Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Who Was Shakespeare?

After typing in “Shakespeare” on Google I found the website above. There was a timeline (1558-1616) of Shakespeare’s life. I found it interesting that he married a woman named Anne Hathaway, which is the name of a current actress. It also says that he acted in as well as wrote his own plays. Something that I still wonder is how Shakespeare’s experiences contributed to his stories, considering authors write about what they know.

When I hear the name “Shakespeare”, my mind plays a b-roll of images of my “Shakespearean experiences” those that include confusion, then once explained to me, I see it as sheer beauty and cleverness. I remember the humor of Romeo and Juliet during a time when I felt I was experiencing a similar naive romantic tragedy. Then there is Julius Caesar whose monologue I was challenged to learn and memorize “Friends, Romans, Countrymen, Lend me your ears!” I finally recognized the many allusions to Shakespearean plays made by my father. I remember the many references, such as the animated movie “Gnomeo and Juliet”, Taylor Swift’s song, “Love Story”, as well as the carb-alicios restaurant, “Little Caesars”. Over the years my appreciation for Shakespeare has grown along with my knowledge. Understanding his works has gotten easier, but I am constantly reminded that when reading Shakespeare, I must concentrate; considering it is not written in colloquial English.

No comments:

Post a Comment