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There’s going to come a time where \u00a0you will find yourself in class discussing a Shakespeare play you haven’t actually \u00a0read. Perhaps you didn’t quite understand the syllabus, or perhaps you were up \u00a0all night binge-watching The Great British Bake-Off<\/em>, in which case who can blame you?<\/p>\n The good news is that Shakespeare’s works have plenty of overlapping themes and ideas, so if you pose one of the following questions in class, it’ll have at least a 73% chance of being relevant to the discussion:<\/p>\n 1. What dramatic function do the pirates serve?<\/p>\n 2. Can you explain that double entendre? I’m pretty sure it’s sexual \u00a0but I’m not sure how.<\/p>\n 3. To what extent could you say that [character]’s cause of death was “poor communication”?<\/p>\n 4. How does the Protestant Reformation factor into all of this?<\/p>\n 5. What does the king’s fool reveal \u00a0about society as a whole?<\/p>\n 6. How could that disguise possibly work?<\/p>\n 7. What’s the significance of this really abrupt ghost?<\/p>\n 8. Why is [male character] constantly plagued by thoughts of female infidelity? Did he have any thoughts other than “MY WIFE BETTER NOT BE CHEATING ON ME”?<\/p>\n 9. What does \u00a0[hilarious \u00a0comic relief character] reveal about humanity’s inexorable march into the void?<\/p>\n 10. Can you explain what malapropism is and why it was funny? Like, I definitely understand everything I’m reading here. I’m just saying if I DIDN’T understand, how would you explain it?<\/p>\n 11. Why does [character] have a name that conflicts with their setting or background?<\/p>\n 12. Why do I get the feeling that every character who possesses even a single ounce of hubris is clearly marked for death?<\/p>\n 13. Was that an anachronism, or am I crazy?<\/p>\n 14. Does at least one person have to be plotting the death of a king at any given time? Like is that a rule?<\/p>\n 15. How do the themes in this play reflect widespread fears concerning the line of succession to the English throne?<\/p>\n 16. What the actual hell is a \u201cbed trick\u201d and why was this an acceptable way to solve problems?<\/p>\n 17. How does the wedding at the end speak to gender politics of the day?<\/p>\n 18. To what extent is that bawdy joke actually a form of social and political commentary?<\/p>\n 19. What are the chances that [character]’s prophetic dream will soon take on a grim sort of significance?<\/p>\n 20. What does the play suggest \u00a0about the Tudor dynasty (other than the fact that it’s clearly the best English dynasty, just in case Elizabeth I is watching)?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There’s going to come a time where \u00a0you will find yourself in class discussing a Shakespeare play you haven’t actually \u00a0read. Perhaps you didn’t quite understand the syllabus, or perhaps you were up \u00a0all night continue reading<\/span>