Now that you've learned much about Shakespeare, his milieu, his innovations and how he has influenced much of our language and culture today, what do you find
most interesting about Shakespeare and why? If you still don't find Shakespeare interesting, explain why.
I find this fact very interesting: that his style of writing, specifically using homonyms as synonyms, when used today, will result to a paper written poorly, yet we still look very highly to him and his works. Say for example I say "We cell pancakes," instead of "We sell pancakes." Surely the first one would look like a sentence written by a poorly educated person. But that's the point, Shakespeare wrote that way. I also find that his unique usage of words, which resulted to the extreme enrichment of the English language, interesting. Now I wonder, if I started to use my invented word "car," which means to ride a car to go to another place, would it also be added to the English language in the future? -Jamie Mae Sim, Section P
ReplyDeleteUndeniably, William Shakespeare is one of the most popular and influential individuals ever existed in the history due to his numerous contributions not only in language and literature but also in other aspects of human life. For me, what is more remarkable about this man lies on how he managed to keep focused on his works despite his various occupations since as we all know, Shakespeare was a theater actor, poet, playwright and a businessman in some point of his life. Perhaps, while he was writing his plays and poems, he was also practicing his profession as a performer. Furthermore, he was running a theater company while conducting his own social career and family life. Isn’t it astounding how he stayed on track during those times and still be able to craft superb masterpieces including around thirty-eight plays and one hundred fifty-four sonnets? Oh, what an astonishing and exceptional human being he must have been!:)
ReplyDelete-Romy O. Robielos II, 2-BS MIS, Lit14-P
The most interesting fact about Shakespeare is his influence to the English language. Just think of this: he invented a staggering 3000 words to be added to our English language and made many of the everyday expressions we use almost if not every day. Maybe without Shakespeare’s influence, there just might not be enough words to express our thoughts and feelings into words that can be read, heard and understood by other people. To invent this much words is already a feat itself but to stand up and let other people know of your innovation and be recognized by the people of his time up until now is what makes William Shakespeare one of the greatest man the English Literature world has ever seen. (- John Vincent Lorenzo, Lit 14 Section P)
ReplyDeleteI find Shakespeare interesting because even in the midst of all the changes during the Elizabethan Era, he still managed to stay with the flow. His innovations were what made English great - albeit, the people during his time found his works strange but now, we know that that was the change it needed.
ReplyDeleteHe could've just let English as it is but he chose to do something about it. What the Philippines needs is a Shakespeare, someone who will uphold Filipino to greater heights.
Without Shakespeare, we might not be studying English now. Even more, we might not even speak the language.
-John Philemon Wong, II BS ME, Lit14P
What interested me the most about Shakespeare is the ability of his works to transcend time. Aside from having lyrical beauty and three-dimensional characters, his works cover a wide range of moral concerns. In his tragedy Othello, he reveals his concerns regarding one's race and social status, which is very essential especially with the recent inauguration of America's first Black president. In his other tragedy Macbeth, he tackles the now undying issue of corruption of those in power.
ReplyDeleteThus until now, a lot of individuals can still relate with Shakespeare's works. No matter what time or age one belongs to, Shakespeare's works will forever be a relevant piece of art.
- Melissa Manay, Lit14-P
What made me really interested in Shakespeare is his creative way of thinking. He moved away from the traditional way of writing from before, and made innovations of his own which made the people like his works and some of it were even used as inspirations by other writers.
ReplyDeleteNot only in the way of writing but also the English language itself was changed by Shakespeare by introducing new words, changed the spelling, changed the grammar and many many more which affected the English language being used today.
Truly, Shakespeare is a historical man who is very much interesting and is worth learning from.
-Lu Emil Tabel
Section P
The English language was formerly considered a second-class language due to its limited vocabulary. French and Latin, on the other hand, were of a higher status. With that said, I find it fascinating that Shakespeare chose to write in English instead of writing in, say, French and make his literature available to a larger (international) market. More so, he was one of the writers who sparked the transformation of the language, from second-class, to a more mainstream language; he further developed the English language through borrowing, adapting or inventing words based on other languages. Definitely, his 'inventing' of words contributed a lot to making English the main language used in today’s society.
ReplyDelete-Hans Yu, Lit14 P
I find that debates of Shakespeare’s personality and identity are interesting. First of all, the fact that some people believe him to be non-existent is quite intriguing because discoveries of different paintings and artifacts have been made to prove his existence. Second, saying that another writer is Shakespeare and the name Shakespeare is just a pen name is, for me, hilarious due to the fact that people during his time liked to be in the spotlight, and they liked to be famous. If they used a name William Shakespeare to show the works, they themselves wouldn’t become famous. Lastly, the debate on his sexuality is in a way, irrelevant and a waste of time because he known for his plays poems etc. and his sexuality is, in a way, something that shouldn’t be looked upon too much.
ReplyDelete-Russel Corral, Lit14 P
What makes Shakespeare interesting is that he wrote his works in an unconventional way yet his works were recognized all over the world. He manipulated the structure of sentences and invented a lot of words. He may have played with the use of language but this helped shape the English language. He broke many sonnet rules and introduced a lot of themes like female empowerment. He used female characters that had a greater degree of autonomy and personal power and these are the characters people back then would not expect in their patriarchal society. What makes him more interesting is that he did not only influence the English language but he inspired a lot of writers and readers.
ReplyDelete-Ryan Sibbaluca, Section P
One of the interesting things about Shakespeare is that he knew something that we are increasingly loath to knowledge. There is no technical fix for the problems of humanity.
ReplyDeleteThose problems, he knew, are ineradicably rooted in our nature. Take as a test, Macbeth, the shortest of his tragedies which is a study of ambition, the evil to which ambition leads when unrestrained by ethical inhibition, and the logic of evil once an evil course has been embarked upon. All that is necessary to understand the play is to be human.
For me this is interesting because if we attend to Shakespeare's plays closely, we shall have a deeper appreciation of ourselves than if we read all the philosophy, sociology or biology books.
Sarah Candido- Lit14 P
The fact that he did not formally graduate from a University but rather only had education in a local grammar school in Stratford is an interesting background detail about Shakespeare, being one of the most influential contributors in the English language. His input of innovations in English including rhyme scheme, spelling, diction, and pronunciation of words has been used throughout time until today and has actually been the ground for the formation of modern and colloquial words and expressions. Moreover, his plays, specifically the plots he used, are continuously employed inspirations for contemporary films and songs. These amazing facts make me think of what edge Shakespeare has over other writers of his time that has certainly brought about a great impact to the Universal language we use today. I am intrigued and interested with the thought that a man who did not take up any literary degree in a University has employed a greater skill in writing from mere experience and experimentation of elements.
ReplyDeleteMa. Angelica Anne M. Tangco - Lit 14 P
For me, the most fascinating fact about Shakespeare is that his works are able to stand through time. Even though his works are full of invented words and the English language which Shakespeare used, compared to the one we use today, is significantly different, the people in our era continually use his work for teaching purposes. Though 400 years have passed, and the forms and styles of writing have already changed, writers still use Shakespeare's writings for their inspirational material. The plays and the sonnets of Shakespeare are truly incredible. I believe, without Shakespeare's works, writing would not be much appreciated as it is now.
ReplyDeleteKristofer Benedict Chua -LIT14-P
One thing that I found interesting about Shakespare is that, at some point, he has really influenced on our literature and culture today. It is interesting to know that some phrases like "sweets for my sweets," although they mean differently now, actually came from Shakespeare. Likewise, I read from a feature article that Shakespeare's plays ,for instance A Midsummer Night's Dream, had changed our notion of faries today which I really found intersting because I never thought that faries before were not known to be tiny and that they were not known to have wings. It is really interseting to know that despite the fact that many are doubting his sexuality or personality, the point is that he has indeed influenced our literature and culture today.
ReplyDelete- CAMILLE T. KOA, SECTION P
I find Shakespeare's life interesting much more than i like his works. So much so because it's incomplete. How can it even be completed if people think 'William Shakespeare' is just a pen name to a guy named Christopher Marlowe? Assuming that he does exist, people still don't know what he really looked like. His whole life is a mystery. That's what makes William Shakespeare's life fascinating.
ReplyDeleteChester Lorenz Chacon - Lit 14 -P
For me, I like how Shakespeare and his works became a huge influence on today's pop culture. I wasn't much a fan of his work until i found out that my favorite movie, 10 things I hate about you, is inspired by his play, The Taming Of The Shrew. I like the fact that his works influence songs such as "Love Story" and Films such as "She's the Man" on top of the fact that his work is brilliant on his own. It also amazed me that a lot of what he wrote we say nowadays such as "Friends, Romans, Countrymen" which I would hear everyday back in highschool. But mainly, what I like most about Shakespeare is the fact that he is just one man but he got to make such a huge mark in the world.
ReplyDelete-Terese Miranda, Section P
Aside from his works,it's his sexuality that really intrigues me. It is evident that some of his works like Sonnet 20 and Twelfth Night have "homosexual touch." If one can prove that he's homosexual, it would be easy to say that some of Shakespeare's works are influenced by his being gay. On the other hand, I find it interesting that a lot of people are throwing accusations to him. For me, it it an evidence that Shakespeare was one of the greatest of his time that a lot of people were trying to put him down.
ReplyDelete-Sydney Dondon, Lit14-P
The most interesting thing that I learned during our discussion about Shakespeare is the controversies on his authorship and existence. I was fascinated by these because these never crossed into my mind until we discussed these in class. Since then, I began to wonder, what if Shakespeare didn’t really write his works or what if the Shakespeare that we know was mistaken as the “other Shakespeare” back then. If one day, these speculations will be proven true, many questions and problems will surely arise. How will these make a difference in our views specifically towards literature today? How will these affect the image of the Shakespeare that we know? How are we going to accept these facts since we have known Shakespeare for quite a long time?
ReplyDeleteWhichever is true or not, the thing is that without Shakespeare, our knowledge on literature won't be as rich as we have today.
- Joan Carla Sy, Lit 14-P
I really admire Shakespeare for his innovations and influence to the English language. It's really amazing how he invented 3000 words which we regularly use today. Only someone as great as Shakespeare would be able to invent words that would be easily accepted by the common people into the English language. This shows the great respect people have for him and how important he really is in our lives today.This may also be one of the many reasons why there is a need for us to learn about him.
ReplyDelete-Cu, Schevenard
Lit14, Section P
Having read some of Shakespeare’s plays and watched interpretations of his works in films, I find his ability to use his vast knowledge of different human experiences and behaviours successfully in his works most interesting. As discussed in class, Shakespeare has contributed a lot in language in terms of vocabulary and use of words, and also in literature through his various plays and sonnets. With these facts, I think that he has truly maximized his intelligence to its full potential and has gone beyond what his education has given him through the variety of his works and its individual achievement in world literature. Having read some of Shakespeare’s works, I have grown to like several yet different kinds of his works such as Romeo and Juliet (youthful love), Macbeth (man torn between will and intellect), and The Tempest(a man who sought revenge through magical powers). Through these works of Shakespeare, I think that Shakespeare’s audience will only continue to grow because of his ability to capture human experiences and behaviours at the top of his art. His craft, to have victoriously captured a diverse audience just shows he is a writer for every man.
ReplyDelete-Izzabella B. Perez, Sec P
I like intrigues so the intrigues about him really caught my attention. But honestly, I've wondered what is the point of studying the life of shakespeare, the intrigues about him and his other professions when all we wanted to understand is the masterpieces he has written. But, as i got a taste of "the shakespearean life", i was able to heighten my interest in reading his words. It's like I understand his words more easily now because i know he wrote his plays with the thinking of a middle class individual in Stratford-upon-Avon in England. And so what i will do is put myself in the feet of a middle class british man and see the issues behind every text with clearer eyes. All in all, his life story and intrigues captured me into reading his words.
ReplyDelete-Camille Jacinto, Section P
Rarely do we see a man with so many controversies surround his entire life, as well as the works he made. The overwhelming number of issues with regards to William Shakespeare is astonishing and I consider this his most interesting feature. If you google "Shakespeare Controversy," you would be surprised to see over a million related pages. It is amazingly undeniable that due to Shakespeare's numerous controversies, men of all ages have stirred and imagined about the different spectacles of his life background. Up until now, we have yet to understand the whole picture and we still continue to speculate about the facts of his life, and I think we will never really know what they really are.
ReplyDeleteZamora, Ivan
Probably what I find most interesting about Shakespeare are his works, how they are able to withstand the test of time, how they are able to relate to people and how they are continuously appreciated. Having been created about four centuries ago, it's interesting how these plays, poems and sonnets are still very alive in English Literature unlike others that may have faded away. Even with all the rising writers, still, Shakespeare is unforgotten in his field. His formality and use of language, being very different from that used today is still appreciated and is probably even looked up at. Although he made them in the 1600's, the stories of his plays can still be related to, even by today's generation. Some of the youth have some lines memorized or are familiar with those lines of Shakespeare's plays. Such line could be "To be or not to be, that is the question.." or the classic "Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?.." This does not merely apply to his plays, but even his sonnets, with lines such as "Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments.." Seeing how appreciated his works are give you a hint of how great or amazing the man was.
ReplyDeleteThese only shows how his works are part of the lives of people even now, years, centuries after he has died. This goes to show that although he Shakespeare has died, his works never will. That's what I find most interesting.
Grace Gana
Lit 14 P
Shakespeare was a brilliant and successful man who wrote 37 plays and 154 sonnets. What caught my attention the most is that we know so much about his plays, sonnets and other works but hardly anything about his life. His works are translated world-wide and taught in schools globally but simple things such as his birthday or how he died still remain questionable. When you look through or research about his life, there would be a couple of years which were considered as gaps because no one knew where he went or what he did.
ReplyDeleteIt is certainly interesting to see that his works are one of the most popular classics today but no one knows for sure who the brilliant man behind the pen was. He is truly a man known for his works and contributions to drama and the English language and not his life or how he lived.
Desiree M. Fadri, Lit 14-P
It is not doubt that Shakespeare is one of the most innovative writer of all time. In my opinion on the topic of Shakespeare what made him really interesting was that he was able to achieve so much in such a small life span to such a point that people even doubt that such a man cannot accomplish such what he has done. It was said that he made 37 plays and 154 sonnets but by my knowledge I seem to recall that a fire occurred in the Globe Theatre wherein alot of his works were lost. Safely assuming that Shakespeare had done more plays and sonnets. That the things we know that Shakespeare made may just be a fraction of his total works for his works were not totally proven to be complete.
ReplyDeleteShakespeare without the controversies would have to be one the the greatest men that had ever lived. For he was not only able to transcend his works through time but was able to achieve the unthinkable. He was able to achieve a state wherein his works were too good for one man to have made them all. In such a case we can only say that Shakespeare has achieve what many have tried to do which is to break human limitations and bring it to a different level.
Daryl Royce M. Tanrena
Lit 14-P
What I liked the most about Shakespeare is that he did not stick with the status quo of his time. He wrote his plays freely and without any restrictions hence paving way to his innovations or new discoveries and contributions to both the English language and literature. Aside from that, it also served as a great insight about life that until now his works are considered didactic and a worthy piece of art. This brilliant man is really laudable since he made his efforts to be able to make a difference in the society he was in and create a great impact to the world considering he did not have much education and is only a simple playwright, actor and schoolmaster. With his urge to break the stereotype, he was able to produce excellence resulting to his many contributions to our lives today and ignite the torch of people of his time up to our time to do the best that we can. I firmly believe that we are all asked and tasked to create a big impact in this world so I applaud and salute him for being able to breakaway by not going with the flow and the dictate of the society. Great intelligence, perseverance and uniqueness. That is what William Shakespeare is made of.
ReplyDeleteJohn ALbert M.Bonifacio II-BS LM section P
I've always found Shakespeare interesting because of his written works, plays, and sonnets that contribute a lot to our literature today. With our discussion about Shakespeare, I find his biography very interesting because his life wasn't really recorded on paper and no one knows for sure what really happened in his life, how he became a poet and actor, and how he knew so much about things like the Law, Military, and Language or Vocabulary which he used in his written works and plays.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing that interested me more about Shakespeare is how creative he is in his thinking and writing. In my opinion, his works are fascinating and really original. Reading his written works like Hamlet and Macbeth made me appreciate him even more.
Nowadays, people still debate on whether he is a real person or just a pen name used by another author(s), whether he really wrote all those plays and sonnets. And if he is real, Shakespeare has contributed a lot to the world of literature, theater, arts, and language, but if he is not, then who was it that contributed all this. Without Shakespeare, the world of literature as we know it now may not even exist.
Tan, Ariadne Sharla
ID# 083694
Lit14 - P
Perhaps Shakespeare never wrote anything of heroic and noble proportions. Unlike other celebrated writers, he went on to become the greatest writer/playwright/literary figure of all time without writing for the cause of independence, nor for justice, nor religion, nor anything that may have captured the easy admiration of idealists and romantics. Not that I contradict these noble causes, but it just amazes me how Shakespeare wrote the best literary works without these heroic inspirations. He simply wrote for the stage, and for the crowd of mixed social backgrounds that somehow symbolized the world itself.
ReplyDeleteHe may have just wanted to entertain the world, and show us how he sees and understands life as it is. Interestingly, his ideas transcended time, and this only confirms the truth of his wisdom.
He understood, and time has proven him right, "All the world's a stage. And all the men and women merely players."
-Villejo, Erwin Dee J.
Section P
Shakespeare had many techniques and innovations in writing his works that sparked my interest. His usage of puns in this lifetime would be a grave mistake, but the opposite has happened. Why he inserted extra phrases in short sentences made me think. Was this his way of showing that the English language has a vast range of words, or his way of telling people that he is an intelligent man and he has a wide vocabulary? He was brave and crazy enough to invent more than 3,000 words. Someone in their right mind wouldn’t do that in fear of people not reading their works because readers wouldn’t understand it at all.
ReplyDeleteShakespeare was an inventor (a contributor to the English language), a playwright, a poet, an actor, and a businessman. With all the controversies surrounding him even after 400 years, how can a man of that stature be not interesting?
Dianne Laurice Tan 083710
Lit14 P
The most interesting, and somewhat ironic thing about Shakespeare for me is the way, either intentionally or coincidentally, he has turned his entire life into a play.
ReplyDeleteHis life has its own colorful characters, consisting of protagonists and antagonists. Anne, the 3 children, his parents, and the master playwright himself serve as the protagonists while countless others serve as the antagonists, who wish to tarnish Shakespeare’s name. His life has its own setting (Britain), its own spectacle (the globe theater), and its own dramatic plot (from his humble beginning to his dramatic departure, and everything in between), not to mention it is also shrouded in mystery (he has no definite biography nor proof of existence), and off course, its own conflict (Shakespeare against the numerous controversies and doubts), as if written by the Bard himself.
Unknown to Shakespeare, his greatest, most influential and most appreciated work is his own life. Throughout his life, Shakespeare has written pages of our history, most notable is his effort of turning English into a first class language.
Shakespeare, the same way that he has written his masterful sonnets, has written history, the history of literature, through his life and his works. And just like the spectators at the Globe Theater, all the people have to do is to watch, learn, and appreciate the life of the greatest playwright in history, the same way we appreciate his plays.
And if it wasn’t for Shakespeare, this post would’ve been written in Latin.
Cordero, Camilo Jr. J.
Lit 14 section P