Name: The Comedy of Errors
Rating: 3.454545454545455 (33 reviews)
ISBN: 9780873522960

William Shakespeare

Thomas Whitfield Baldwin

John Hazel Smith

New Shakespeare, long since out-of-print, is now reissued. Each work contains a lengthy and lively introduction, main text, and substantial notes and glossary.

The Comedy of Errors

Two sets of identical twins provide the basis for ongoing incidents of mistaken identity, within a lively plot of quarrels, arrests, and a grand courtroom denouement. One of Shakespeare's earliest comedic efforts.

This is a comedy by William Shakespeare. The story is about how Aegon and his wife is blessed with 2 identical twins and at the same time a poor woman gave birth to identical twins as well, who are bought by Aegon as servants for his twins. However a shipwreak results in separation of both the twins: one of Aegon's twins and one of the poor woman's twins is with Aegon as he lands in Syracuse and the remainin children are with his wife and they land in Ephesus. The play is really silly because of all the confusion that is caused later on due to circumstances and with the 2 twins looking identical to each other...plus both twin pairs have the SAME NAME!! Very silly hilarious and light hearted play, good recommendation from my end!

Aarush Arora

Lively, instructive access to Shakespeare's rich and complex works.

Emilia 

Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors is the slapstick farce of his youth. In it, the lost twin sons of the old merchant Egeon—both named Antipholus—find themselves in Ephesus, without either one even knowing of the other’s existence. Meanwhile, Egeon has arrived in search of the son he thinks is still alive—and has been sentenced to death for the “crime” of being from Syracuse. To add to the confusion, the two Antipholuses have twin servants, both named Dromio. As the four men unwittingly encounter each other, the play is crammed with wildly escalating misunderstandings before the truth emerges and Egeon is pardoned. Shakespeare bases his story on Plautus’s Menaechmi, a play about identical twins who accidentally meet after a lifetime apart. He borrows from another Plautus play by having Adriana, the wife of one Antipholus, entertain the other. The spirited Adriana often gives speeches evoking strong emotions—as do other characters at times. Even here, Shakespeare suggests complexities beyond the farce. The authoritative edition of The Comedy of Errors from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers, includes: -Freshly edited text based on the best early printed version of the play -Full explanatory notes conveniently placed on pages facing the text of the play -Scene-by-scene plot summaries -A key to the play’s famous lines and phrases -An introduction to reading Shakespeare’s language -An essay by a leading Shakespeare scholar providing a modern perspective on the play -Fresh images from the Folger Shakespeare Library’s vast holdings of rare books -An annotated guide to further reading Essay by Arthur F. Kinney The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, is home to the world’s largest collection of Shakespeare’s printed works, and a magnet for Shakespeare scholars from around the globe. In addition to exhibitions open to the public throughout the year, the Folger offers a full calendar of performances and programs. For more information, visit Folger.edu.

Sophia De La Garza

This was an unexpectedly fun read. I enjoyed the mix up of the two sets of brothers and I thought the chaos that ensued was light-hearted and entertaining. I wouldn't mind rereading this in the future as it's one of the easiest of Shakespeare's plays that I have read. 

Overall, 4 stars

Simon Elliott Stegall

Very funny, but also somewhat forgettable. Just another Shakespeare slapstick.

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The acclaimed Pelican Shakespeare series edited by A. R. Braunmuller and Stephen Orgel The legendary Pelican Shakespeare series features authoritative and meticulously researched texts paired with scholarship by renowned Shakespeareans. Each book includes an essay on the theatrical world of Shakespeare’s time, an introduction to the individual play, and a detailed note on the text used. Updated by general editors Stephen Orgel and A. R. Braunmuller, these easy-to-read editions incorporate over thirty years of Shakespeare scholarship undertaken since the original series, edited by Alfred Harbage, appeared between 1956 and 1967. With definitive texts and illuminating essays, the Pelican Shakespeare will remain a valued resource for students, teachers, and theater professionals for many years to come. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,800 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

The Comedy of Errors

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