beware of the Ides of March. *Assassination of Caesar:* On March 15, 44 BC. Julius Caesar was assassinated in the Senate by a group of conspirators, including Brutus and Cassius. He ignored the warning, and it proved to be his fateful day. ✍️ Author:Although the warning itself dates back to Roman history, the specific phrasing *“Beware the Ides of March”* (in English) and its popularization are largely attributable to: *William Shakespeare:* He used the phrase in his famous tragedy *Julius Caesar*. In the first act, scene 2, Caesar is approached by a soothsayer who warns him: *“Beware the Ides of March.” Context in the play:* Caesar initially dismisses the warning as *“a dreamer,”* but the warning lingers and creates a sense of threat throughout the play, until the fateful day arrives. Thus, although the historical event is the origin, Shakespeare anchored the expression in his play and made it famous worldwide.

Friendship is constant in all other things save in the office and affairs of love.

Be patient, for the world is broad and wide.

All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.