Comedy of errors

THE Comedy of Errors is one of William Shakespeare’s early plays. It is his shortest play and one with a major part of the humor coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addition to puns and word play. The play’s title has entered the popular English lexicon as an idiom for an event or series of events made ridiculous by the number of errors that were made throughout –not unlike our parliament sessions – except that the humor in the plays is international.

The play has a series of wild mishaps based on mistaken identities lead to wrongful beatings, a near-seduction, and false accusations of infidelity, theft, madness, and demonic possession.

I had read the play years ago when I was in high school. The Parliament session on Thursday night reminded me of it as it had some of the wild mishaps - false accusations, blatant lies and mayhem.

While the only person who probably read the play would be the honourable A-G, most of the other parliamentarians fit the roles to a T. I believe the Speaker let the actors loose and they behaved like unruly chicken cackling in the barn – loud and out of control. He seems to lack the ability to control this errant group. I will grant you that the British parliament gets boisterous but at least there are clever repartees, stinging, albeit clever sarcasm and sprinkled with witticisms.

This anecdote about Churchill’s (British PM) showdown with member of the Parliament, Nancy Astor is a good example. It was well-known that these two figures had a mutual dislike for each other and couldn’t be in each other’s company without a battle of words ensuing. Once Nancy Astor was said to have commented: “If I were your wife I would poison your coffee…”, to which Sir Winston Churchill promptly replied with: “And if I were your husband, I would drink it”.

I believe there is an acute lack of intellect in our august house – a sad testimony of our pathetic education system. But good manners, etiquette and a sense of decorum – is that too much to ask for? Perhaps the parliamentarians need to heed this sage advice: Better to Remain Silent and Be Thought a Fool than to Speak and Remove All Doubt

My wife kept asking me when they were going to discuss the Supplementary Budget. I said: “Only the Shadow knows”. I am sure the A-G knows this reference also.

The expression on the face of the newly sworn in parliamentarian said: “Lord, what am I doing here - again?” I also wondered about that and went to bed during Act 3 (a play has five acts). There is only so much slapstick I can take at one time.

ARVIND MANI

Nadi