Reflective Post

I definitely thought I learned a lot more about Shakespeare from this class. Not only that, though, but also the application and awesomeness of it.
1. Gain Shakespeare Literacy
    I read a lot of plays in this class, but also had the opportunity to delve into one, The Taming of the Shrew, in depth. By applying the things we had learned as a group, I was able to better understand my own individual play without group discussion. Watching the plays, The Merchant of Venice and Love's Labour's Lost, covered the performance criteria, but was also a really good experience. It was cool seeing how Shakespeare can be interpreted and how it is either harder to understand or easier to understand depending on the portrayal of the play. The Legacy criteria was a little harder, but I did learn about the history of Shakespeare, through my post about Venice and seeing how Shakespeare has been found in Pop culture today.
2. Analyze Shakespeare Critically
    Analyzing Shakespeare wasn't as bad as I thought it would. I enjoy analyzing literature, and so finding themes, motifs, styles of writing, etc. was easier than I thought it would be. This class helped me how analyzing a play, written or on stage/screen, is more than just opinions. It's about the interpretation of the themes in the play and whether those portrayals seem true to Shakespeare or not. And if they don't, why not? And is your point valid enough?
3. Engaging Shakespeare Creatively
   This category was a little harder for me, especially with the whole individual part. I didn't particularly memorize anything or write anything, but for our group project, I helped validate the reasons why our play is Shakespearean, by doing research or writing out the script.
4. Sharing Shakespeare Meaningfully
    By blogging, It definitely helped with informal writing. I also often talked to my roommates and friends about my Shakespeare class and how cool it was and how cool Shakespeare is as a whole. It never really sparked deep conversations, but we had some good conversations about themes and how it is applicable today.
5. Gain Digital Literacy
    The final project definitely helped with learning how to effectively research Shakespearean information by myself. Reading other people's blogs definitely also helped learning how to use digital mediums to learn. I was able to see how other people reacted to Shakespeare and help myself determine how I feel about the theme being discussed or the play as a whole or a certain speech. I also was able to write about Shakespeare in my Biology class along with my Information Technology class.

All in all, I learned a lot from this class and immensely enjoyed it. 

Shakespeare and IT continued...

I know this is right before class and shame on me, but this is just a quick continuation of my post about the website for my IT class. It was a semester project, and we had to do something so Shakespeare was chosen. It isn't a lot, but it does mention the four lost plays. It has a lot of superfluous, frivolous info on it, but the grade wasn't about content.
But anyways, Here it is!

If it doesn't work, then go here and click on the link that says "Rachel and Elijah's Semester Project"

Shakespeare and Information Technology (IT)

For my IT 101 class, my semester project is to create a website with four pages linked to it. We could make the website about anything, but are encouraged to make a website of misinformation. As I met my partner to discuss the content of our website, he handed that responsibility over to me. Having just come from filming clips for our Shakespeare video, I jokingly said, well since Shakespeare's on my mind, why not that? 

And now that's what our website will be. We are making a website based off of the plays and content we have come up with in the first fauxlio.
Since we decided this last night, nothing is really created, but I will make sure to post the link once it's created.

Love's Labour's Lost: 1940s

I apologize for the lack in writing. I've been sick for the past week and it has been a little challenging. But luckily I was well-enough to go watch the play on Saturday.
Love's Labour's Lost. There were definitely a lot of things that I liked, but also some things that I didn't...

PROS:
-Scene Setting
  - I liked the 1940s theme. It added a more modern take to Shakespeare, but in a well done way.
-Good Attempt at Language
  - In order to keep the flow of the play going, they had to add lines. It was definitely a pretty decent attempt.
-Portrayal of Characters
  -The portrayal of the characters were well done. Costard was probably my favorite in both adaptations that I have seen (Globe theatre version and the BYU adaptation). The use of body language by the actor really helped bring the character to life.


CONS:
-The Attempt at Language
   -I know I said earlier that it was a decent attempt, and I still agree with that. But, I don't think it flowed too well with the play. Love's Labour's lost is all about word-play and wit. And though there wasn't much added on, I felt as if the lines written didn't go too well with the original Shakespearean play. 
-The Flow of the Play
   -Some of the parts were confusing and a little hard to stand, even for someone who has read the play.  In the Merchant of Venice, I found it easier to follow along. Mind you, it was for kids, whereas this play is a little less than kid friendly, but I had hoped since I read it, I would be able to follow along better. 
I also did not like how they crammed the first four acts into the first hour and fifteen minutes or so, and then made the fifth act almost as long. When the fifth act came, though I knew what was gonna happen, I still wished they made it shorter and more straight to the point like they did for the first four acts. The fifth act is the finale and brings everything together, and yet watching it was tedious. I lost interest. 


I still enjoyed the play as a whole and thought it was well done. It helped me come up with some ideas of what can maybe help me on the final project.
Either way, kudos to them.

Venice during the Renaissance Era

For the Duke of Venice (tentative name), I was looking for more of stagecraft and setting, since Sarah and Marina came up with some wonderful plot scenarios.

The fashions during the renaissance period changed quite a few times, but not in intense ways.

The more wealthy used really expensive fabrics and often had jewelry sewn into their outfits to show extravagance. The fancier your clothes and the more expensive, showed just how much more wealthy you were than other people. For example, Francisco and Filippa would be dressed more like these people --->
The ladies had really puffy tops, but less than puffy bottoms. Their hair was always long, but braided. Often times, they had a headdress to cover their hair.

The men wore tunics and stockings, if you will. However, their tunics were either very square or barrel shaped. Awkward looking, right?

The less wealthy obviously tried to follow fashion, but were forced not to. Instead of extravagance, they were required to wear only one color, tops two, to show that they were not as rich as others. To me, Lucio would be in the process of switching from poor clothing to wealthier clothing. Traveling a lot, I assume that he wouldn't get to fancy with clothes. But now that he's aiming to settle down in Venice, and fashion is a big thing, he would have to adjust to dressing better and wearing his money on his sleeves. And in order to impress Filippa, he would definitely have to look like he can care for her.

The setting of the stage wouldn't be really fancy. Most of the scenes will probably take place within the castle or out by the sea. There would just have to be enough things to differentiate between a wealthier area than the sea.

The Duke of Venice Continued...

Well Sarah made a comment stating that maybe the play should be more of a tragedy...
So I was thinking...
In ACT V, Francesco has an assassination attempt made on his life, but instead of him getting hurt, Filippa, knowing about the attempt, saves Francesco and dies doing so.
And from that, Francesco realizes he needs to change and becomes a better ruler.
I don't really want everyone to die at the end, but maybe having Filippa die will be more intense and more heart-wrenching than just having Francesco be badly injured.

The Duke of Venice

This is the treatment to Sarah's Characters.

ACT I.
The characters are introduced, except Lucio. The Duke of Venice talks to his kids explaining how his illness has turned for the worst, and how Francesco has to prepare for his death. Filippa is upset because she thinks she should rule instead of her father.
ACT II.
Lucio is introduced. He just arrived in Venice. He meets Francesco and tells him about his travels. Filppa wishes she could help her father, but he avoids her. She also tends to defy her father, in the sense she doesn't follow her "womanly duties."
ACT III.
The Duke dies. Francesco takes his place. Disputes occur between him and his sister over ruling. Lucio visits Francesco often, telling him about the world and how he should go travel. Francesco longs even more to go explore the world. Because of his inner turmoil between staying and going, his ways of ruling suffer, trying to compensate for not leaving.
ACT IV.
Problems arise amongst the Venice council and Francesco. They disagree with the way he has been ruling. They secretly come to the conclusion that they should assassinate him, and replace him with their own person. They decide to include Filippa and offer her the dukedom, stating they'll change the law. Filippa has inner debates between replacing Francesco, because she feels she can rule better, but at the same time, doesn't want to betray her father's wishes of letting her brother rule. Lucio still tends to be over more and influence Francesco.
ACT V.
The assassination attempt is made on Francesco's life, and yet he escapes badly injured, but not dead. He realizes, as he stays in bed recovering, that he needs to be better. He dismisses Lucio to not visit anymore and realizes maybe he should listen to Filippa and take her advice. He and Filippa are on better terms and become closer than ever.

So, that's what I got. Any thoughts?

Final Project

I apologize for the lack of blogging that has occurred recently. I have been sick for the past week, and though it isn't really a good excuse, I couldn't really think at all or focus.

But for the final project, I have thought and thought and thought and it's been challenging coming up with a set idea that I like more than others.

I like the short film/documentary idea a lot. I think that it would be able to incorporate, generally, everyone's talents and hobbies.

I really liked the idea of doing something from someone else's view.  I enjoy hearing someone else's view of an event that has happened to both of us, because it's always different. Sure, some elements are the same, but because people think differently, there's always a little variance in the storytelling. 

Hopefully as time goes on, or after class today and discussion, my thoughts will be a little more focused. But until then, this is all I got.

Shakespeare and Biology

For my Biology Class, I had to create a classification system for whatever I wanted. And the first thing that popped into my head was Shakespeare plays. So for this assignment, I generally classified the plays into the four categories we have talked about this semester: Tragedy, History, Romance, and Comedy.

It's a pretty simple paper since we had to make it understandable and it couldn't be longer than a page. And also, just in general, Biology and I do not go together. But here it is, either way, for your viewing.

My classification system would be separating Shakespearean plays into their own respectful categories. The categories can be interpreted differently, but I have decided to use these: Tragedy, Romance, Comedy, and History. By separating the plays into the categories, it makes it easier for people to know the basic plot or what to expect before they read the play.

The first main category would be Tragedy. In Shakespearean plays, this means that almost all of the main characters die at the end of the play. There would be sub-levels. For example, one would be plays-within-a-play, wherein Hamlet would fall under. Another example would be a love story, which is where Romeo and Juliet would be placed.

The next category would be Romance. In Shakespearean times, this did not mean love, it meant more along the lines of supernatural or magical. One play that would fall under this category would be the Tempest.

The next category would be Comedy. In most cases, these plays are more like love stories than the Romance category. There would be also be play-within-a-play sublevel, where plays like A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Taming of the Shrew would be placed. The Merchant of Venice would be in a different sub-level where there is a different theme asides from love, like Justice/Mercy.

The last category would be History. These are plays that are based on historical events that occurred in England. The sublevels would be split into the family line or person that it is about. For example, Henry IV-VI would be one level and Richard II-III would be another level.

Is it really as bad as it seems?

The Taming of the Shrew...not the biggest fan. 
A big problem that I had with it was idea of controlling women. 
Now I know it's a comedy, and I'm sure it was amusing back then. And during the time period, arranged marriages and all that jazz were acceptable, but I can't quite accept that and look past it. 


So I looked a little online to see articles that have been written on theme of feminism in the play, and there were some interesting ideas that made me think better of the play.


Arguments have risen stating that "his behavior is a mirror to hers, simply reflecting back her own demeanor so that, in turn, she understands how she’s treated others."(http://www2.cedarcrest.edu/academic/eng/lfletcher/shrew/efurstnau.htm)
 This thought made me think better of Petruchio and his behavior towards Katherina. Katherina isn't really that pleasant of a person, and so Petruchio's behavior is more acceptable if I think of it as him just showing Katherina how she acts and how unpleasant it really is. 
Another idea in the article linked above states again that it was acceptable during the time period. Men wrote the play, men acted out the play, and were just generally more dominant. And because of that, it's easier to understand the point of view that people these days might seem as sexist.


Another thing that made me think better of the play was that it got me thinking about how I treat people. Katherina is rude and inconsiderate of those around her in the beginning before she is "tamed." But it got me thinking, why is she like that? In the play, her father, Baptista, doesn't think too highly of Katherina.He wants her to be happy but doesn't pay too much attention to her views and how she feels. 
And that got me thinking that maybe she is a shrew because she feels like her father cares more for Bianca than actually her. And attitude is everything, so maybe instead of choosing to be optimistic, she chose to see the negative.
And eventually at the end of the play, with her long speech about how she is grateful for her husband and the opportunity to serve him and help him, she is happier and more content with life.

The Taming of the Shrew

So this play starts out with something that's not even what I expected. Turns out The Taming of the Shrew is a play within a play. Who knew? I didn't.

Well anyways, honestly, I'm not the hugest fan of the play. Mind you, the play is funny and way witty. But the characters, all rude. Like ridiculous. Petruchio, the character who "wins" the heart of Katharina, the shrew...I just don't like him. He's like "let me control Katherina so I can have her wealth." Now I know Katherina is rude also but all the guys are like, "get rid over so we can marry the younger sister, Bianca, because she is beautiful. And even though I don't know anything about her at all, it doesn't matter because she's a babe."
I disapprove, but maybe that's just me.

Midterm Assessment

How have I gained Shakespeare literacy?
I feel like I’ve done alright in this one. I know that I’ve seen a lot  of Shakespeare in popular culture and by reading and posting about all the plays, I’ve extended my knowledge of Shakespeare and the different ways he writes. (It sufficeth me to say, belated sunday post, mislike me not))   I also have watched Kenneth Branagh’s Henry V and the production of The Merchant of Venice. I’m excited to be able to dive into the one single work and focus on that.

How have I analyzed Shakespeare critically?
I think I have learned a lot in this section. I am able to look more deeply and see the multiple themes Shakespeare presents in his play.(“HENRY V” post; tempest post. “Hamlet”, “merchant of venice)) Reading the summary before each play also helped me understand the language more easily.
By looking at the summary of each play before hand, I was able to understand a lot more easily the language of shakespeare. I need to work more on the application of literary theories and analysis of digital mediations. Though I have seen film adaptations, I haven’t particularly blogged about or thoroughly analyzed it and compared it to the written work.

How have I engaged Shakespeare creatively?
        I have not done too well in this category. I have a few sonnets that I wrote a year ago, and I have looked over them, I have not posted them on my blog.... yet.
And I’ve thought about what to do for the individual creative work but have yet to establish something in stone. I would like write music for one of the unknown songs in Shakespeare, and interpret how it would sound now. But I have not started on that, and am not quite sure whether that’s the route I want to go.

How have I shared Shakespeare meaningfully?
I have not done too well in this, mostly because I haven’t consistently blogged. Since my blogging is 1-2 times a week. I do enjoy reading other people’s blogs, which has helped developed my thinking and ideas. I have talked to people outside class about Shakespeare, but not in depth. 

How have I gained digital literacy?
        I think that using a blog has helped a lot with learning. Not only from me posting, but from other people’s posts. I always do background information online before each play I read, which has helped me understand what I’m reading more clearly. I have not talked a lot to people outside of class too much about Shakespeare. I’ve mentioned the interesting things I learn in class, but it doesn’t really spark conversation.
    With blogging, I think I am in between Phase 1 and Phase 2. I try to think more deeply with Shakespeare, but to no avail. I have had trouble applying things I am interested in to Shakespeare, and then blogging about it. Consistently blogging is also something I haven’t done too well in.

B. Self-directed Learning

I am not too good at self-directed learning. It’s been a while since I’ve had a set schedule, and unfortunately, I’m struggling with my focus. However, I do know that I set time apart to read Shakespeare (an adequate amount of time) and I strive to read through each play at least twice, and if not the whole thing, at least a few acts again, particularly the acts that were my favorite or I couldn’t understand. I do not use the eBook because I can’t have the Kindle App. on my macbook, but I do own all of shakespeare’s work in one book. And I strive to mark that wherever I find a quote I particularly liked or when I do not understand something.
I have seen others be more consistent with their blogs and have applied it pretty well to their interests, which is something I strive to be able to do.


C. Collaborative and Social Learning
        I definitely appreciate Sarah and Kim’s blogs.I enjoy reading theirs posts and has helped me the most in development of my thoughts and perceptions of concepts. I appreciate their interpretation of Shakespeare and how thorough and consistent they are.
        I think that class time is being used effectively. I particularly like the group discussion, but I like it more in smaller groups so there more time to thoroughly discuss it. It also gives us the opportunity to understand better how a person interprets the plays in face-to-face time, instead of through blogging.
Through blogging, I strive to involve others with my learning. And with outside of class, I look for opportunities to talk about Shakespeare, but either I miss it or when I bring it up, the conversation doesn’t last too long.

D. Looking Ahead
I want to be able to write a good sonnet. One that follows the iambic pentameter but is also well-written. As stated earlier, I have written some before, but looking back they are less good. I would also like to memorize a soliloquy from one of the plays. And I am also thinking about writing music for a song.
I really enjoy film and would like to incorporate that into the collaborative project. Whether it’s re-enacting a play(s),  or showing general visual interpretations.

Belated Sunday Post

So I was thinking yesterday about how I could apply Shakespeare to my sunday routine. And so I decided to look on LDS.org to see how many times Shakespeare comes up in the search engine. The results equal 302. And in General Conference, Shakespeare is mentioned 53 times. I think that is pretty nifty.
Often, when I talk about people being quoted in General Conference, it's usually C.S. Lewis. But who knew that Shakespeare is fairly popular himself.

Then I looked to see how often Hamlet was mentioned. That answer is 13 times. Looking at the talks, the most quoted was the "To be or not to be" soliloquy. However that is closely followed by "This above all; to thine own self be true."
It's pretty cool to me seeing that the Prophets and Apostles also see the cool insights and goodness of Shakespeare. Especially Hamlet, since I like that play.

What other plays or playwrights do you think is oft quoted in Conference?
Or maybe just in church material in general?

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

I really enjoyed Hamlet. Of all the plays I've ever read by Shakespeare, I'm pretty sure it's my favorite. I think there is some really interesting character development that goes on in the play. I feel as if there are two sides to most of the main characters. You have the black and the white, the better side and the worse side.

Take for example, Hamlet. When he's talking to Horatio he speaks pretty plainly. He explains his plans, not in great detail, but he makes sense. But when he talks to the King, the Queen, Polonius, etc., he talks in riddles. He sounds mad. He is obviously struggling with the fact of his father, his uncle, and his mother and the whole "dysfuncational-ness" of his family, but really, of all of them, he's the most sane. He knows what he is doing and fully understands the consequence.

Then there's King Claudius. He murders his brother for "[his] crown, [his] own ambition, and [his] queen." And yet he feels remorse and guilt. Hamlet stumbles upon his praying, but won't kill him because he is praying. Claudius is trying to repent, but feels that he is just so caught up in his doings that he can't escape it. He can only move forward with his sin.

Polonius, I also think, has two different sides. Now as extreme as crazy/sane, or murderous/repentant, but I still think it's there. And I think the differences in him are more related to his station than anything. He honors his king and queen and will serve them. Even if it means spying on Hamlet and using his children to follow his orders. And yet he is a very loving father. He cares for Ophelia and Laertes and only wants the best for them. One of my favorite speeches in the play was given by Polonius to Laertes, before Laertes leaves. He's giving Laertes some fatherly advice, and I just think it's beautiful. "Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice/take each man's censure, but reserve thy judgment." This is good stuff. And then the very famous line, "This above all: to thine ownself be true." Golden. Love it.

On a bit of a different note, one of my favorite quotes from the play was when Hamlet was talking to Guildenstern about playing the recorders. He states, "Do you think I am/easier to be played on than a pipe? Call me what/instrument you will, though you can fret me, yet you/cannot play me." 

Shakespeare's writing, to me in this play, is just so good. This quote is just clever and witty, and yet is deep enough to get me thinking about how I treat others and what I expect out of them. Am I using them for my own benefit or gain? Am I treating them like I'm supposed to? Or am I just trying to play them and use them, despite me not knowing what is going on in their life?

The Merchant of Venice Production

The Merchant of Venice play. I watched it on Saturday, and it was a definitely an interesting rendition. But I definitely thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved how they incorporated the kids into the play. The play is intense, because of the themes it covers (justice vs. mercy, racism/discrimination, etc.) and yet the theatre group made it appealing to the kids and made it interactive. A lot of the text was lost because it was a very short production and it had to be kid friendly, but overall I approve of it.

One thing that I liked was how at the end they asked about the treatment of Shylock and Antonia. Was it fair that Shylock had to become a "tharian" and give up his belongings, whilst Antonia got to keep her life and have say over half his belongings? Even though the play was fun and exciting, they still approached a deeper topic to get the kids to think, along with the adults that were watching. It definitely got me to thinking about my life, moreso than I think the actual reading of the play did. The visual effect of actually watching it helped. I got to thinking about the balance of justice vs. mercy, more specifically related to the Atonement. 

I thought it was interesting that the group portrayed Antonio as a girl, changing the character to Antonia. I was kind of thinking it might be because they were short on guys and they thought of the characters to change, that one would work the best. But I also thought it maybe showed the friendship of Bassanio and Antonio pretty well. It created a friendship that the kids were maybe able to understand more visually than a guy/guy friendship. Especially with the line "But life itself, my wife, and all the world,/are not with me esteem'd above thy life:/ I would lose all, ay, sacrifice them all/here to this devil, to delivery you." To me, just nowadays, it's more comprehensive to the kids than a bromance, if you will.

But all in all, I definitely enjoyed the production and think the group did exceedingly well in involving the kids but also making it entertaining for everyone. Kudos to them.

"Mislike me not for my complexion"

Starting on a bit of a random note, I dreamt of Shakespeare last night. I don't remember what the play was or whether my mind was just creating it. But I think it was loosely based off of Henry V. I just remember there was a guy who was mighty in power and two guys who were not. And the two guys who were not powerful talked in prose. I take that as a sign that Shakespeare is affecting me somehow, hopefully for the better.

Onto The Merchant of Venice, so I just finished the first two acts. And I'll be honest, it might because I was sick today and my mind is a little muddled but I was struggling a bit. I understood the basic gist of it. Bassanio is vying for Portia's love, but he doesn't have money. Antonio is the merchant and has trades going on overseas so he can't lend money to Bassanio. And then there's Shylock the Jew. And obviously Shakespeare makes fun of Jews and also he pokes fun of the French again (again as in after Henry V). Jessica loves Lorenzo, who is Christian, and that's a little bit of a no-go since Shylock doesn't like Christians. Etc., etc., etc.
Anyways, so I understand that. I just am losing a lot in the dialog. And I know it's supposed to be a comedy, but I'm not really amused. I mean I get it, but I don't. Maybe I'm losing the humor because this play is really old. And it's a play, so don't forget about body language (that we can't see, but will Saturday)!
But there were some quotes I did like so far. One was when Launcelot is talking to Jessica in Act II and states:
 
"these foolish drops do something down my manly spirit,"

I liked this because I hate crying. Absolutely hate it. Now I'm not a man, but I do feel as if I am losing some dignity when I cry. But maybe that's just me.

I also really liked Antonio's state to Bassanio about Shylock,

"The devil can cite Scripture for his Purpose.

An evil soul, producing holy witness,

Is like a villain with a smiling cheek,

A goodly apple rotten at the heart..."

Definitely multiple scripture references popped in my mind after reading this.

Anyways..

So that's it for now.

 

And my title quote, I just thought it applied pretty well to me since I'm a little tan by nature.

Henry V

I definitely think this play was really interesting. And I know, shame on me for posting right before class. I'll do better. But back to Henry, one of the themes that stuck out to me was the relationship between the commoner and the monarchy. At times, the distance between these two seemed great, like when Nym and Bardolph died, even though they used to be tight with Henry. Then the distance seemed less great before and during the battle of Agincourt. They were united as a group, fighting for the same cause. 
This issue of the relationship between high society and "commoners" is still prevalent today, even in the U.S. We don't have kings, but we have a president, congress, supreme court, etc. Even celebrities can fall under the high society category. And those not in the positions of power find it hard to back those in power with political issues, national problems, etc. 
But there are times when the nation unites under their leader. In Henry V, it was before their great battle, and for the U.S., one example is when the nation united after 9/11.
Along those lines, I like how in the play it continued to show the vulnerability of Henry as a person, not just a king. Sure he has his kingly responsibilities, but he also has feelings. 
It reminds of my life. I'm not royal or anything, but back home, my dad is Mayor. And he just got re-elected for his third term. However, watching politics take place in my home town firsthand and seeing how people were hatin' on my dad just because he was republican or because he was Mormon, was rough.  And even though my dad had good intentions for the city, because of the difference between a position of power and those without the position, those against my dad couldn't move past that hinderance even though my dad tried to reach out to them. 
Back to Henry V, Henry shows vulnerability and when he goes out to talk to the soldiers, he realizes not all of them have his back. As king, he realizes he needs to gain their support. He wants their support. But as a person, he's a little hurt. 


I feel like I'm rambling a little bit, but point is, I liked the portrayal of one person's humanity in the play. And I definitely appreciate the application of this play that can be used in today's life.

It Sufficeth Me to Say...

I absolutely loved The Tempest. There some parts in it, that were, I thought, quite beautiful. For example, in the beginning when Prospero is explaining how much of a blessing Miranda has been in his life:

"Thou wast that did preserve me. Thou didst smile

 Infused with a fortitude from heaven."

Really. How precious is that. 

I particularly like the theme of forgiveness in the play. Prospero's character, at the beginning, seemed bitter of his situation. But as the play develops, you see that he realizes he's been blessed to raise his daughter away from the court life, but also his grudge against his brother, the king, etc. has deteriorated over time. I love that character progression. It shows humanity. Looking past all the extravagance, the sorcery, the romanticism of it all, there is a life lesson. Compared to the other plays I've read of Shakespeare, which is actually a limited number AND was back in high school, I never really got that much out of it. I fell in love with Romeo and Juliet by watching Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet. And it wasn't really because of the story. It was because of the way it was portrayed.

But actually reading this play on its own, without a visual interpretation, was a new experience. One that I thoroughly enjoyed.

On a side note, as I was reading this, a lot of pop culture references popped up into my head. And they didn't really relate, but I'm going to share one of them with you anyways. I thought of it when I read one of Ariel's songs, in Act I, Scene II. He says:

"The watchdogs bark."

"Bow-wow."

So when I first read that, I immediately thought of Brian Regan. I don't know whether Shakespeare is the reason why we use "Bow-wow" to describe a dog's bark, but I like to think that he did.

In case you don't know what I'm talking about, here's the video. :]

 

My Personal Learning Plan.

So I'm not quite sure whether I am doing this correctly. Hopefully this is right and I have the basic gist of what I am supposed to do. So here's my personal learning plan.

1.) Gaining Shakespeare Literacy.

I plan on gaining knowledge of Shakespeare's works by reading his works and doing my best to understand each one thoroughly as I study on my own and we discuss it during class. By studying one play, I will be able to go into more depth and do more research. Through that one play, it'll help me understand Shakespeare more and come to learn about the way he writes and thinks. The performances will help me visualize how they were performed back in the day, while also bringing to light new interpretations of his work.

2.) Analyzing Shakespeare Critically.

Through blogging and discussion, I will analyze his works and understand the way he wrote. I will learn more about his style.

3.) Engage Shakespeare Creatively.

I don't like performing in front of people, unless it's musical. But I'm willing to branch out, I think. I liked the memorization idea or recitation. The individual creative work...I was thinking along the lines of writing music to songs that have already been performed in Shakespeare's works but we don't know what it sounds like. And for the collaborative creative project, I enjoy filming and making something old (such as an old story a.k.a. Shakespeare) and trying to make it relative to modern times and what is going on in the present.

4. Share Shakespeare Meaningfully.

By blogging, I will be practicing informal writing and analysis of Shakespeare. Through commenting and discussing the my classmates, friends, family, etc., I will connect with people through Shakespeare.

5.) Gain Digital Literacy.

 In order to learn more in this class, I have to be willing to put forth the effort it takes to learn Shakespeare. I have to research and use the resources around me, such as the Internet and Library, to consume more knowledge. By blogging, I am providing my insights and my interpretations, which is not only beneficial to me, but will hopefully help others see from a different perspective. By interacting with people in the class (and outside of class), we can help each other with our learning plans and help others learn about Shakespeare by sharing what we have been working on.

Well, this is a rough sketch of my plan. I know there will be changes to it that will occur due to progression in the class, but that's expected, if not wanted.

How can a month have an idea?

WELLLL.

This is my first blog ever. And I guess it's good that it's about Shakespeare, because it actually gives me something to write about. A topic to rant about, instead of just my random thoughts about life as a whole (which I'm sure not many would actually care about).

But I'm pretty stoked about this class. I've always been interested in Shakespeare, but for me, it's harder to motivate myself to read Shakespeare when I could be reading modern text I actually understand. My experience with Shakespeare has been pretty limited. I've only read a few plays and it was because of my high school English courses. But this class will help me understand it and become more interested in Shakespeare (if everything goes according to plan). 

So yeah. That's the end of this post.