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The Problem Plays

 







There are three plays by Shakespeare that are collectively referred to as the “problem plays.” They are not called problem plays because there is anything particularly wrong with them, or because they are problematic. (To be fair, there are things in these as in other Shakespeare plays that a modern audience might take issue with, but that is not why they are called problem plays). They are called problem plays because whether they are comedies or tragedies, they deal with societal problems. They have dark subject matter and they tend to be cynical. They juxtapose broad comedy with harsh dramatic situations (I suspect another reason they are called problem plays is because they are difficult to categorize). Resolutions tend not to be clear-cut. The good guy doesn’t necessarily get the girl, and the bad guy may not be punished. It was unusual for a playwright of the time to write plays like this. Comedies were supposed to be funny all the way through with a well-defined happy ending. Tragedies were supposed to be serious drama with a resolutely sad ending. Shakespeare was not averse to breaking the rules. His plays tend to be more complex than his contemporaries.

The first time I saw Measure for Measure I was in my mid-twenties. I had seen a few of his plays by then. I knew the general rule that comedies had happy endings and tragedies had sad endings. But I remember watching measure for Measure saying to myself, “what’s this?” It seemed to be a dark drama, and then this guy popped out who was hilariously funny. Then it would get dark again. As the play drew close to near the end, I still did not know if this was going to end happily or not. Would Isabella be okay? Would Angelo get what he deserved? Would Claudio die? It was actually suspenseful in a way I had never seen a Shakespeare play be suspenseful. Maybe that was the point. As you may have guessed by now, Measure for Measure is one of the problem plays (the other two plays that scholars call the problem plays are All’s Well that Ends Well, and Troilus and Cressida). Measure for Measure is a comedy, but it deals with things like sexual assault, a fanatical adherence to the letter of the law, vengeance, abuse of power, and lust. Measure for Measure also has what I would describe as the most Christian moment in all of Shakespeare. Lots of people call themselves Christians who live their lives completely divorced from the teachings of Jesus. That was as true in Shakespeare’s day as in ours. But when Isabella sees Angelo brought for justice before the Duke, this man who had abused his power, sexually blackmailed her, and who had killed her brother (she believed), no one would have blamed her for asking for his head. Instead, when such a punishment is proposed, she begs the Duke for mercy on his behalf. Almost nobody (no matter what their religion) would find it in their hearts to do this. But this is one novice who has taken her vows seriously. We, in the audience all want Angelo killed, but then Isabella shames us with her words.

The problem plays not only skirt the line between comedy and tragedy, but examine moral dilemmas. Central characters find themselves torn between what they want to do and what they should do. Unlike the pure love story in Romeo and Juliette, the love story in Troilus and Cressida turns cynical and tainted. The problem plays also have unlikeable characters: Bertram and Parolles in All’s Well the Ends Well, Angelo in Measure for Measure, Pandarus and Thersites in Troilus and Cressida. Nobody went to the theater in 1602 to watch characters like these. Yet to a modern audience, complex, even unlikeable characters make a story more interesting.   

Some writers add other plays to the list of problem plays like Hamlet, The Merchant of Venice, The Winter’s tale, and Timon of Athens. They all have elements of the above, but for my money, Measure for Measure, the one that caused me to scratch my head and say ‘what is this?’ is the most problematic (in a good way) of the problem plays.

Star Liner

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