Commentary 11/21/15 #2

Shakespeare is one of, if not the most, recognizable names in literature. His plays are beloved by millions of people. And yet, he is also the most widely feared name among high school and even college students. The second video discusses this problem and comes with an interesting conclusion. The video successfully argues that the problem lies with the teachers and not with the Bard's plays themselves. Shakespeare's plays are very relatable, as the video says. He makes statements that, although they can be hard to understand at first, become clear and true upon further inspection. For example, the video gives a statement made by Lady Macbeth. Upon her husband expressing his fear of failure, Lady Macbeth states, in a somewhat odd manner, that if Macbeth is confident he will not fail then he will not fail. Any athlete today can relate to Lady Macbeth's statement. Nearly every high school coach tells their athletes at one point or another that one of the keys to success is believing in oneself. Shakespeare's plays are full of these little phrases, so why is it that students have such a hard time relating to his characters. One of the reasons, as implied by the video, is that many teachers are too rigid in their interpretation of Shakespeare. If they would just let their students come up with their own ideas, the students would probably find themselves enjoying his works much more than they do. This idea is not limited to Shakespeare, it can be applied to reading any work of literature. I find that when I am forced to see the book not as how I would make it, but how the teacher sees it, then I do not enjoy the book nearly as much as I would if I were to read it independently of school. As the great Mr. Miyagi once said, "No such thing as bad student. Only bad teacher."