Love's Labour's Lost
Love's Labour's Lost is a comedy play by William Shakespeare which was written between 1588 and 1597.
The play contains a lot of wordplay and many characters are based off real kings and noblemen from around those years. This makes the play harder to understand for modern audiences, which is why it is less famous than most of Shakespeare's plays.[1][2] However, it has been performed more often since the 20th century.
Plot
Ferdinand, the King of Navarre, and three of his men meet together and talk about their intellectual plans. Their plans then go wrong when the Princess of France and three of her ladies arrive. The men find that they are in love with the ladies and cannot hide it.
Name
The exact original title is unknown. In early written versions of the script, it varied as to how many apostrophes were used in the title. In the first quarto, it is called Loues labors lost, as a "u" was often used for a "v" sound back then. The title is now most often given as Love's Labour's Lost.
Love's Labour's Lost Media
Love's Labour's Lost, Act IV, Scene 3, by Thomas Stothard (c. 1800)
The first page of the play in the First Folio (1623)
Frontispiece from Love's Labour's Lost, 1598 from the University of Edinburgh Heritage Collection
First page from Love's Labour's Lost, 1598, from the University of Edinburgh Heritage Collection
Title page of the second quarto (1631)
Princess of France (from an 1850 edition)
Photograph of John Drew as the King of Navarre in Augustin Daly's production
Start of a performance of Love's Labour's Lost at Shakespeare's Globe, London
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References
- ↑ Woudhuysen, H.R. (2001). "Love's Labour's Lost". In Proudfoot, Richard; et al. (eds.). The Arden Shakespeare complete works (2 ed.). London: Thomson. p. 743. ISBN 978-1-903436-61-5.
- ↑ Halliwell-Phillipps, J.O. (1879). "Memoranda on Love's Labour's Lost". Printed by J.E. Adlard.
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