Michael Mack, Shakespeare professor at the Catholic University of America, gives his orientation speech, “Why read Shakespeare?” (collections 2008) in order to persuade incoming freshman students to continue reading Shakespeare. Mack convinces students of the importance of Shakespeare using a biblical allusion referencing the parable of the prodigal son in the bible. This professor argues that Shakespeare is worthwhile in order to help freshman students understand the value of such complex writing. Mack appeals to CUA’s newest students by presenting his argument in a professional, academic manner.…
Read the selection from the argument “Why Read Shakespeare?” by Michael Mack. Then, reread the lines indicated with each question below. Answer each question, citing text evidence.…
Shakespeare is considered to be one of the best, if not the best, playwright/poet in history. His works have inspired millions of people around the world and they are still the subject of much praise and analysis to this day. Shakespeare didn’t become the iconic, culture-defining poet that he is today by writing boring plays and bad writing. He got there because of his profound skills in storytelling and using literary devices. Four of the main devices he loved to use, round and flat characters, blank verse and prose, dramatic speech, and dramatic irony, have all helped bring his stories to life.…
Have you ever read "Why read Shakespeare?" This persuasive argument, written by Michael Mack, will really change the way you thinks about Shakespeare; even if Shakespeare isn't for you. Mack produced an effective argument proving that reading Shakespeare is not as complex as it seems and it teaches you lessons you will need throughout the rest of your life - which therefor is worth the effort - through his uses of rhetorical devices and his claim.…
Today's common core states that Shakespeare is required as it can help with “determine the meaning of words and phrases...including figurative and connotative meanings”. Common Core Standards. By reading Shakespeare students will be able to understand figurative language. Students will be able to have a better understanding of challenging text while gaining the ability to read deeper.…
Shakespeare’s works are not limited to expressing the concerns and interests of a narrowly confined historical period. They have in them the…
People were also beginning to look at life in a much more intellectual way. Things were no longer…
The events in Shakespeare's early life had a strong impact on his writings. The pain, religious upbringings, and life events are all avid throughout many of his sonnets and writings. If Shakespere did not encounter some of these events, historians question whether Shakespeare would be as successful of a…
Shakespeare seldom has a character in his play that is heroic without flaw, Julius Caesar. Some may argue that Brutus is the hero, or Caesar is the villain, but the truth is that no single character is 100% villain, or 100% hero. Julius Caesar is the closest thing to a hero that Rome will get, due to his generous, un-ambitious and wise nature.…
He had a presence like Lincoln or Washington in American history."(utsa.edu). Shakespeare specific language was one of a kind and complex. His themes tells us a little about what he was interested in. Honor, love, and bravery still play a part in today 's society. Shakespeare has a way of affecting people although they don 't know much about him. We experience betrayal, tragedy, love etc. everyday of our lives, which means Shakespeare has a hold of modern day literature. I believe you can learn about him through his work. He wants the audience to have a connection with him because he knew his plays would relate to us in some way. William Shakespeare 's use of Grammar and writing style is believed to set him apart. His grammar and the way he used words represents his genius as a writer. His plays were written in the proper style of his times, although his metaphors and rhetorical phrases didn 't always coordinate with the characters or story plot. Shakespeare 's first plays were written in the conventional style of the day. He wrote them in a stylised language that does not always spring naturally from the needs of the characters or the drama. Shakespeare was very original, complying with traditional style to his own purposes and creating a free flow of words. He often used a pattern expressed by lyrical lines that didn 't rhyme or a blank verse, to compose his plays. Shakespeare is admired for using lots of words that were introduced in language, than other writers of his time. Shakespeare died on 23 April 1616, at the age of 52. He died within a month of signing his will, a document which he begins by describing himself as being in “perfect health”. There is no extant contemporary source that explains how or why he died. He was survived by his wife and two daughters. Susanna had married a physician, John Hall, in 1607, and Judith had…
He uses this technique to develop his conceit through his sonnet he creates. for his contemporary audiences and readers he demonstrates love beauty and death that are some of the many concepts he uses, that people have faced and have to live with in societies today. The sonnets that Shakespeare creates they help us understand some of the many concepts he uses. People today can still relate to the beauty of a summer’s day and the darkness and the emptiness of death. Death is still feared in societies today everyone is afraid of death to when it will come and what will happen.…
William Shakespeare is regarded by many as one of the worlds’ prominent literary figures. Though his abilities were able to capture an audiences’ attention and hold it for the duration of the performance were superior to many, his works have been over celebrated since their creation. Shakespeare was able to master many fundamentals, which in sequence enabled him to become successful. He was able to create plot twists, which added the element of surprise to each performance, keeping the audience on their toes as the ending neared. Despite his talents of weaving together characters and plot lines with twists, much of his work was not original, which is disappointing to some, including me. Some of his works are also questionable as to whether or not he actually wrote them.…
London was extremely busy, crowded and noisy. The rich lived well, with servants, fine clothes and probably a home in the country to which they could escape in times of plague. The poor had to stay in town, living above their shops, or rather better-off merchants having better houses in better parts of town. London was much, much smaller than it is today. Shakespeare would also probably have spent time in taverns in the evenings, and doing business during the day. He might have had dinner in a tavern, and might well have gone to watch the cockfighting and bearbaiting.…
One of the reasons why we study Shakespeare plays and poems is because he was such a great poet and play script writer of all times. In all his plays, they had a hidden theme, which would certainly confuse the audience but almost make them curious about what the play was actually trying to make the people watching it think. His plays are always meaningful and can be related back to times significant to others, which are still relevant today. Another reason is because he had such a vivid imagination, that people were always hooked on what was going to happen next and could picture anything he acted out in front of his them. I have found out that many of the expressions and words that we use come from Shakespeare and when we study this it gives us new insights to our language; how rich and beautiful it is.…
William Shakespeare, born in April 1564 was the son of John Shakespeare who was a prosperous alderman in the town of Stratford and was later granted a coat of arms by the College of Heralds. Not much was known of Shakespeare's youth and is presumed that he attended the Stratford Grammar School. It was known that his father lost his fortune and Shakespeare could never finish school. At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway who was 26.…