We get novelisation of films, but what about plays? I know I can freely read his plays anywhere online, but surely reading a script is less ideal than reading a novelised version written for people who were born sometime after Bach, assuming you’re not planning a word-for-word performance yourself of course.
I don’t even enjoy reading the scripts for my favourite films, and I understand all of the words, phrasings and allusions in those. With Shakespeare, I need to do a 4-year college course just to know what the fuck he’s on about.
This isn’t me being anti-intellectual, I respect anyone who can read through Shakespeare and enjoy it, it’s more about life being too fucking short and I’d like to experience the stories in a less torturous manner if possible.
If this has been attempted, can you recommend any authors?
Cheers!
There are certainly lots of film adaptations. I can think of two off the top of my head: Ten Things I Hate About You is a retelling of The Taming of the Shrew, and Disney’s The Lion King is straight Hamlet.
I’m surprised that I can’t easily find novelizations on Google. They must exist. If not, then that seems like a great opportunity.
Ok this isnt exactly what you’re looking for but, Nutshell by Ian McEwan. https://www.supersummary.com/nutshell-a-novel/summary/ Heres a lil summary.
Theres also the hogarth series (haven’t read any of that) but thats modern authors retelling shakespeares works. Margaret Atwood, Jeanette Winterson, Howard Jacobson, Anne Tyler have written books in that series.
The description of the Hogarth series is probably about as close as I’ve seen to what OP seems to be asking for, but obviously creatives in all media have been adapting Shakespeare for ages.
They may find a basic “nuts and bolts” adaptation to be a bit lacking though. Ol’ Willy Shakes tended to lift his plots from middle-brow history books and from earlier plays. The brilliance came in the specific use of language and from stretching the psychological intimacy and realism of the characters in ways that were unprecedented, but which has become the norm, and might feel stale at this point. Frankly, the plays would have been viewed as sloppy and vulgar by many in the upper class, even if they found them compelling in a “best of that lower sort of thing.” Shakespeare had to hustle and write “proper” poetry to build a reputation during his lifetime, and what was the net result of being the most brilliant literary innovator in English since Chaucer and possibly ever? He got to be like the second or third richest man in little Stratford-upon-Avon and told enough lies and paid enough bribes to get his dad a coat of arms.
I saw a modern, live theater interpretation of Romeo and Juliet, and I connected to that version of the play far more than any of the dozen or so times I’ve seen the unaltered play being performed.
I hope something like what you’re talking about does exist.
It was the Leonardo DiCaprio version, wasn’t it?
Naw, musta been Warm Bodies.
Dude, I made it like 80% of the way through that movie before I noticed it was Romeo and Juliet. I felt so dumb when it hit me.
I can confirm that such a thing exists, because I once owned such a book, though I can’t give you any specific detail about it because it was probably 20 years ago and I have no idea where it has ended up since then and my memory is a bit fuzzy.
I was in probably about 5th or 6th grade, but a pretty advanced reader, and I don’t remember where I picked it up, but maybe that might give you some idea where I might have looked for books. The majority of books I had back then either came from Barnes and Noble or scholastic book fairs. It was definitely a softcover book, and I’m fairly certain the cover was black with one of the usual portraits of Shakespeare you’ve probably seen in 1000 different places. I am far from certain but if I had to guess it may have been published by penguin.
I believe more or less all of the dialogue from the plays was there and mostly intact, but padded out with extra descriptions and such so that it read like a regular story and not a play.
I want to say it had a couple of the better known plays, but there’s a chance it only had Romeo and Juliet, my memory is very fuzzy on this.
Dialogue was still very Shakespearean, so you do have to be willing to wade through that a bit, but it was definitely still far more approachable than as a play.
There are elements of David Foster Wallace’s (brilliant) Infinite Jest that echo parts of Hamlet, but it’s in no way a novelisation. And even if it was, it certainly wouldn’t be less tortuous…
