Well, it's not in Romeo & Juliet, I found a searchable copy, and neither Istanbul nor Constantinople are there.
One of you is gonna fall and die, and I'm not cleaning it up!
Mal ,'War Stories'
Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.
There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."
Connie Neil - Mar 03, 2009 7:03:44 pm PST #8496 of 28431
brillig
Pix - Mar 03, 2009 7:08:06 pm PST #8497 of 28431
The status is NOT quo.
Heh. It's a They Might Be Giants song, but no Shakespeare that I know of.
Morgana - Mar 03, 2009 7:08:31 pm PST #8498 of 28431
"I make mistakes, but I am on the side of Good," the Golux said, "by accident and happenchance.” – The 13 Clocks, James Thurber
Connie, thanks for looking. It's been so many years since I read the play start-to-finish that I couldn't be certain. And yet, it does seem like it's nudging at my memory somehow.
Typo Boy - Mar 03, 2009 7:37:45 pm PST #8499 of 28431
Calli: My people have a saying. A man who trusts can never be betrayed, only mistaken.Avon: Life expectancy among your people must be extremely short.
"Thy lips are warm." is from Romeo and Juliet. It is what Juliet says after the Romeo's fake suicide just before she commits the real thing with a dagger. The Istanbul to Constantinople thing, not so much that I can find.
Fay - Mar 03, 2009 7:52:25 pm PST #8500 of 28431
"Fuck Western ideologically-motivated gender identification!" Sulu gasped, and came.
I'm assuming it's a They Might Be Giants thing. What with the whole date reference.
I thought perhaps Constantinople might be referenced in Antony and Cleopatra, if anything, but I just did a quick search on a searchable text version, and evidently not.
And, really, (although this is the kind of sweeping assertion that just begs someone to come prove you wrong) I can't see Shakespeare writing "Istanbul to Constantinople" - from his POV the transition would be Constantinople to Istanbul, anyway, and although Istanbul was a term in use from the 10th Century, I don't know how common it would have been in Britain at that period.
megan walker - Mar 03, 2009 8:20:05 pm PST #8501 of 28431
"What kind of magical sunshine and lollipop world do you live in? Because you need to be medicated."-SFist
Well, it's a TMBG cover. That's an old song.
Morgana - Mar 03, 2009 8:23:49 pm PST #8502 of 28431
"I make mistakes, but I am on the side of Good," the Golux said, "by accident and happenchance.” – The 13 Clocks, James Thurber
"Thy lips are warm." is from Romeo and Juliet. It is what Juliet says after the Romeo's fake suicide just before she commits the real thing with a dagger.
yep -- Act 5, scene 3
The story also uses the lark/nightingale quote, and I knew that one straight off. But this Istanbul/Constantinople thing mystifies me. There is no earthly reason for those words to even be in the story unless they're a reference to something, and it's driving me nuts. (There's also one quick reference to Paris in regards to a character, which threw me for a moment until I realized it was a reference to Count Paris, not the city.)
I found the They Might Be Giants lyrics (which brought back a memory of hearing it sung once a cappella), but I don't think they apply to the situation here.
Jessica - Mar 04, 2009 3:56:17 am PST #8503 of 28431
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset
Well, it's a TMBG cover. That's an old song.
Megan beat me to it. Original version is from the 50s or thereabouts.
Kat - Mar 04, 2009 4:23:49 am PST #8504 of 28431
"I keep to a strict diet of ill-advised enthusiasm and heartfelt regret." Leigh Bardugo
There is no earthly reason for those words to even be in the story unless they're a reference to something, and it's driving me nuts
Well, it could be about constancy and almost a deeper reference to the idea that a "rose by any other name would smell as sweet." Changing the name of Constantinople changes little about the history, character or architecture of the city. It's a re-reference to that idea, perhaps.
Frankenbuddha - Mar 04, 2009 4:49:58 am PST #8505 of 28431
"We are the Goon Squad and we're coming to town...Beep! Beep!" - David Bowie, "Fashion"
Earwormed now. Not unpleasant, though.
Even old New York, was once New Amsterdam...