NationStates Jolt Archive

This question goes out especially to people still in school, of any kind. Is Shakespeare still relevant? Or has the passage of hundreds of years rendered his message obsolete? Furthermore, what about plays along the lines of the Merchant of Venice? Can such politically incorrect views still be appreciated?

I believe that Shakespeare still matters. Even though some movies ruin his works ( Leonardo DiCaprio has a lot to answer for), I think that his messages should be studied. The idea of usurping a government in Julius Caeser, and the effects upon the conspirators. Or insanity and love in Hamlet.

yes.

Of course, Shakespeare still matters.

Oh hell yeah.
I've only seen a handful onstage: Comedy of Errors, Twelfth NIght, Taming of the Shrew, Midsummer's Night Dream. but I loved everyone of them. You've got to relax and work to understand the style at first, but soon it just flows, and it's awesome.

Edited: Romeo and Juliet is the only I actually don't like to be honest.

Shakespeare is boring yet imaginative. If that's possible.

Yes, it still matters. Anything of historical cultural significance matters.

Let's not forget that his plays have the greatest universal themes as well.

I just finished A Midsummer Night's Dream for school. I think Shakespearean plays are great. I just wish they didn't use contemporary English. It dost bother me greatly that such a goodfellow hath not conformed to modern times.

Just take a look at Harold Bloom's critic's of Shakespeare and you will soon realize that Shakespeare is the greatest writer of all; his themes capture the very essence of humankind. Read Shakespeare and you understand the nature of man. :headbang:

Reading is one thing, but if you ever get the chance to see one, take it.

I happen to believe that the guy who they say wrote the stories didn't and I think the issue should be reexamined in schools by people other than the Stratfordians. Other than that, once the authorship is cleared up, they should always be taught. They do teach great life lessons.

I don't really care who wrote them. Shakespeare worked under a company iwht other people. Many of his plays aren't confirmed as his own. Of course, someone else wrote them.

Hell yes his work matters. Even if it didn't, he was a brilliant writer, and students should be exposed to it. Not many kids will read Shakespeare willingly. Not the ones I know of, anyway.

I happen to believe that the guy who they say wrote the stories didn't and I think the issue should be reexamined in schools by people other than the Stratfordians. Other than that, once the authorship is cleared up, they should always be taught. They do teach great life lessons.
The english teacher at my school taught that way--he didn't do into great detail, but he let us know that it was very questionable that Will Shaxper actually wrote the plays.

Can such politically incorrect views still be appreciated?
Anything that fights political correctness *cough*NEWSPEAK*cough* can be appreciated by me, even though I think Shakespeare himself is a huge hypocrite

Anything that fights political correctness *cough*NEWSPEAK*cough* can be appreciated by me, even though I think Shakespeare himself is a huge hypocrite
hypocrite? how so?

Sakespeare is awesome. His writing is brilliant, beautiful, witty, sparkly, and utterly true to human nature. I heart Hamlet

what about plays along the lines of the Merchant of Venice? Can such politically incorrect views still be appreciated?

SHYLOCK
To bait fish withal. If it will feed nothing else, it will feed
my revenge. He hath disgraced me and hindered me half
a million, laughed at my losses, mocked at my gains,
scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my
friends, heated mine enemies—and what’s his reason? I
am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands,
organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? Fed
with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject
to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed
and cooled by the same winter and summer as a Christian
is? If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we
not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you
wrong us, shall we not revenge? If we are like you in the
rest, we will resemble you in that. If a Jew wrong a
Christian, what is his humility? Revenge. If a Christian
wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by Christian
example? Why, revenge. The villainy you teach me I will
execute—and it shall go hard but I will better the
instruction.

--Act III, Scene i, lines 43-61

I have always found this speech to be an argument AGAINST Anti-Semitism.

It doesn't really matter who wrote what, it's the content that creates reason for study. Why else would anonymous poems be famous, and posthumous works be published? Credit doesn't matter much to Shakespeare - he's dead - and we shouldn't look at the work as "something that that guy wrote", but rather as a collection of stories that even people today can relate to. I do believe that Shakespeare's plays should be taught in schools. They must be good for something, otherwise society would have forgotten them long ago. And what is so outdated about The Merchant? Granted, it does have heavy racial streaks that could make you squirm in fury, but the individual messages still retain their power: "If you prick us, do we not bleed? if you tickle us, do we not laugh? if you poison us, do we not die?" I don't understand people who think Shakespeare's plays are worthless just because the people who wrote them had opinions. Humans are naturally biased; you won't find a single work out there that isn't. You may find one you agree with, but not one that isn't biased. ;)

Okay, it is important, but almost every year in high school I had to do like 2 shakespeare plays... which is way overdone. I'm sorry, but people put so much emphasis on his works, to the detriment of other 'significant' literature. It's like having an art class and teaching the majority of it on DaVinci; yes he's significant, but enough already!

I agree. Shakespeare's work is brilliant. We don't have a playwright to compare to him nowadays. Even if he didn't write it by himself, or someone else flat out did it, I wouldn't care. Nobody knows much about him anyways. I believe they had to take a guess at his birthday. Regardless, I love his work, because it doesn't paint a happy picture of people all loving and kind to one another. if nothing else, he showed that human nature leads to injustice of the worst kind. I think its important to recognize this. Step one is admitting you have a problem, and all that. Besides which, Arthur Miller didn't even come close with Death of a Salesman, and he's probably the closest we have, although Wilde did an excellent job of exposing the hypocrisy of the aristocracy.

The new "Merchant of Venice" movie out is masterrful. Al Pachino is wonderful, and the entire movie is an absolute pleasure. The fact that Shakespeare wrote an anti-semitic play is plain, however, it was written within a certain historical context, and with certain stereotypes taken for granted. We can all learn form that and talk about it.
Everyone go see the movie, though. It was great.

Shakespeare should not be mandatory since there are other fine playwrites as well.

The new "Merchant of Venice" movie out is masterrful. Al Pachino is wonderful, and the entire movie is an absolute pleasure. The fact that Shakespeare wrote an anti-semitic play is plain, however, it was written within a certain historical context, and with certain stereotypes taken for granted. We can all learn form that and talk about it.
Everyone go see the movie, though. It was great.


Is it plain though? Shylock's whole point is that the reason he is hateful is that that's how HE is treated... that he is a human bieng, like any human being, and that he has been taught, though the hatred practiced against him, to be hateful.

I should think it's a pretty powerful commentary against Anti-Semitism.

Shakespeare is the pillar upon which this language was built and now stands.

I voted other. Shakespeare IS still relevant, but his work is as relevant as any other great writer.

I just think the syllabus should have a healthy combination of modern/classical works. And including more thought provoking composers (generic term used in NSW education to encompass authors/playwrites etc) like Ibsen, Browning and more modern works (we did Frontline, a satire on trashy current affairs shows) is always good.

I voted other. Shakespeare IS still relevant, but his work is as relevant as any other great writer.

Shakespeare is greater than the SUM of every other "great writer"

Need more Shakespeare study in school. His works are more than brilliant they are timeless creations that are inspiration and should be the standard to achieve for writers.

"Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon 'em."