The Comedy of Errors

By William Shakespeare

Nature or Nurture-- The Comedy of Errors tells the story of two sets of twins accidently separated and mixed at birth. When the four meet, a series of wild mishaps are set into motion by mistaken identities. This is a fast-paced farcical romp full of slapstick and wordplay: one of the bard's most fun plays. He that commends me to mine own content Commends me to the thing I cannot get. I to the world am like a drop of water That in the ocean seeks another drop, Who, falling there to find his fellow forth, Unseen, inquisitive, confounds himself: So I, to find a mother and a brother, In quest of them, unhappy, lose myself.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wilder Publications, Inc.
• Release date: Jun 10, 2015
• ISBN: 9781627557023

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare is the world's greatest ever playwright. Born in 1564, he split his time between Stratford-upon-Avon and London, where he worked as a playwright, poet and actor. In 1582 he married Anne Hathaway. Shakespeare died in 1616 at the age of fifty-two, leaving three children—Susanna, Hamnet and Judith. The rest is silence.

Book preview

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Reviews for The Comedy of Errors

[wealhtheowwylfing · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Really excellent insults and figures of speech throughout a ridiculous play. This play should not be performed "straight," or read silently--you need a framing device, or great physical comedy, or *something* to bring it up to the level of Shakespeare's other plays. Because there really isn't much to this farce, and what little substance there is, is a bit sketchy (ah, beating one's slave--hilarity!). Also, I hate mistaken identity stories, so I was prejudiced against this from the start.

[amerynth · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I wasn't surprised to learn that "Comedy of Errors" is one of Shakespeare's early plays. It really seemed unpolished compared to some of his best-known work.I guess my major objection was with the whole switcharoo premise, which seemed so implausible that I couldn't suspend that much disbelief.I perhaps might have enjoyed a performance of the play more than a read of it. Definitely one of my least favorites of the Shakespeare plays I've read.

[meandmybooks-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Fast and facile. A Shakespearean sit-com – clever and silly, but with no depth. This one, more than most, I think, needs to be seen performed to be properly appreciated – I imagine all the mix-ups might be quite entertaining, properly acted. Unfortunately I read it, along with a Librivox recording by a cast that included some really talented readers, some who were clearly new to the English language, and a robot. In fairness I'll admit that I'm generally luke-warm on the comedies, aside from “Much Ado, so my lack of enthusiasm probably doesn't say much about the actual merits of this play.

[aliceanna-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Obviously an earlier work. More slapstick than his more sophisticated humor in his later works. The unfortunate servants serve as the receiving end of a Punch and Judy show. I don't recall that type of humor in his other works. But the "punderful" use of the English language is there from the start. Not a very compelling play, but fun nonetheless.

[stefany_6 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I went into this fairly skeptical of how much I would actually enjoy it. I was told that it was Shakespeare's first play and that the only reason that my instructor was having us read it was because it is actually being performed here on campus and we are required to attend the one-night-only performance. Not a glowing recommendation to have before starting a book!The play is surprisingly easy to follow and understand. The humor is actually funny and I found myself chuckling out loud and enjoying the many puns and instances of word play that take place throughout caused by the many mistakes in identity that occur due to the presence of two sets of long separated twins. The play does require the reader/viewer to suspend reality in order for the premise to work, but all in all, it's quite entertaining and worth checking out if you're interested in this sort of thing.

[cmbohn · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Not one of Shakespeare's best. Two pairs of twins were separated shortly after birth, one pair gentlemen and one pair servants. They are reunited after a series of confusing events and mistaken identity. It wasn't a bad play, and would probably be funnier on stage, but it didn't seem enough of a plot for 5 whole acts.

[wilsonknut · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is one of Will's earlier comedies. There's a lot of slapstick, insults, and raunchy humor. This has the classic line, "She is spherical, like a globe. I could find out countries in her."

[vicarofdibley · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

another of the 1890 wee books from the same series, wonder what else is out there

[bookworm12_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Have you ever seen the 1988 movie Big Business? If you have then you know the general idea of this play’s premise. Two sets of twins are born in the same place on the same night. One set of twins is wealthy, the other is not. The twins are separated at birth and one brother from each set end up growing up together as servant and master. Just to add to the confusion, the twins from each pair have the same name. The play is one big case of mistaken identity. Friends, lovers, foes, everyone is completely confused as they run into the brothers and mistake them for their twin. I think this would be an incredibly entertaining play for kids to see, especially if they’re new to Shakespeare’s work. It’s easy to follow and contains lots of big laughs. In later plays the Bard uses cases of mistaken identity and sets of twins to aid a larger story. This play feels like an early draft of the greater work to come, but it lacks the depth of his other plays. BOTTOM LINE: This is the shortest and shallowest of Shakespeare’s comedies. I have a feeling it would be really fun to see performed live, but it doesn’t work as well in the written form.

[bryndahlquis · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great fun! Bit hard to get into at first, but it's hilarious once you do. I feel very sorry for everyone in this play, but that doesn't make it any less funny.

[joririchardson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I love Shakespeare's "The Comedy of Errors" because it seems to contain a dash of all his comedic abilities and elements, all thrown together into one play.This is the story of two sets of identical twins separated at birth. When the four of them end up in the same city at the same time, all sorts of, well, comedy and error ensues.Shakespeare makes sharp use of his usual witty twist of wordplay, farce and puns. Throw in theft, madness, more cases of mistaken identity than you could ever wish for, public beatings, arrest, false accusations, and fake possession, and you have this wild story.I wouldn't call this one perfect or without "errors" of its own, however. There is not much variation or development in the plot, and the joke gets old after awhile.All the same, it's Shakespeare, and a great introduction to his comedies.

[katieloucks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Absolutely loved it!! I loved the doubles!!!

[lizpatanders · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This play probably ties with Twelfth Night for my favorite Shakespeare play of those that I've read. The concept of people constantly mixing up two twins and this wreaking lots of havoc may not be the most advanced ever, but Shakespeare plays it out really well here.This play lives up to its status in the comedy of category. I found the humor very situational, and at times couldn't help but laugh at the irony of the characters' circumstances.I also thought that the characterization was quite well done here. The reader actually does get a fair amount of insight into Adriana's marriage with Antipholus of Ephesus and her feelings. I felt that I also got good insight into why things were happening because Shakespeare partially develops these charactesr by talking about the problems (and their anxieties regarding them) which they need to eliminate to avoid being arrested.I also thought this play was a quick read over all. I thought that the characters kept the reader engaged, as did the plot. It left me wanting to know what happened. Even if this play is a comedy, I think there's lots of other good reasons to enjoy it!

[cbl_tn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Shakespeare set this farce about identical twins in the ancient world. Early in the play, the father of one set of twins explains how the pairs were separated in a ship wreck. This background prepares the audience for scene after scene of mistaken identity as the Syracusan and Ephesian pairs move about Ephesus. I read along as I listened to the Arkangel audio production and laughed aloud at the characters’ confusion. It doesn’t pay to think too deeply about the plot. The Syracusan pair had been traveling for several years in search of their lost twins, so why didn’t it occur to them that their twins were living in Ephesus when all these strangers thought they were someone else?

[mkfs-354306 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A good page of fat jokes, and no end of a-woman's-role-in-marriage repartee, but overall a rather mindless play. The introduction in the Norton Shakespeare struggles to find depth, citing the issue of identity which The Bard clearly doesn't grapple with here.