Talk:Falstaff

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Falstaff is part of WikiProject Shakespeare, an attempt to build a comprehensive and detailed guide to Shakespeare on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, or visit the project page, where you can join the project and/or contribute to the discussion.
B This article has been rated as b-Class on the quality scale.
(If you rated the article please give a short summary at comments to explain the ratings and/or to identify the strengths and weaknesses.)
??? This article has not yet received a rating on the importance scale.

Contents

[edit] Fictional??

Balzac seems to think he was real:

Falstaff is, in England, a type of the ridiculous; his very name provokes laughter; he is the king of clowns. Now, instead of being enormously pot-bellied, absurdly amorous, vain, drunken, old, and corrupted, Falstaff was one of the most distinguished men of his time, a Knight of the Garter, holding a high command in the army. At the accession of Henry V. Sir John Falstaff was only thirty-four years old. This general, who distinguished himself at the battle of Agincourt, and there took prisoner the Duc d'Alencon, captured, in 1420, the town of Montereau, which was vigorously defended. Moreover, under Henry VI. he defeated ten thousand French troops with fifteen hundred weary and famished men.[1]

The Real Falstaff is a book by Michael Jones about the real John Falstaff

The book is a life and times of the man behind the Shakespearean character, the professional soldier Sir John Fastolf. Fastolf is the best-documented soldier of the late medieval period and the author draws upon a quite exceptional personal archive. As a result, Sir John emerges in a very different light from his Shakespearean counterpart.


so much for wikipedia...

Reply: Shakespeare's Falstaff isn't based on Fastolf; WS merely borrowed the man's name, swapped some letters and completely changed his character. So it's a bit odd to call Fastolf 'the real Falstaff'. Jones's book is, incidentally, a novel, not a biography. The Singing Badger 19:51, 13 Apr 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Technical Character

"Also appears in Titus Andronicus as a technical character." - What does "technical character" mean in this context? I find no mention of Falstaff in a quick search of the text of T.A. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.0.235.135 (talk • contribs)

  • You're right, it's nonsense. I've removed it. I can't be bothered to go through the history but my guess is maybe someone vandalised a reference to Fastolfe in Henry SIXTH part 1. AndyJones 14:11, 13 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Vandalism

"But the one play he has the main part in is Murder on the Highway, a play containing various charactors from various Shakaspeare plays." A grade school student getting back at Wikipedia? Removed. Eivanec 14:47, 19 August 2007 (UTC)

  • Could be. Certainly isn't appropriate. I've reverted back a little further than you did. AndyJones 15:47, 19 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Boars Head Tavern

No mention here of Falstaff's notorious drinking place: The Boars Head Tavern in Eastcheap. Colin4C 09:52, 3 October 2007 (UTC)