robert j
05-25-2009, 11:50 AM
Why Teach Shakespeare?
In my English class we are currently reading about Romeo and Juliet written by Shakespeare. I can’t help but wonder why we have to learn it, and what is so important about it. But I asked a couple questions on a Romeo and Juliet forum to clear things up, and it did! Some of the answers explained how it teaches us a different point of view on English and poetry. The answer that answered my question most successfully was that teaching Shakespeare and his play is just a challenging reading comprehension with questions that make you think. Here are some of the reasons why we should learn Shakespeare and even bother with it in school.
The first reason people fail to realize why Shakespeare needs to be learned is poetry. Most of the play in Romeo and Juliet is written in sonnets! When you read the play you might not realize this but the fact is that Shakespeare put together a story using a poetic language he created himself. So why learn poetry? Poetry is an excellent way to use abstract ideas or bring out your artistic point of view on things. Poetry challenges you to use your vocabulary to the fullest by putting together words that rhyme.
The second reason why we should teach Shakespeare is that it shows us the diversity of English. People don’t like reading Shakespeare because it is too hard to understand or even read. Well that’s really the point of teaching it! It helps you understand what you can do with the English language or even the different types of English. Shakespeare challenges us to study and observe the history of English. It shows us how English came to be what is now and what it used to be. We learn the history of things to make us learn from the mistakes or accomplishments of something like English or WWII. We use this knowledge of history to prevent the same mistakes or to prolong the success of Shakespeare.
The last and foremost reason why we should learn English is we learn how to comprehend a simple story using a complex form of English. A lot of people complain that Romeo and Juliet is too hard to read or understand but no one realizes that’s exactly why we should learn it. Shakespeare’s work allows us to be challenged by our English, even though Shakespeare’s language is almost completely different. We get questions to answer for the story of Romeo and Juliet for reading comprehension. It is so hard because we comprehend a story that is different from our everyday language. Why not have a little challenge in life?
I hope I have answered everyone’s quarrels on why we should teach Shakespeare and what values it brings us. We have to keep in mind that the workings of Shakespeare challenge our English because of their differences. Some history of English is displayed in Shakespeare’s writings and also the diversity of English. If you want to be challenged in the English language, then take part in reading one of Shakespeare’s plays like Romeo and Juliet.
In my English class we are currently reading about Romeo and Juliet written by Shakespeare. I can’t help but wonder why we have to learn it, and what is so important about it. But I asked a couple questions on a Romeo and Juliet forum to clear things up, and it did! Some of the answers explained how it teaches us a different point of view on English and poetry. The answer that answered my question most successfully was that teaching Shakespeare and his play is just a challenging reading comprehension with questions that make you think. Here are some of the reasons why we should learn Shakespeare and even bother with it in school.
The first reason people fail to realize why Shakespeare needs to be learned is poetry. Most of the play in Romeo and Juliet is written in sonnets! When you read the play you might not realize this but the fact is that Shakespeare put together a story using a poetic language he created himself. So why learn poetry? Poetry is an excellent way to use abstract ideas or bring out your artistic point of view on things. Poetry challenges you to use your vocabulary to the fullest by putting together words that rhyme.
The second reason why we should teach Shakespeare is that it shows us the diversity of English. People don’t like reading Shakespeare because it is too hard to understand or even read. Well that’s really the point of teaching it! It helps you understand what you can do with the English language or even the different types of English. Shakespeare challenges us to study and observe the history of English. It shows us how English came to be what is now and what it used to be. We learn the history of things to make us learn from the mistakes or accomplishments of something like English or WWII. We use this knowledge of history to prevent the same mistakes or to prolong the success of Shakespeare.
The last and foremost reason why we should learn English is we learn how to comprehend a simple story using a complex form of English. A lot of people complain that Romeo and Juliet is too hard to read or understand but no one realizes that’s exactly why we should learn it. Shakespeare’s work allows us to be challenged by our English, even though Shakespeare’s language is almost completely different. We get questions to answer for the story of Romeo and Juliet for reading comprehension. It is so hard because we comprehend a story that is different from our everyday language. Why not have a little challenge in life?
I hope I have answered everyone’s quarrels on why we should teach Shakespeare and what values it brings us. We have to keep in mind that the workings of Shakespeare challenge our English because of their differences. Some history of English is displayed in Shakespeare’s writings and also the diversity of English. If you want to be challenged in the English language, then take part in reading one of Shakespeare’s plays like Romeo and Juliet.