Will Power

"Words, words, words." Hamlet appreciated and loved them.

We do as well. Or at least, we should since we're getting bombarded with words during the back-to-back political conventions.

Hamlet's creator, William Shakespeare, used words with more finesse than anyone in history. Plus, he had the greatest insight into human nature than anyone, ever. With these two gifts, the Bard can give us insights into the speechifying we're witnessing in Denver and St. Paul.

Hillary delivered a stem-winder last night, doing I thought what she needed to do to get her supporters to support Obama. Yet given all the suspicion surrounding her motives, the pundits were more skeptical. If among them, William Shakespeare might react to Hillary's speech by saying, "We need more light to find your meaning out." (Love's Labor's Lost).

Anticipating Thursday night, the Bard would have nothing but praise for Barack Obama's rhetorical skills, and say, "His words are a very fantastical bouquet" (Much Ado About Nothing).

Shakespeare described John McCain's reaction to Obama's eloquent speeches, indicating a hint of jealousy from the ole' war horse: "I want that glib and oily art -- to speak and purpose not" (King Lear).

Last week, of course, Sen. Obama selected Joe Biden as his running mate. He's sure a respected Senator, known for his foreign policy knowledge and his perpetually happy demeanor. Shakespeare describes what Joe and his wife must have done right after receiving Obama's call to join the ticket: "They threw their caps as they would hang them on the horns of the moon" (Coriolanus).

But Joe Biden is also known for leaving no thought go unsaid. Some Americans may, after listening to his incessant talking over the coming weeks, agree with the Bard: "Zounds, I was never so bethumped with words" (King John).

Regardless, it now comes as welcome relief to listen to the three fluent Senators, rather than President George W. Bush. Of him, the Bard once quipped, with some understatement: "He was not born under a rhyming planet" (Much Ado About Nothing).

Many of us thought, after President Bush spoke, "He has been at a great feast of languages and stolen the scraps" (Love's Labor's Lost).

With the campaign in full swing, we'll hear more from the full-throated Bard, who has the most apt, insightful words for every political development. After all he, like Hamlet, sure loved words.

Comments

[Joshik72]

Heed not the angry lib'ral neer-do-wells,
A cake-walk push to victory I forsee!

--Didn't I read this in Henry V, or something like that?

[Liberal2]

Spike the false hand of envious trolls
which mock with glib pen...


Hamlet, maybe.

[SwimminCA]

Hey Ken,

Here's another quote from Shakespeare for you and your NeoCon friends to chew on:

"Tell them that Gods bids us do good for evil:
And thus I clothe my naked villainy
With odd old ends stol'n forth of holy writ,
And seems a saint, when most I play the devil."
- William Shakespeare
The Tragedy of King Richard the Third (King Richard at I, iii)

[Yugeen]

My bet is we won't be hearing any words from James Cone the founder of Black Theology and the inspiration for their church of 20 yrs.

[magen]

Wow!!!!

Thanks for that insulting Eurocentric piece. Shakespeare had the greatest insight into human nature than anyone, ever, huh????

There's a whole world out there ya know, and there's other languages much older than English.

Did you know that there's even literature in those other languages?????

Did you also know that these other languages are still spoken, while Shakespeare's English isn't????

[jbard]

Did you know that "Shakespeare's English" was never spoken? It's iambic pentameter--you know, poetry. Surely thou doest jerk thy knee. Having said that, the use of Shakespeare here is a bit silly.

[cam]

Be done with windy things and let the matter drop.