Short But Loaded

About this episode

The episode discusses Polonius's manipulative tactics in investigating his son Laertes through Reynaldo.

Send us Fan Mail Part 1 — Polonius coaches surveillance (Polonius + Reynaldo) Polonius sends Reynaldo to Paris with money and messages for Laertes. But Polonius doesn’t say, “Go check on my son like a normal person.” He says—basically—“Go investigate my son.” Here’s the tactic, and it’s nasty in a very realistic way: Polonius tells Reynaldo: Don’t ask directly, “How is Laertes behaving?” Instead, casually drop mild accusations and see what sticks. Not monstrous lies. Little “reasonable” h...

People in this episode

Host: George Bartley

Topics covered

• surveillance
• family dynamics
• manipulation
• Shakespeare
• character analysis

Keywords

• Polonius
• Reynaldo
• Laertes
• surveillance
• Shakespeare
• manipulation
• family

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