Shakespeare:
An Introduction
Mr. Chilton
You’ll need:
Group of Four Competition:
What do you know already about “Shakespeare”?
List as many facts as you can come up with in 2 minutes.
Obvious answers (he was a man, his first name was William,etc.) don’t count...
Shakespeare by the Numbers
Shakespeare wrote in what is known as
“early modern” English
NOT Old English
Old English
Middle English
Early Modern English
Shakespeare’s spelling has been “modernized”:
From the “First Folio” edition of 1623
Did I mention all of Shakespeare was written in blank verse?
Blank verse:
unrhymed iambic pentameter.
All 38 plays. Most of the 835,977 words.
So why don’t we “like” Shakespeare?
Why so salty?
Why are we bias against the greatest?
Because everyone said it was the greatest?
Because he’s taught in school? Only read not seen?
Because we don’t understand it?
READER
An imperfect analogy...
Distinctions between
“like” and “appreciate”
“taste” and “greatness”
Shakespeare Website
How to Read Say It.
How I want you to act...
Macbeth Presentation
Stop here…
Remaining slides are separate presentations for other elements of Shakespeare, not necessarily part of the Introduction.
Shakespeare Fair
Layers of Interpretations
Situations
Act out the following scenarios...
Can you see the connections yet?
Reading Logs
Character Walk Through...
Now you know...
Let's focus on the important stuff...