Tag Archives: Hamlet

Prigozhin Didn’t Take the Tide at the Flood

By Robin Bates | Published: June 27, 2023

Did Prigozhin disregard Brutus’s advice, failing to take the tide when it was at its flood? If so, he might come to regret it.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Insurrection, Julius Caesar, Macbeth, unsuccessful coup, Vladimir Putin, William Shakespeare, Yevgeny Prigozhin | Comments closed

A McEwan Passage to Raise Your Spirits

By Robin Bates | Published: June 8, 2023

Note: If you wish to receive, via e-mail, (1) my weekly newsletter or (2) daily copies of these posts, notify me at [email protected] and indicate which you would like. I promise not to share your e-mail address with anyone. To unsubscribe, send me a follow-up email. Friday I’m traveling at the moment and so will confine myself today […]

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Ian McEwan, Nutshell, optimism, pessimism, William Shakespeare | Comments closed

The Bard Fails to Prevent Genocidal Horror

By Robin Bates | Published: May 23, 2023

Can Shakespeare break through to genocidal maniacs. O’Brien wrestles with this question in “Little Red Chairs.”

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Bosnian war, Edna O'Brien, immigrants, Julius Caesar, Little Red Chairs, Midsummer Night's Dream, Nikolai Koljević, Radovan Karadžič, war atrocities, war crimes, William Shakespeare | Comments closed

Hamlet: Shakespeare Grieving His Son?

By Robin Bates | Published: March 5, 2023

In which I explore why O’Farrell’s “Hamnet” opened up wellsprings of grief I didn’t realize were there.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Anne Hathaway, death and dying, grieving, Hamnet, Maggie O'Farrell, William Shakespeare | Comments closed

Why Conspiracy Theories Beat Logic

By Robin Bates | Published: November 14, 2022

Philosopher Mladen Dolar cites Socrates and Hamlet to explain why conspiracy theories are so resistant to logic.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged 2022 elections, Apology, conspiracy theories, Kari Lake, QAnon, Socrates, William Shakespeare | Comments closed

Alas, Poor Twitter–I Knew Him, Ho-Ratio

By Robin Bates | Published: October 30, 2022

Literary allusions have been flying, many with a sense of doom, since Elon Musk purchased Twitter.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Elon Musk, Henry VI Part 2, Jane Austen, Mansfield Park, Pride and Prejudice, Samuel Beckett, Sense and Sensibility, twitter, Waiting for Godot, William Shakespeare | Comments closed

Good Night, Sweet Lady

By Robin Bates | Published: July 21, 2022

Tomorrow I will recite internally recite a passage from “Hamlet” when I pour my mother’s ashes into the ground.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged death and dying, William Shakespeare | Comments closed

Hamlet and a Teen Suicide Outbreak

By Robin Bates | Published: October 25, 2021

Hamlet may give us some insight into adolescent suicides, which are on the rise.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged adolescence, adolescent suicide, suicide, Trumpism, William Shakespeare | Comments closed

Comparing Claudius’ and Trump’s Coups

By Robin Bates | Published: October 24, 2021

The GOP desire to move on from Trump’s coup attempt is like Claudius wanting to move on from his successful one against Hamlet’s father.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged coup d'etat, Donald Trump, GOP, January 6 insurrection, Trump's coup attempt, William Shakespeare | Comments closed