You know how some restaraunts have a reputation for serving “good food” (I.e. gourmet food), but just because it’s fancier food it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll actually like it more?
So, what are some foods that people only like because they’re fancy? (I’d argue caviar is one)
Same idea, but for movies. What are some movies that people only like because they’re seen as being “good movies”?
I feel like this is most of shakespears work. Having read a lot of it, i was deeply unimpressed. I found it grueling to work through any of his pieces. And yet theyre universally beloved. Pretty sure its just because everyones teacher told them the book was good.
Its weird though, to kill a mockingbird was actually good, and yet it doesnt recieve nearly as much fanfare as something like hamlet or romeo & juliet. Feels like people just like shakespear because everyone else likes shakespear.
Shakespeare’s collective works span virtually every genre and introduce virtually every character archetype that is still used in modern literature and media. His works are brimming with word play, which often has triple or quadruple meaning; often dramatic, philosophical, and comedic at the same time. He was so prolific and such a good writer that there are conspiracy theories that he was actually several different playwrights sharing the same pen name.
Granted it’s not as easy to appreciate his works today because of how the English language has drifted over the last 500 years, but what other work of literature from 500 years ago can you even point to as being popular today in its original form?
If you want to give Shakespeare a fair shake from the literary appreciation point of view, try reading an annotated copy of his works that provide context and translate the less familiar turns of phrase. It probably won’t make you enjoy reading his works, but it should at least help you understand why he’s so revered.
In terms of actually enjoying Shakespeare, well… He was a playwright, not a novelist! His works are meant to be seen on a stage. There are some really good performers out there whose emotivity can help bridge the language gap. Some troupes also tweak the dialog to make it more accessible to a modem audience, but I don’t generally like that because they tend to lose the puns or at least diminish the layers or the poetry.
So incredibly influential and popular that reading/watching is boring because everything that has been said by them has been said by everyone else, but better years/decades/centuries later.
I agree that shakespeare is a slog, simply because ive seen probably 50 “hamlet” television episodes that are better
Another great example: West-side Story is just a much better version of romeo and juliet which is slow for no reason in comparison.
What?
You know how some restaraunts have a reputation for serving “good food” (I.e. gourmet food), but just because it’s fancier food it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll actually like it more?
So, what are some foods that people only like because they’re fancy? (I’d argue caviar is one)
Same idea, but for movies. What are some movies that people only like because they’re seen as being “good movies”?
A million flies can’t be wrong.
What?
I feel like this is most of shakespears work. Having read a lot of it, i was deeply unimpressed. I found it grueling to work through any of his pieces. And yet theyre universally beloved. Pretty sure its just because everyones teacher told them the book was good.
Its weird though, to kill a mockingbird was actually good, and yet it doesnt recieve nearly as much fanfare as something like hamlet or romeo & juliet. Feels like people just like shakespear because everyone else likes shakespear.
Shakespeare’s collective works span virtually every genre and introduce virtually every character archetype that is still used in modern literature and media. His works are brimming with word play, which often has triple or quadruple meaning; often dramatic, philosophical, and comedic at the same time. He was so prolific and such a good writer that there are conspiracy theories that he was actually several different playwrights sharing the same pen name.
Granted it’s not as easy to appreciate his works today because of how the English language has drifted over the last 500 years, but what other work of literature from 500 years ago can you even point to as being popular today in its original form?
If you want to give Shakespeare a fair shake from the literary appreciation point of view, try reading an annotated copy of his works that provide context and translate the less familiar turns of phrase. It probably won’t make you enjoy reading his works, but it should at least help you understand why he’s so revered.
In terms of actually enjoying Shakespeare, well… He was a playwright, not a novelist! His works are meant to be seen on a stage. There are some really good performers out there whose emotivity can help bridge the language gap. Some troupes also tweak the dialog to make it more accessible to a modem audience, but I don’t generally like that because they tend to lose the puns or at least diminish the layers or the poetry.
The 2009 BBC Hamlet with David Tenant and Patrick Stewart is, without a doubt, the best possible version of hamlet on stage, on film, in its entirety.
I worked through and annotated hamlet and then watched that version. Just me, a dark room, popcorn, and a cozy spot.
It has made me obsess over Hamlet. Such a wonderful story!
So Rammstein but instead of German it’s old English.
Imo shakespeare is like seinfeld.
So incredibly influential and popular that reading/watching is boring because everything that has been said by them has been said by everyone else, but better years/decades/centuries later.
I agree that shakespeare is a slog, simply because ive seen probably 50 “hamlet” television episodes that are better
Another great example: West-side Story is just a much better version of romeo and juliet which is slow for no reason in comparison.