The Shakespearean Creation Myth

 THE CREATION MYTH OF THE SHAKESPEAREVERSE

(By Marin Sorescu)

BEGINNINGS

CHAPTER THE FIRST

1. In the beginnings, SHAKESPEARE created the universe in seven days.
2. On the first day, He made the skies, the peaks, and the chasms of the soul.
3. On the second day, He made the rivers, the lakes, the seas, the oceans, and all the other feelings.
4. And He gave them unto Hamlet, unto Julius Caesar, unto Cleopatra, unto Ophelia, unto Othello, and unto others,
5. To become masters of these feelings with their successors,
6. Forever and ever.
7. On the third day, He gathered all of humankind, and He taught them every taste:
8. The taste of joy, the taste of love, the taste of despair,
9. The taste of jealousy, the taste of glory.
10. And then, thus came some individuals who had been left behind.
11. The Creator, compassionate, stroked their heads,
12. And He told them that they had no other choice but to become literary critics
13. And to deny their own works.
14. The fourth day and the fifth He consecrated to laughter.
15. He freed the clowns, so that they could do their somersaults,
16. And He left the kings, the emperors, and the other unfortunate ones amusing themselves.
17. On the sixth day, He solved some administrative problems:
18. He unleashed a Tempest,
19. He taught King Lear how to wear his crown of straw.
20. There had been leftovers from the genesis,
21. And he created Richard III.
22. On the seventh day, He took a look around to see if He had anything left to do.
23. By then, the directors of the theatres had already filled the Earth with signs,
24. And thus, SHAKESPEARE considered that, after all the work He had done,
25. It would be worthwhile for Him to watch a show as well.
26. Yet before that, feeling weary in the extreme,
27. He went forth to die a little.