• Ever thought it'd be cool to have your art, writing, or challenge runs featured on PokéCommunity? Click here for info - we'd love to spotlight your work!
  • It's time to vote for your favorite Pokémon Battle Revolution protagonist in our new weekly protagonist poll! Click here to cast your vote and let us know which PBR protagonist you like most.
  • Welcome to PokéCommunity! Register now and join one of the best fan communities on the 'net to talk Pokémon and more! We are not affiliated with The Pokémon Company or Nintendo.
    Register

How well do you comprehend Shakespeare?

Yuoaman

Yuoaman

I don't know who I am either.
    • 4,581
    Posts
    19
    Years
    A simple question. How well do you understand Shakespeare? When reading it I can understand the gist of it, though I usually have to go through it several more times to know exactly what's going on. Though when I watch the plays I usually understand much more, it's just easier to see what's going on, when it's in context.

    I brought this up because in English class we are studying Macbeth right now.
     
    What's a "Shakespeare"?



    Okay, okay...

    Omg! Macbeth! - all those nightmares coming back to me!


    It's been a long time since I've read any of the plays, but literature ain't my thing...
     
    Do you mean the wording, or the plot?
    Because I understand both.
    The words are just the same, spelled a little differently. Sure, some of them are rarely used now but if you don't understand a word, you just look at the rest of the sentence and it usually makes sense.
    The plots are understandable too. :D Who doesn't get Romeo and Juliet, or Hamlet?
     
    I don't really have a problem understanding Shakespeare...as a matter of fact, I love reading/watching his plays. Then again, I am an English major, so maybe I'm atypical in that regard. :D
     
    I can understand most of it, but I usually stumble a but at the end. But I can generally get the story.
     
    When I started reading that in 9th grade I didn't really understand it because of the language. Now I understand it perfectly, though I don't particularly enjoy it.

    And when I say that, people usually say it's because I "don't understand!".
     
    I fell asleep when we watched a live performance of "Macbeth" (as part of our "Comedy and Tragedy" block in my high school). But that could also be because it was somewhat early and I was tired XD

    But... Thanks to our teacher, I was able to understand some of his works quite well, and now I wanna read "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (which I've heard mixed reviews on) and "The Taming of the Shrew". I should bug my English/Social Studies teacher to get the books of those plays XD

    But IMHO, Shakespeare is definitely a better playwright than, say, Tennessee Williams (I had to read his play when I moved to a different school, and let me tell you, it was boring, and watching the actual performance was boring).

    Oh, and last year in 8th grade, since our grade/class had to put on a play, we did "The Comedy of Errors" (one of Shakespeare's shortest plays =O), and although some parts were confusing at first, I began to understand everything with more practice.
     
    I can never understand it the first time through. Usually I have to read a few times or I just go to Sparknotes, which has this really awesome "No Fear Shakespeare" thing, which pretty much gives a side by side of every line, one in the original language and one in modern English. It is incredibly helpful for assignments.

    Reading Shakespeare or other old English authors always gives me a headache. :(
     
    オレンジ said:
    Shakespeare is Early Modern English, þis is Aud Englisc.
    Click to expand...

    It's an older version of English. It's nothing like what is spoken today in America. So it's an old English, even if it isn't the Old English.

    I cannot understand a single sentence of Shakespeare. Not a one. I am extremely advanced as far as literature goes, concerning interpretation, understanding, and the composition of written works. I can't translate a single bit of what Shakespeare wrote to the English I learned in the modern day, however.

    I also cannot understand poetry, either. My mind is blocked off against comprehending prose and other languages for some strange reason. Shakespeare is both, sadly.
     
    I understand Shakespeare well. I can usually get what he's saying when I first read the sentence or scene. Shakespeare has been my inspiration. <3​
     
    オレンジ said:
    Shakespeare is Early Modern English, þis is Aud Englisc.
    Click to expand...

    Oh, well, you learn something new everyday.

    But still, he's nothing like authors today. I would bet in the not so distant future, since English is evolving pretty rapidly thanks to the interwebz, they'll have to translate Shakespeare for school kids to understand. It's nearly a different language now, think of how hard it will be for kids in the future.
     
    Yamikarasu said:
    Oh, well, you learn something new everyday.

    But still, he's nothing like authors today. I would bet in the not so distant future, since English is evolving pretty rapidly thanks to the interwebz, they'll have to translate Shakespeare for school kids to understand. It's nearly a different language now, think of how hard it will be for kids in the future.
    Click to expand...
    I've been behind them translating Shakespeare for a while now. You can actually find translated versions already (I believe SparkNotes has a full version available that is simply rewritten in modern English), it just isn't the norm for schools to use, yet.
     
    I have all his published books in leather binding on my family book shelf, if that answers your question :D
     
    In my younger days all of his works were gibberish to me, but nowadays I can understand it enough to enjoy it.
     
    You must log in or register to reply here.
    Back
    Top