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Shakespeare

musicismylife78musicismylife78 Posts: 6,116
edited June 2008 in All Encompassing Trip
Anyone a fan?

I was thinking of getting into him.

May make Romeo and Juliet my first read.
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • curmudgeonesscurmudgeoness Brigadoon, foodie capital Posts: 3,991
    Yes!

    Keep in mind, Shakespeare was meant to be performed, not read. If you live someplace where you will be able to see performances, read the play beforehand and then get yourself theater tickets. Otherwise, look for good movie versions.

    My kids love Shakespeare - no kidding. We would be looking for tickets for the Hartford show, but we already had Shakespeare tickets for the whole family that evening. :-)

    R&J is not my favorite play, but I do not really have a recommendation as to where to start. I really liked "Henry V," and you would have good movies to choose from for that play.
    All those who seek to destroy the liberties of a democratic nation ought to know that war is the surest and shortest means to accomplish it.
  • jammergirljammergirl Posts: 599
    yeah, shakespeare is the man!! I got a degree in theatre so i had to read almost all of his stuff.
    I agree, Henry V is awesome, so is much ado about nothing. a midsummer night's dream is a good one. if you want to go darker, nothing beats good old hamlet, or richard III. definitely try to see performances whenever you can, its' meant to be seen and heard, not read.
  • markymark550markymark550 Columbia, SC Posts: 5,173
    I've only read a few of his plays, but my favorite was MacBeth.

    Didn't much care for Romeo & Juliet though...
  • CosmoCosmo Posts: 12,225
    markymark550 wrote:
    I've only read a few of his plays, but my favorite was MacBeth.

    Didn't much care for Romeo & Juliet though...
    ..
    I agree... MacBeth.
    We see many parallels of MacBeth (or Shakespere in general) crop up in pop culture.
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  • FinsburyParkCarrotsFinsburyParkCarrots Seattle, WA Posts: 12,223
    King Lear is my favourite play by anyone.
  • Kilgore_TroutKilgore_Trout Posts: 7,334
    theres a reason bills been around as long as he has... and i agree that you should see em live if you can... the shakespeare theatre at navy pier in Chicago is a great venue and fairly affordable i think... my personal favorite has always been Hamlet... but ive read/seen atleast a dozen others and have never been disappointed

    good luck!
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  • FinsburyParkCarrotsFinsburyParkCarrots Seattle, WA Posts: 12,223
    If you ever get the chance, read the lot.


    I have to say to students of literature on this board, that if you're having a tough time in college, trawling through New Criticism, formalism, structuralism/semiotics, deconstruction, Marxist literary approaches, feminist approaches/gender theory, new historicism, cultural materialism, queer theory, post-colonialism or whatever theoretical -ism you have to apply to a shit novel, poem or play on your syllabus, find some spare time to practice those ways of reading on a Shakespeare play, whether as a text or in performance. You'll enjoy and "get" the theory and criticism a lot quicker.

    I recommend The Norton Shakespeare, which is based on the controversial Oxford edition of the eighties but features great essays by the new historicist critic Stephen Greenblatt and other very perceptive writers. They show how you can put together a sophisticated argument that nods to the complexity of critical perspective, without getting too tied up with jargon.

    Hope all that helps.
  • curmudgeonesscurmudgeoness Brigadoon, foodie capital Posts: 3,991
    FinsburyParkCarrots wrote:
    King Lear is my favourite play by anyone.

    It's my younger son's favorite, too! We are reading it now, before seeing a performance in a few weeks.

    off-topic: What a great kid I have! He loves the Beatles, Beethoven, Shakespeare, soccer and Pearl Jam (he is nine). He is ready to go wild with me on Saturday!
    All those who seek to destroy the liberties of a democratic nation ought to know that war is the surest and shortest means to accomplish it.
  • pearljammin41pearljammin41 Posts: 465
    liked R&J and Julius Caeser. Not a fan of macbeth
  • OttOtt Posts: 403
    I really liked Antony and Cleopatra, as well. Twelfth night, King Lear, good stuff. But, I am an English Teacher, so I am a nerd for this shit.

    William Shakespeare Was, Like the Ultimate Rapper:

    http://www.theonion.com/content/node/39694


    Ott
    'Give me some music; music, moody food/ of us that trade in love'
    -Shakespeare
  • Heineken HelenHeineken Helen Posts: 18,095
    FinsburyParkCarrots wrote:
    If you ever get the chance, read the lot.
    I agree... not that I have or anything :o but I own the complete works and I've read about 5 of them... I loved romeo and juliet... but think hamlet's my favourite :o we did king lear for the leaving cert and the shit teacher we had for that kinda ruined it a bit.
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  • weenieweenie Posts: 1,623
    Read the tragedies first. When you start reading the comedies, you'll be hip to all the nuances of the language he uses. He is the MASTER in use of the English language.
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