The Impact of Shakespeare

The Impact of Shakespeare on Teachers and Students

Photo Credit:  eaglebrook via flickr

"Rediscover Shakespeare and rediscover enthusiasm for the written word."  This call to action by blogger Heather Wolpert-Gawron challenges teachers to re-envision Shakespeare in a way that brings his writing to life for any age.

Beginning with an admission that Shakespeare's writing is sexier than E.L. James and more violent than Quentin Tarantino, Wolpert-Gawron speaks to the timelessness of Shakespeare's themes and the appeal his work might have on a modern audience.

She points to her own love affair with The Bard and cites lines from Henry IV which helped her to find herself and make better choices in her life.  The author went on to study Shakespeare in London, even earning a role in a production of Macbeth before an emergency appendectomy sidelined her on the eve of the performance.  She blames the legendary curse of uttering the play's title on set as her own mistake.

Wolpert-Gawron laments the fact that Shakespeare has a "bad rap" in high schools, and the claim that his writing is best reserved for older students.  She argues instead that Shakespeare's words open doors to literature for students of all age, and that those words are more accessible than we give them credit for.  Later, the author reveals the connection between Shakespeare's plays and other content areas, such as science, history, and math/business.

I have taught Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Julius Caesar, Macbeth, and A Midsummer Night's Dream during my career, and each play had a brilliant message, ironic plot twists, well-drawn characters, and clever word play.  The genius of Shakespeare is undeniable, and the potential of changing his plays to suit a modern audience is something Shakespeare would have embraced, I think.  My high school performed A Midsummer Night's Dream last fall, and the story's setting was updated to the 1960s.  A clever and unique interpretation that totally worked.  And therein lies the point.  Wolpert-Gawron says that we need to rediscover Shakespeare and make his writing relevant and exciting for 21st century students.