Episode 54 - All's Well That Ends Well

<p>Another one of Shakespeare's problem plays, All's Well That Ends Well doesn't really, well... end well. It's a play deeply concerned about gender norms, sex, and lies, with some interesting characters who - like those in other problem plays - defy the typical conventions we usually associate with Shakespeare's better known figures. We talk about these themes and the characters that lay trapped within them, in this episode!</p> <p>Notes:</p> <ul><li>As always, the Folger accompanying essay, "<a href='https://shakespeare.folger.edu/shakespeares-works/alls-well-that-ends-well/alls-well-that-ends-well-a-modern-perspective/'>All's Well That Ends Well: A Modern Perspective</a>" is a good resource for digging into some of the thornier issues of this play.</li> <li>The <a href='https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/alls-well-that-ends-well'>Shmoop guide</a> ain't half bad either!</li> <li>The <a href='https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080352/'>BBC version</a> really does rip off the baroque and other famous painters shot-for-shot at times - well worth checking out for that alone!</li> <li>The film Aidan mentions in the outro is definitely <a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ran_(film)'>Ran by Akira Kurosawa</a>. not <a href='https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0023369/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_3'>Rain</a>, which is a lesser known film that doesn't sound nearly as good.</li> </ul> <p>Ancient Bickerings:</p> <p>It's a simple question for this one: is all well at the end of the play? Lindsay says no, Aidan says yes. Aidan is wrong.</p>