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Understanding Shakespeare: A Modern Reader's Guide to Language, Wordplay, and Implied Action

Dive into the world of Shakespeare with this simple guide tailored for modern readers. Explore key issues such as unfamiliar and antiquated words, the intricacies of sentence structure, and the playful wordplay that defines Shakespeare's work. Understand how implied stage actions and the poet's unique arrangement of words affect meaning, using examples from iconic plays like Hamlet. This comprehensive guide includes insights into the history of Shakespeare's published texts and practical tips for reading aloud to enhance comprehension.

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Understanding Shakespeare: A Modern Reader's Guide to Language, Wordplay, and Implied Action

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Presentation Transcript

  1. A simple guide Reading Shakespeare

  2. Four Issues for the modern reader • Words • Sentences • Wordplay • Implied Stage Action

  3. Words • Unfamiliar words • Antiquated (we no longer use them) • Parle • Discussion • Soft • Hold • How do I know this? • Footnotes

  4. Words • Geography • Elsinore • Hamlet’s Castle • How do I know this? • Footnotes • Words that have a different meaning • Rivals (1.1.14) • Companions • How do I know this? • Footnotes

  5. Sentences Consider the meaning: • The dog bit the boy. • The boy bit the dog. In English, meaning is dependant on placement of words. Because of this, unusual arrangements can confuse a reader Shakespeare shifts this for his rhythm • Actors will read this to help with meaning • At home, reading aloud will help.

  6. Sentences English builds like this: Shakespeare will switch these:

  7. Sentences English builds like this: Shakespeare will do this:

  8. Sentences • Shakespeare will also separate words that usually belong together: The sentence should read: “When he combated” Shakespeare will write “When he the ambitious Norway combated”

  9. Wordplay • Puns • Play on words that sound the same but have different meanings • Son/sun • Claudius asks his “son” why his mood is so cloudy, to which Hamlet answers he is “too much in the sun” • Hamlet is not Claudius son and is not happy being called that.

  10. Implied Stage Action • Notice there is very italicized stage action. Shakespeare will write the stage action right into the lines – this is how actors know to: • Move across the stage • Shiver because of cold • Shake hands and hug • Do a spit take

  11. Printing a book

  12. Published Text history • 1603 – Quarto (Bad) – this includes different names and only 2,300 lines • 1604/05 – Good Quarto • 1623 – 7 years after death – First Folio

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