Everybody should know a little Shakespeare. Especially around Valentine's Day, it's really useful to be able to say "The course of true love never did run smooth." Last week, I almost told my wife in regular conversation that "love alters not when it alteration finds." That one I had stockpiled several Valentine Days ago when I couldn’t afford any present for her. So, I memorized William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116, and recited it to her. She didn’t swoon exactly, but I still
The sun begins to set, the air still holds the heat of the day, and the crickets begin to sing. The hum of conversations begins to quiet, and the Frisbee game is brought to a close in the back. People wander back to their seats, fill up their glasses with wine, and settle in for a good time. The spotlights can just faintly be seen on stage as the sunlight dies around us. Every year for the last ten years, my family has made it out to the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival. It is such a wonderful experience.
When I asked some of my coworkers for ideas for a blog, almost simultaneously they said, "Bah humbug" and "Grinch." "Bah humbug" is a favorite saying of a character from A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Grinch is the title character from Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Both stories are about characters that have an unfavorable outlook on Christmas and whose views are changed by the end of the story. People who are grumpy about Christmas are often called a "scrooge" or a "grinch."
Are you a Shakespeare newbie? Does 17th Century English seem like a foreign language? What exactly does "iambic pentameter" actually mean?
Shakespeare does not have to be a daunting subject. Do not be intimidated! Shakespeare can be enjoyed on many levels. Guaranteed; everyone can enjoy something about the Bard.
