Shakespeare why study

Probably not, but context certainly helped, and I bet they thrilled over his absurd made-up words. Take a look at this list or this one to get an idea of how extensive his influence has been on our modern language.

While studying his work gives insight into past culture and society, it also serves as a bridge between our modern time and times far past. His works are still relevant today, addressing themes like love, revenge, social expectation, corruption, transformation, etc. Every last one of us. Throughout all of history. We can read a text that is hundreds of years old and still connect to it— even while seeing how our society has grown and changed.

Additionally, many of our current beloved book series or movies stem from Shakespearean plays and characters, and I am not just speaking of books written in English.

Material that challenges students is an opportunity for immense growth in comprehension AND in self-confidence! Often, classical works deal with thought-provoking situations that inspire students to wrestle with questions that are imperative in figuring out who they are and what they believe as individuals. Such stories allow for deep discussion and reflection. Additionally, finishing a work of literature that seems lofty really is an accomplishment to be proud of, and most students feel good about sticking with it until the end.

Classic literature helps improve vocabulary and comprehension of other texts. It also aids in seeing the progression of punctuation, syntax, and structure within the English language. While this may not seem important on the surface, it certainly helps when students are encountered with learning a new language or when analyzing other texts.

Use them! Read the play, sure. See a play they were meant to be seen after all. These issues show the kind of relationships people have in the society Forrester In addition, his plays contain wit and humor and are very entertaining besides being educative. His works opens up our imaginations and radical thinking.

He addresses issues such as the relationship between rulers and their subjects. He gives us an opportunity to enter the minds of the characters in his plays and thus enlarges our experience. The plays carry a universal message and are easy to relate with as they address human issues that one can identity.

The universality of the messages in the play and there relevance make the plays important. The culture of the English is well documented by the Shakespeare dramas. Through the plays, one is able to know how the society was together with its attitude towards its members. For instance, the play Taming the Shrew shows that men were considered inferior to men during the Elizabethan age but it also shows that the women were powerful in their own way as proved by Kate.

Another play like the Merchant of Venice shows the relationship between people from different religions such as the Christians and Jews. The plays also show that the people valued religion as Shakespeare uses biblical allusions in most of his plays to address issues Lund 1. Shakespeare in his work addressed human issue so articulately with his genius use of words. The works are timeless and form the basis of modern drama. The modern dramas such as The Fences address human issues that affect people in the society such as issue of unwed pregnancies.

The modern day dramas differ from the Shakespeare drama because they rely on visuals while the later relied on words to pass messages. Moreover, the heroes in Shakespeare dramas are aggressive unlike those in modern drama Lukas and Baxandall The dramas are not in the same category as Shakespeare who is clearly in a class of his own. Shakespeare is relevant today and has stood the test of time.

Readers can resonate with the universal message his works pass. The works are a good source for the English literature and thus one cannot claim to understand without understanding Shakespeare. Forrester, Ann. Why teach Shakespeare? Or any other dead white male?

Literary Canon, Shakespeare, And our experiences—concerning everything from gender, family and political intrigue to fame, race and class—are nimbly and memorably explored in these plays. His plays allow us to see ourselves anew. Audiences today can connect onstage and with his words on the page.

On the other hand, today we more often experience these plays in our own minds in a solitary act of reading. The plays also provide ample material for analysis in a classroom setting, but our experience of his work should also include watching the plays performed. We explore what these previous viewings mean in light of what they're learning now, or how they can see the issues raised in these recordings in terms of how we view politics and political machinations in our own time for example, this comes to light when we read the Richard plays and students compare those plays' plots to Trump or House of Cards.

He was a deft crafter of the English language, and his metaphors have made each of us all the richer as readers and writers. View the discussion thread. Skip to main content. Writing, Editing and Technical Communication. Why You Should Study Shakespeare. By Lori Gray - January 17,