Measure for Measure - William Shakespeare - A Short Summary and Review
Measure for Measure - William Shakespeare - A Short Summary and Review
By: a.d. elliott | Take the Back Roads - Art and Other Odd Adventures
A Rite of Fancy Book Recommendation and Review
A short summary:
Measure for Measure takes place in Vienna, where the Duke abruptly hands authority to Lord Angelo and disappears, at least in appearance. Angelo, tasked with enforcing long-ignored morality laws, immediately governs with rigid severity, imposing punishments far beyond custom or compassion.
As the city reels under this sudden authoritarianism, personal hypocrisy is exposed. Angelo, publicly obsessed with virtue, privately succumbs to desire. The Duke, meanwhile, remains nearby in disguise, manipulating events from the shadows rather than taking responsibility directly. Shakespeare constructs a tangled moral landscape where law, power, mercy, and self-knowledge constantly collide.
My favorite quote from the play:
Questions to ponder while reading:
My review:
A comedy only by category—not by comfort.
This play asks a deceptively simple question: What is virtue? Is it strict obedience to the law? Mercy? Self-awareness? Or the humility to recognize one’s own capacity for wrongdoing?
Angelo is an obvious problem: authoritarian, morally rigid, and entirely unqualified to wield the power he seizes. But the Duke is no hero either. His refusal to govern openly, his reliance on disguise and manipulation, and his last-minute moral theater feel deeply suspect.
Relax into the flow of the language; Shakespeare will carry you, but don’t expect reassurance. This isn’t really a comedy. It’s a moral stress test. Justice here is awkward, unresolved, and deeply human.
Do I think the Duke will get married? Probably. Do I think either he or Angelo deserves admiration? Not at all. Personally, I find them both ridiculous weenies, men intoxicated by power while pretending to stand above it.
And that, perhaps, is the point.
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About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life
She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.
You can also browse her online photography gallery at shop.takethebackroads.com.
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