Touchstone in Shakespeare's "As you Like it"
Mark Edmunson, author of "Playing the Fool," writes,
"Shakespeare's fools are subtle teachers, reality instructors one might say, who often come close to playing the part that Socrates, himself an inspired clown, played on the streets of Athens. They tickle, coax and cajole their supposed betters into truth, or something akin to it. They take the spirit of April Fools' Day to an inspired zenith."
Indeed, beneath the jester facade, Shakespeare's fools offer depth and truth, a new perspective. Like the hillbilly fool, there is much more to Shakespeare's fools than what appears on the surface.
"Shakespeare's fools are subtle teachers, reality instructors one might say, who often come close to playing the part that Socrates, himself an inspired clown, played on the streets of Athens. They tickle, coax and cajole their supposed betters into truth, or something akin to it. They take the spirit of April Fools' Day to an inspired zenith."
Indeed, beneath the jester facade, Shakespeare's fools offer depth and truth, a new perspective. Like the hillbilly fool, there is much more to Shakespeare's fools than what appears on the surface.