Literary Lyrics: Romeo and Juliet

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This is originally by Dire Straits... I guess I should give credit where credit is due. However, I infinitely prefer the Killers' cover of the song. I'll give you both versions so you can judge for yourselves. I am mainly posting it because of the obvious literary link to Romeo and Juliet -- I love the way that story has become so iconic that other storytellers can take it and twist it into something new.

A lovestruck Romeo, sings the streets of serenade
Laying everybody low with a love song that he made
Find a streetlight, steps out of the shade
Says something like, "You and me, babe, how about it?"

Juliet says, "Hey, it's Romeo, you nearly gave me a heart attack"
He's underneath the window, she's singing
Hey, la, my boyfriend's back"
You shouldn't come around here, singing up at people like that
Anyway what you gonna do about it?

Juliet, the dice was loaded from the start
And I bet and you exploded in my heart
And I forget, I forget the movie song
When you gonna realize, it was just that the time was wrong, Juliet?

Come up on different streets, they both were streets of shame
Both dirty, both mean, yes and the dream was just the same
And I dream your dream for you and now your dream is real
How can you look at me, as if I was just another one of your deals?

Well, you can fall for chains of silver, you can fall for chains of gold
You can fall for pretty strangers and the promises they hold
You promised me everything, you promised me thick and thin
Now you just say, "Oh, Romeo, yeah, you know
I used to have a scene with him"

Juliet, when we made love, you used to cry
You said, "I love you like the stars above, "I love you till I die"
There's a place for us, you know the movie song
When you gonna realize, it was just that the time was wrong, Juliet?

I can't do the talk like the talk on the TV
And I can't do a love song like the way it's meant to be
I can't do everything but I'd do anything for you
Can't do anything except be in love with you

And all I do is miss you and the way we used to be
All I do is keep the beat, the bad company
And all I do is kiss you, through the bars of a rhyme
Juliet, I'd do the stars with you any time

Juliet, when we made love, you used to cry
You said, "I love you like the stars above, I'll love you till I die"
There's a place for us, you know the movie song
When you gonna realize, it was just that the time was wrong, Juliet?

A lovestruck Romeo, he sings the streets of serenade
Laying everybody low with a love song that he made
Find a convenient streetlight, steps out of the shade
He says something like, "You and me, babe, how about it?"

Haha.

It is Literary Blog Hop time once again! Hosted by The Blue Bookcase, The Literary Blog Hop is an opportunity for literary book bloggers to answer literary questions about literature. It's all very literary.

This week's question is from Gilion at Rose City Reader. She poses the question:

Can literature be funny? What is your favorite humorous literary book?

The answer to this question for me is a resounding yes. However, in my mind there are two categories of humor. There is dumb humor, which can be quite hilarious but has no deeper meaning behind it except evoking a laugh.

Then there's this comic, which I think is just generally amusing...


Then there's intelligent humor - humor with a punch behind it. It's funny but it has a point to make. I think a literary character that exemplifies this humor is Mercutio of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. He is constantly making puns and jokes throughout the play, even as he lies dying ("Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man") but his jokes often have a barb of truth to them. Yes, he makes us laugh, but he also makes us pay attention.

Another example that I've recently discovered is my dear Mr. Charles Dickens, who I hated all through middle school and high school and finally picked up last month. I would find myself laughing aloud at Oliver Twist in public places, and then being appalled that I was laughing. Mr. Dickens was poking fun at poor, pure, innocent little Oliver and making light of the villains who made his life difficult, but he phrased those situations in such wry, subtle words that they seemed ridiculous even while being heart-wrenching. My favorite character was the pompous and awful Mr. Bumble, and my favorite quote is this passage about his wife crying -

But tears were not the things to find their way to Mr. Bumble's soul; his heart was waterproof. Like washable beaver hats that improve with rain, his nerves were rendered stouter and more vigorous, by showers of tears, which, being tokens of weakness, and so far tacit admissions of his own power, pleased and exalted him. He eyed his good lady with looks of great satisfaction, and begged, in an encouraging manner, that she should cry her hardest: the exercise being looked upon, by the faculty, as strongly conducive to health. 'It opens the lungs, washes the countenance, exercises the eyes, and softens down the temper,' said Mr. Bumble. 'So cry away.'

What a jerk, right? But very witty.

I also enjoyed this very true evaluation of a good sense of humor in The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton:

She had a sense of humor (chiefly proved by her laughing at HIS jokes).

Isn't that the truth? Anyway, my point is, literature can be funny, and I think it is often better for it. What about you? Any favorite funny literature?