| Quote #7 KING: 'that unlettered small-knowing soul,' |
Almost everyone in the play makes jokes about Costard's ignorance and lack of education, but the erudite lords spend the play learning what the rustic has long known about love.
| Quote #8 BEROWNE: For where is author in the world |
This rhetorical question is at the heart of the play. Love – and by extension, living life – teaches more than book study.
| Quote #9 HOLOFERNES:I abhor such … rackers of orthography, as to speak 'dout' fine, when he should say 'doubt'; 'det' when he should pronounce 'debt'- d, e, b, t, not d, e, t. (5.1.5) |
Overly pedantic teachers like Holofernes are that learning and education often gets a negative rap.