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Brush Up Your Shakespeare!
The San Francisco Chronicle called this entertaining and informative guide to the Bard's most famous and quotable expressions "delightful...a gem." From "salad days" to "strange bedfellows," the remarkable legacy of William Shakespeare lives on in our everyday vocabulary. Each entry includes the original meaning of the word or expression, the play or poem in which it appears, which character spoke it, and how it is used today. Cross-referenced for easy use; black-and-white line drawings by Tom Lulevitch.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 1990
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
January 30, 2013
A very enlightening book on various Shakespearean quotes that are commonly used today by many individuals without any knowledge, however, as to their origin and true meaning. The author writes in a fun whimsical way yet clearly explaining the definition of the words or phrases. In the back of the book is a section of words that were actually coined by Shakespeare (or words which he was the first to put in print), and it includes some very interesting surprises such as: “upstairs” and “downstairs”, “domineering”, “bedroom”, “quarrelsome”, “unreal”, and “assassination”.
Some of the phrases that Shakespeare coined are also very surprising and ones that we use, if not every day, at least multiple times a week. A commonly used one is the phrase “Household Words”. Here’s the ironic (and fascinating) part of it; though it is a very well known word, its use has changed dramatically since it was first written. In speaking of Act 4, scene 3 of ‘Henry the Fifth, the author says: “...Henry appeals to the pride and glory, not of war, but of old men’s tales of war. Victory will bring a kind of immortality, because the names of the heroes will become as familiar in English mouths as their “household words.” As we do, Henry uses “household” to connote extreme familiarity. At home, people are just people, not specialists of any variety, and they speak the commonest language. Oddly, this elitism-in-reverse is meant to ensure the greatest distinction- familiarity breeds not contempt, but glory, even immortality. Henry and Shakespeare’s audience appreciated this phenomenon as the distinction of the hero; that we now expand it to include consumer products and media celebrities does, perhaps, verge on contempt.”
This is just one example of many. Probably the most important thing taken away from reading this book is that, besides it being a very enjoyable and delightful read, it also helps one to realize how important it is to know and understand the meaning of the words you are saying. So often we just spit words out of our mouths that we think nothing of, but once you begin to look into their specific meanings, and become more aware of what you are actually saying, it makes you really want to be more careful and precise with your words. “Psalm 34:13 Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile.”
Some of the phrases that Shakespeare coined are also very surprising and ones that we use, if not every day, at least multiple times a week. A commonly used one is the phrase “Household Words”. Here’s the ironic (and fascinating) part of it; though it is a very well known word, its use has changed dramatically since it was first written. In speaking of Act 4, scene 3 of ‘Henry the Fifth, the author says: “...Henry appeals to the pride and glory, not of war, but of old men’s tales of war. Victory will bring a kind of immortality, because the names of the heroes will become as familiar in English mouths as their “household words.” As we do, Henry uses “household” to connote extreme familiarity. At home, people are just people, not specialists of any variety, and they speak the commonest language. Oddly, this elitism-in-reverse is meant to ensure the greatest distinction- familiarity breeds not contempt, but glory, even immortality. Henry and Shakespeare’s audience appreciated this phenomenon as the distinction of the hero; that we now expand it to include consumer products and media celebrities does, perhaps, verge on contempt.”
This is just one example of many. Probably the most important thing taken away from reading this book is that, besides it being a very enjoyable and delightful read, it also helps one to realize how important it is to know and understand the meaning of the words you are saying. So often we just spit words out of our mouths that we think nothing of, but once you begin to look into their specific meanings, and become more aware of what you are actually saying, it makes you really want to be more careful and precise with your words. “Psalm 34:13 Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile.”
March 17, 2011
This is great reference book for those who love Shakespeare and desire brief references for the most famous quotes. While T. S. Eliot and Cole Porter may not have needed it, the book is helpful for those of us who do not read Shakespeare everyday. With quotes from all or almost all of the plays it is helpful as both a reminder of past readings and performances and a suggestion for new exploration of this greatest playwright of the English language. The book is a delight to browse or use as a reverence work. It also helps you avoid the faux Shakespeare that is in the air, those phrases wrongly attributed to Shakespeare which had origins in earlier works.
August 2, 2014
It's a fun little reference. The majority of the book is dedicated to explaining Shakespeare's most famous lines and passages, but it also has sections on coined words, titles coming from Shakespeare, and misattributions. It isn't a book you'd want to sit down and read all at once, but glancing at a few pages a day can be pretty interesting. I learned some good stuff.
July 24, 2021
This was a fun resource while reading the Complete Works of William Shakespeare. It imparts interesting trivia regarding commonly known, and not so well known, quotes from Shakespeare's plays. Some helped to better understand the story within the play.
April 2, 2023
I read this alphabetic synopsis of memorable Shakespeare quotes off and on over a couple months as kind of a secular devotional.
And when you're done, you'll be able to argue with your friends about the meaning of "salad days" (Anthony and Cleopatra), or "hoist with your own petard" (Hamlet). You can learn about the origin of knock-knock jokes (Macbeth) or have heated discussion on the proper punctuation of "What a piece of Work is Man. (Hamlet)" You can certainly bedazzle (Shakespeare word) gentlefolk (Shakespeare word) with you expertness (Shakespeare word) and make any fat-witted (Shakespeare word) schoolboy (Shakespeare word) look like a savage (Shakespeare word)!
And when you're done, you'll be able to argue with your friends about the meaning of "salad days" (Anthony and Cleopatra), or "hoist with your own petard" (Hamlet). You can learn about the origin of knock-knock jokes (Macbeth) or have heated discussion on the proper punctuation of "What a piece of Work is Man. (Hamlet)" You can certainly bedazzle (Shakespeare word) gentlefolk (Shakespeare word) with you expertness (Shakespeare word) and make any fat-witted (Shakespeare word) schoolboy (Shakespeare word) look like a savage (Shakespeare word)!
August 31, 2023
Very helpful reference for those reading Shakespeare.
June 27, 2021
Como el mismo autor señala, el título de este libro se deriva de una canción incluida en la comedia musical “Kiss Me Kate” de Cole Porter. Pero el texto de Macrone está dedicado a hacer un recuento de la influencia de Shakespeare en la lengua y la cultura popular de los pueblos de habla inglesa (aunque algunas de las cosas que menciona han llegado también al castellano). Sobre todo hace un recuento de las frases de uso común que se originaron en las obras de este dramaturgo (como “la brevedad es el alma del ingenio”, que aparece en el “Hamlet”). Pero también menciona los elementos lingüísticos que muchos creen se originaron en Shakespeare, y en realidad son ajenos a él. El libro incluye un apéndice sobre las adaptaciones fílmicas de Shakespeare. En general es una obra útil y agradable, aunque (como de costumbre) tiene tendencia a simplificar la complejidad del mundo de este autor isabelino.
October 10, 2014
This book is for those that both want to improve their Shakespearean intelligence quotient, as well as, those that wish to learn the roots of common phrases. I love the author's humor and insightful briefs about each quote or expression. I would like to see this book in many hands to not only build vocabulary and knowledge, also, to develop a greater appreciation for the works of Shakespeare and how much he changed our language.
February 2, 2015
This helpful volume contains excerpts from some of the most famous passages of Shakespeare, with explanations and helps for understanding them. This will be especially helpful if you know some phrases are from Shakespeare but aren’t sure in which play to find them.
{Read my full review here}
{Read my full review here}
February 17, 2013
A listing with explanations and sources for some of the more famous lines from Shakespeare. It also contains a list of words coined by Shakespeare as well as lines attributed to him, but did not originate with him.
September 10, 2014
A volume of the most familiar borrowings and the earliest known examples of phrases which can be traced to the Bard, with explanatory notes and a fun style, this is one I'd advocate grabbing if you happen to see it in a used bookstore.
December 31, 2014
Great fun for those of us who "missed the Shakespeare boat" during our school years. We Americans probably have no idea how many common phrases we frequently use, which come from Shakespeare, or also are "faux Shakespeare": Those which came before him, but which he uses in his plays.
April 17, 2007
A very fun way to peruse Shakespeare's famous and often quoted expressions.
December 10, 2007
A fun look at some of Shakespeare's famous quotes and what they mean.
December 12, 2008
Book is pretty thorough on what Shakespeare really is talking about in his plays and the true meanings to certain phrases. If you are a Shakespeare lover this would be a really good book for you
November 17, 2009
Charming.
January 17, 2012
Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war!
September 18, 2013
Even after having this book for 20 years, I still like to pick it up off the shelf and re-read sections from time to time.
Currently reading
September 6, 2024picked this up at the NPL book sale today. looks like fun.
not from the book but interesting
http://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia...
not from the book but interesting
http://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia...
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February 2, 2017Wow! I didn't realize how many quotes the Bard gave us an how many times we misinterpret his words.
February 6, 2017
Ho riletto questo libro per rinfrescarmi la memoria sul Bardo. Ci sara tempo e modo per riparlarne ...
November 27, 2025
About the perfect blend of quotation and commentary. I just wish there were more.
March 15, 2012
Delightful, fun and infectious.
August 17, 2017
This is an interesting catalogue of famous everyday (and not so famous) quotes from Shakespeare. Macrone does a good job of providing context from the original texts and clarifying how the meanings of certain words have changed, but he's inconsistent in explaining how some of the phrases are used today (for that, listen to the great podcast No Holds Bard).
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews