Tag Archives: Shakespeare

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

midsummerShakespeare borrowed from novels, older plays, history, mythology, and other sources. His plays are typically divided into three groups: histories, comedies, and tragedies. Some scholars include his later plays, like Cymbeline and The Tempest, in a group called the romances. Shakespeare comedies exemplify various types: The Comedy of Errors, The Taming of the Shrew, and The Merry Wives of Windsor (farce); A Midsummer Night’s Dream, As You Like It, Much Ado About Nothing, and Twelfth Night (romantic comedies); All’s Well That Ends Well, Measure for Measure, and Troilus and Cressida (dark comedies).

A Midsummer Night’s Dream, first performed about 1594, is where Shakespeare as an artist begins to emerge. The play combines a number of comedic elements, from the farcical actions of the “rude mechanicals” and their play-within-a-play to the rich language of the lovers, elevating the comedy into something different. The mystery of the forest setting and the various moods provide a base for future comedies, where more finely drawn and developed characters like Rosalind of As You Like It, Portia and Shylock of The Merchant of Venice, and the twins Sebastian and Olivia of Twelfth Night take important roles.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a good way to kick off our study of Shakespeare because within its boundaries, we see many Shakespearean play characteristics brought to life, like the parallel worlds of the city and the forest, mirrored characters like Theseus/Hippolyta and Oberon/Titania, and the contrasts between upper- and lower-class characters. These differences are found primarily in language level and style; the rulers and lovers speak poetically and beautifully, but the rustics from the lower classes have speech that is rougher and less rhythmic. Humor is found in wit (upper), farce (upper and lower), and downright bawdy language (lower). These shadings highlight the appeal that Shakespeare’s works had for all levels of the theater-mad Elizabethan society.

As you read, be on the lookout for a few of Shakespeare’s most famous lines, such as “The course of true love never did run smooth” and “Lord, what fools these mortals be!”

As with most Shakespeare plays, filmed versions abound. Of special note are the 1968 Peter Hall-directed version (young and gorgeous Diana Rigg and Helen Mirren play Helena and Hermia, with the inimitable Judi Dench as Titania) and the 1999 Michael Hoffman production starring Kevin Kline, Michelle Pfieffer, Rupert Everett, and Stanley Tucci in a memorable performance as Puck. The 2002 film A Midsummer Night’s Rave transports elements from the plot and several characters into L.A.’s rave scene—obviously not a true version of the play, but true to the spirit of the play, Shakespeare’s most fanciful comedy.

The full text of A Midsummer Night’s Dream may be found here.
A PDF copy of the text may be found here.

Illustration: The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania by Joseph Noel Paton

Brockett, Oscar G. The Theatre: An Introduction, Historical Edition. New York: Holt, 1979.
Mordden, Ethan. The Fireside Companion to the Theatre. New York: Fireside, 1988.

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Shakespeare: Let It All Out

william-shakespeare-quotes-09

Some of my favorite comments you wrote about Shakespeare:

“I once got knocked out by being slammed on my head. Compared to Shakespeare, getting knocked out is fun. At least it is quicker.”

“I think Shakespeare is pretty freaking cool, even though sometimes it can be hella hard to translate.”

“His works are a vile thing, equivalent to castration and fingernail-bamboo torture.”

“I bite my thumb at Shakespeare.”

“In every play he kills almost everyone. IN EVERY PLAY. I can’t. I can’t even.”

“Let’s begin with the spelling of his name. It irritates me.”

“Shakespeare is my dog.”

“Shakespeare…to hate him or not to hate him…”

“I’ve always disliked any book that is older than me.”

“I don’t hate Shakespeare. I just don’t understand what he is saying.”

“I absolutely adore the Bard of Avon!”

“He’s a pretty cool guy I guess. His hair is ugly tho. He got MAD CLOUT.”

“OMG I love Shakespeare because of his plots and how it relates to us but that language? Oh no no honey!”

“I like that Shakespeare is Sex, Love, Death. But he has to be extra with his writing.”

“I think reading Shakespeare is like being suffocated with a pillow. I dislike the topics, the vocabulary, and the confusing names—”Mustardseed”? What is that??

“People say Shakespeare is a classic, a legend of the arts, a genius, can never be compared to, he is credited with some of the greatest works of all time, like Biggie.”

“I’ve been told many times that I was going to study Shakespeare. Never have I actually done that. Why? Because whenever it comes to that time, I stop paying attention.”

“Just stop with all of the ‘thou’ and ‘O’ stuff. But I guess it’s just a style, so you keep doing you, man. Shakespeare –> 7/10”

“I feel that people like him because of his name, like identical off-brand shoes to Nike.”

“I’m not a fan of ye olde English because it makes my brain melt out of my ears, but I haven’t read enough Willy to pass an unbiased judgment of him and his work. XOth XOth, Ye Olde Gossip Girl.”

“I’m not in love with him, but I don’t cringe at his name either.”

“When I hear the word ‘Shakespeare,’ I feel like imitating Romeo and killing myself. I also have the burning desire to have Macbeth’s fate (decapitation). I also feel like having the same ending as Julius Caesar: being stabbed thirteen times in the back.”

“Shakespeare and I have a hate-love relationship. I love his work, but the way he writes irks me with a raging passion.”

“So usually when I receive a Shakespeare play to read, I never read it because I feel stupid just trying.”

“Freaked out. Can’t understand. Grade will drop. I do like his stories when I understand them tho.”

“He’s super awesome, he lives up to the hype that surrounds his name. His works are the base of what many other works are written on.”

“Why does everything have to include something sad or love? Why can’t we read about trees or something when it comes to you? Why do I have to think twice as hard to figure out what you’re trying to say? GIVE ME A BREAK, SHAKESPEARE.”

“Meh. He’s chill, not for or against, but he’s for sure overhyped. Meh.”

“You want to know what I think about Shakespeare? You REALLY want to know? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ”

“Raw. Sexual. Ladies’ man. Hat with feather. Poet. Playwright.”

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The Bard and the Doctor

In this video from the British “Red Nose” fundraiser, actors David Tennant (the tenth Doctor Who) and Catherine Tate (well-known for her obnoxious schoolgirl character Lauren Cooper) spar a bit over Shakespearean sonnets. Enjoy!

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Thug Notes: Macbeth

Strange women on moors with cauldrons = bad juju! Salty language and adult themes ahead. Proceed with caution.

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Macbeth Vocabulary

macbethPlease study the following words for your vocabulary test, which will be given on Wednesday, March 18.

WEALTH/MONEY
bounteous
largesse
recompense

POSITIVE TRAITS
dauntless
jovial
judicious
perseverence
valiant

WRONGDOING
appall
chastise
pernicious
scruples

ANGER
abhor
rancor

HONOR
bestow
homage
laudable
predominance

Choose two additional words from the remainder of the list to study.

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Macbeth – Text Sources

Macbeth coverIf you wish to download a copy of Macbeth to your phone or tablet, you may find copies here:

Project Gutenberg (links to .html, .epub, and Kindle-formatted versions)

Macbeth for Kindle ($.99 charge)

Macbeth for Nook ($.99 charge)

Download or listen to a streaming audio version of the play at Librivox.

An audio book file of Macbeth can be found here.

The full text of the play may be read online here.

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Macbeth Anticipation Guide

macbeth.art_.zoom_Copy each statement and indicate whether you agree or disagree.

People will do whatever is necessary to achieve their goals.

Our fate is predetermined; we cannot alter our destiny.

It is impossible to be ambitious and maintain your integrity

There are circumstances or events that justify murdering someone.

Everyone is capable of lying, killing, and betrayal; in other words, of being evil.

The world is just; if you do something wrong, you will be punished for it.

Our nature (i.e. our character) is fixed; we cannot change who or what we are.

Patriotism requires obedience to the governing authority.

True love has no ambition.

Loyalty to family supersedes loyalty to government.

You are the maker of your own destiny.

Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

What goes around comes around (karma).

Success is worth any price you have to pay.

Your horoscope is a good indicator of how your day will go.

After you have made your selections, choose three of the statements and explain briefly what made you choose whether you agreed or disagreed with the statement. (You may do this on the back of the paper.)

Adapated from Burke, Cummins, and Herrold.

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#Macbeth

hashtag

Our combination of Macbeth and social media resulted in a number of humorous hashtags. What other ones can you think of for the play and its characters?

BANQUO
#backstabbers
#deadandgone
#ghostswag

DUNCAN’S GUARDS
#drunk
#whaaaat

FLEANCE
#IbelieveIcanfly

MACDUFF
#teamMacduff
#bringitMacbeth
#thisjustgotreal
#moded

MACBETH
#Iseedeadpeople
#Iseedaggerstoo
#invincible
#prophecies
#tooturnt
#demwitchesdoe

MALCOLM
#Daddyno
#hewasntready

LADY MACBETH
#wherethegoodmenat
#unsexme
#youneedJesus
#Macbae
#teamnosleep
#moded

WITCHES
#doubledouble
#apparitionsbrah

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Macbeth Act V Quotations

DIRECTIONS: For each quotation, list the speaker, the person being spoken to, and the meaning of the line in the context of the scene.

If you were absent on Friday, February 28, complete either the odd or even number quotations.

1.
Out, damned spot! Out, I say!…Yet who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?

2.
Those he commands move only in command,
Nothing in love. Now does he feel his title
Hang loose about him, like a giant’s robe
Upon a dwarfish thief.

3.
Were I from Dunsinane away and clear,
Profit again should hardly draw me here.

4.
Let every soldier hew him down a bough
And bear’t before him. Thereby shall we shadow
The numbers of our host, and make discovery
Err in report of us.

5.
Out, out, brief candle!

6.
Tyrant, show thy face!
If thou be’st slain and with no stroke of mine,
My wife and children’s ghosts will haunt me still.

7.
Turn, hell-hound, turn!

8.
Despair thy charm,
And let the angel whom thou still hast served
Tell thee, Macduff was from his mother’s womb
Untimely ripped.

9.
Lay on, Macduff,
And damned be him that first cries “Hold, enough!”

10.
Hail, King I for so thou art; behold, where stands
Th’ usurper’s cursed head. The time is free.

Macbeth fights Macduff, scene from the 1971 Roman Polanski film

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Macbeth Act IV Quotations

DIRECTIONS: For each quotation, list the speaker, the person being spoken to, and the meaning of the line in the context of the scene.

If you were absent on Wednesday, February 26, complete either the odd or even number quotations.

1.
Double, double, toil and trouble;
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

2.
By the pricking of my thumbs,
Something wicked this way comes.

3.
Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff;
Beware the thane of Fife. Dismiss me. Enough.

4.
Laugh to scorn
The power of man, for none of woman born
Shall harm Macbeth.

5.
Macbeth shall never vanquished be until
Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill
Shall come against him

6.
Horrible sight! Now I see ’tis true;
For the blood-boltered Banquo smiles upon me
And points at them for his.

7.
Wisdom? To leave his wife, to leave his babes,
His mansion and his titles, in a place
From whence himself does fly? He loves us not;

8.
He has killed me, mother.  Run away, I pray you!

9.
My first false speaking
Was this upon myself. What I am truly,
Is thine and my poor country’s to command…

10.
All my pretty ones?
Did you say all? O hell-kite! All?
What, all my pretty chickens and their dam
At one fell swoop?

Johann Heinrich Füssli, “Macbeth consulting the Vision of the Armed Head,” before 1825.

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