April 23, 2016

POTD: The Secret of the Rooky Wood (encore)

The Secret of the Rooky Wood
Bozeman, Montana
2012

Today is the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death. Here in Bozeman there are to be organized pop-up or flash Shakespeare readings all day. Individuals are also encouraged to publicly recite something from the Bard whenever and wherever they feel so inspired. Not having the personality for such public spontaneity, I chose to mark the occasion with a rerun this post from four years ago.

I must confess I’m not a huge reader of Shakespeare’s works; I soon get lost in the unfamiliar prose. But taken in smaller bits and pieces, I find it can be incredibly poignant  and his influence on literature and day-to-day speech is undeniable.

Come, seeling night,
Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day,
And with thy bloody and invisible hand
Cancel and tear to pieces that great bond
Which keeps me pale! Light thickens, and the crow
Makes wing to the rooky wood;
Good things of day begin to droop and drowse,
While night’s black agents to their preys do rouse.

–William Shakespeare, Macbeth

 

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