"For God’s sake, let us sit upon the ground
And tell sad stories of the death of kings;
How some have been deposed; some slain in war,
Some haunted by the ghosts they have deposed;
Some poison’d by their wives: some sleeping kill’d"
I always hated reading Shakespeare in school. It seemed incomprehensibly old fashioned and pretentious. The incessant eulogizing of the man made me dislike him.
But after 4 decades I get it now.
Its epic poetry and philosophical meditations embedded in drama.
Yes, the dramatic sensibilities can seem awkward in an age where we expect "realism" from movies about comic book superheroes. Why would a bunch of guys with swords stand around and watch someone give an ostentatious 5 minute monologue? 😂
Yet no one can deny how many iconic turns of phrase were created in his plays. You can segment out multiple stanzas from any Shakespeare play that would stand toe to toe with poems by any other author.
And tell sad stories of the death of kings;
How some have been deposed; some slain in war,
Some haunted by the ghosts they have deposed;
Some poison’d by their wives: some sleeping kill’d"
I always hated reading Shakespeare in school. It seemed incomprehensibly old fashioned and pretentious. The incessant eulogizing of the man made me dislike him.
But after 4 decades I get it now.
Its epic poetry and philosophical meditations embedded in drama.
Yes, the dramatic sensibilities can seem awkward in an age where we expect "realism" from movies about comic book superheroes. Why would a bunch of guys with swords stand around and watch someone give an ostentatious 5 minute monologue? 😂
Yet no one can deny how many iconic turns of phrase were created in his plays. You can segment out multiple stanzas from any Shakespeare play that would stand toe to toe with poems by any other author.