Dear Rees,
I'm thrilled that
you decided to study English (I confess, I was a little taken back since I know
you hate to read...). But I understand that you signed up for a Shakespeare
course - which can seem a little daunting at first. But don't worry, it’s
perfectly normal to be nervous. Nevertheless, I thought I’d take this
opportunity to pass along some of my wisdom.
Shakespeare and
his many works are timeless and therefore lend themselves to so many different
disciplines. So, if you're human and you have interests (which, if I remember
correctly, you are and you do...), Shakespeare can as easily apply to your life
as it has mine.
In my Shakespeare class, my
teacher emphasized the use of media; so, we read the plays via e-books, we
engaged in a weekly group chats, and we used a blog to discuss our insights.
The ability for Shakespeare to exist in your pocket and on your iPhone, can
attest to that unquestionable timelessness. If you ever have a question, or a
concern, there are hundreds of others like you who are studying Shakespeare
that can be reached within minutes. For example, I wrote a paper this semester
linking "Romeo and Juliet" with hip-hop. That topic may sound like a
reach; nevertheless, I was able to talk with countless people (friends and
strangers) about it on the internet. Shakespeare is being taught and studied
around the world - and it's such an asset to tap into that shared collective
experience.
Therefore, as you go about in your personal research, you can
reach out to various formal and informal sources to help you formulate your
thesis and provide new insights and perspectives. I would suggest that if you
have a more modern take on Shakespeare (by the way, a quick search on google
found tons of sources about Shakespeare and The Beatles and even some on Simon and Garfunkel *wink *wink) informal
sources can help you determine how Shakespeare is being either talked about now
or appropriated for modern audiences. However, formal sources can help you
situate your argument around pre-existing criticism and the World Shakespeare
Bibliography can help you locate those sources. However, using informal media sources can also help you in your
understanding of the plays as you read them. Kindle books can let you see what
passages people are highlighting in the play and what’s being said about it.
Similarly, websites like Sparknotes and Shmoop can help you explicate passages
which are confusing and use archaic and/or dense language.
I assure you, whatever question you may have about Shakespeare,
there is someone, somewhere with the same question. So, I challenge you this
next semester to interact with nontraditional sources in order to satisfy your curiosity
(who knows what has been said about Shakespeare and The Beatles) and to ease your
worries. Shakespeare has great potential to help us understand the world around
us – but that’s only possible if were willing to have those conversations with
others and share our unique insights.
Best of luck,
Riley
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