As You Like It is a comedy written by William Shakespeare, and it proves that William
Shakespeare was one of the most meta writers of his time. The story revolves around Rosalind,
who is a young and beautiful woman who lives with her cousin and uncle because her father,
Duke Senior, was banished to the forest. She’s best friends with her cousin, Celia, but her uncle,
Duke Frederick, is less than fond of her because he thinks she’s stealing the attention from his
daughter. One day, Duke Frederick finds her talking to Orlando, the son of the notorious Sir
Rowland de Bois, and finds it as an excuse to banish her. Rosalind wears a disguise as a young
man to hide, and Celia joins her in banishment. Things get even more complicated when
Orlando comes to Rosalind’s male character to confess for his love for Rosalind, which Rosalind
can’t do anything about but stall him. As the plot gets more complicated and ridiculous,
characters start transforming, and a situation that once looked daunting turns into a wild goose
chase.
Of all of Shakespeare’s works, this is the one that I find the funniest because of how wild
and deceiving it is. A story that once looked like a tragedy somehow transforms into a comedy
and manages to set everything right in the end. Characters achieve their goals, storylines are
resolved, and everyone lives happily every after. I called this book “meta” earlier because
Shakespeare made this book to satisfy the audience. He made the book for you, just “as you
like it”.