Introduction to Shakespeare
Section 3
Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear
To dig the dust enclosed here.
Blessed be the man that spares these stones
And cursed be he that moves my bones.
Dig in the dust we must, to bring Shakespeare alive to our students. To dispel the dust and create a living playwright, we can engage our students on all levels through saturation. By this point, students are familiar with basic elements of the period and I try to build excitement by infusing the classroom through all senses. As they enter, I have period music playing softly and large pictures of Shakespeare and the Globe Theater displayed. The perennial question--Why do we have to read this?--begs the larger question of why we study literature at all, and this is the right time to address it. Posters with examples of Middle English contrasted with the Early Modern English of Shakespeare lead us into a discussion of why Shakespeare is so important in so many cultures, both as a playwright of universal stories and as a shaper of our modern language.
The emphasis on how language shifts is important to prepare students with the difficulties they will encounter with the plays. If students are knowledgeable and open to the idea of shifting definitions, they will be ready to tackle the texts with a sense of playfulness instead of trepidation. I assure them that understanding every line is impossible; scholars have built tedious careers around philological treatises on new interpretations of ambiguous lines. Our emphasis on performance of the play also helps students unlock meaning through movement. In an earlier unit, I have students "translate" a Middle English passage from Chaucer into Modern English, and this activity seems to free them from the anxiety of needing to understand every word. The perennial fun-activity to introduce students to Shakespearian English remains the "Shakespearian Insults" menu from which students select an adjective from column A, one from column B, and a concluding noun from column C (attached). As students hurl epithets such as "reeky, motley-minded hedge-pig" at each other, they relax with the archaic language. A brief digression on the ultimate non-verbal insult, biting one's thumb, also engages twelve-year olds and helps them make connections with a distant time.
Our discussions of the Globe Theater include the physical layout and the importance of the theater to the common people as well as the upper classes. (The Folger Library gift shop in Washington, D.C. offers an easily assembled kit which students can put together if you want an inexpensive three-dimensional replica.) The popularity of the Globe during Shakespeare's time is evident in the seating capability; Estimates are around 1500 seats in the more expensive, closed gallery area and 800 cheap seats for groundlings. The public outcry when the theaters were closed during the plague reminds us of their importance to the people. The fact that actors were always male also reminds students of the gender barriers of the time.
Before we begin studying the actual play, I give students a schematic outlining the main characters, their relationship with each other, and the conflicts that arise. Shakespeare Set Free, an excellent teaching guide edited by Peggy O'Brien contains such a diagram. I have attached a simplified version based on her drawing. This diagram helps students keep the players straight while reading and also begins our discussion of the plot line. As an anticipatory set, before giving students this diagram, I usually have them write in their journals, responding to a question on conflicts with parents: What would you do if your parent asked you to marry someone who you did not care for? Our earlier readings on marital customs of the Renaissance enriches the subsequent discussion and prepares students for the play diagram.
After this preparation, the class is ready for performance. To get everyone on the right track and reduce anxiety, we begin as a group, slowly acting out and discussing the play though the end of act 2.1. Now we're ready for group performances.
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