It was that one dark day in English I, where the teacher announced that today you would begin Romeo and Juliet. From that day on the slightest mention of Shakespeare would make you cringe, but after reading some of the strategies that I use every time I read Shakespeare you will no longer suffer from the tragic side effects of Romeo and Juliet.
1. Don't read line by line. We are all aware of the format that Shakespeare's plays have: numbered lines. With this in mind we might be tempted to have to decipher every line and that's where we make our first mistake. Going down that path will only lead to pain and frustration, but if we read it for the big picture then we are more likely to develop a better understanding for the material. This can be done a few different ways: page by page, scene by scene or event by event. In all honesty, the choice is all yours because we all comprehend differently and at different speeds, but it is very important that we don't try and tackle the whole play without out pauses or dissect every word.
2. Context clues are a heaven sent. Way back when we were taught to use context clues to figure out the meaning of a particular word and it worked perfectly back then and is a nice tool for reading Shakespeare. This strategy is an easy way for you to really understand what you’re reading and is a very resourceful technique when you hit a rough patch. Although some versions provide you with footnotes that provide you with the definition of a lot of the words, there seems to be moments where the word you need to know isn’t included. Having this skill is very important and helpful when you try and dive into one of Shakespeare’s plays.
3. Reread and then do it again. One time is never enough when it comes to Shakespeare. To be honest, there is no way you will be able to just pick up on of his plays on a relaxing summer day and read it within a few hours. To comprehend what is actually taking place in the play will take time and multiple rereads. You can do this a few different ways, but I highly recommend doing it per events. Once you read through and event, I suggest you go back through it a couple of times to really understand the material. The more you reread the easier it will become to read through other scenes. In addition to rereading events or scenes, I also would recommend rereading monologues and soliloquies because an abundance of information tends to lie beneath the fancy words and many lines.
4. Be resourceful. With today’s technology you have no limit. There are so many options out there that are perfect for helping you understand Shakespeare better.
1. Don't read line by line. We are all aware of the format that Shakespeare's plays have: numbered lines. With this in mind we might be tempted to have to decipher every line and that's where we make our first mistake. Going down that path will only lead to pain and frustration, but if we read it for the big picture then we are more likely to develop a better understanding for the material. This can be done a few different ways: page by page, scene by scene or event by event. In all honesty, the choice is all yours because we all comprehend differently and at different speeds, but it is very important that we don't try and tackle the whole play without out pauses or dissect every word.
2. Context clues are a heaven sent. Way back when we were taught to use context clues to figure out the meaning of a particular word and it worked perfectly back then and is a nice tool for reading Shakespeare. This strategy is an easy way for you to really understand what you’re reading and is a very resourceful technique when you hit a rough patch. Although some versions provide you with footnotes that provide you with the definition of a lot of the words, there seems to be moments where the word you need to know isn’t included. Having this skill is very important and helpful when you try and dive into one of Shakespeare’s plays.
3. Reread and then do it again. One time is never enough when it comes to Shakespeare. To be honest, there is no way you will be able to just pick up on of his plays on a relaxing summer day and read it within a few hours. To comprehend what is actually taking place in the play will take time and multiple rereads. You can do this a few different ways, but I highly recommend doing it per events. Once you read through and event, I suggest you go back through it a couple of times to really understand the material. The more you reread the easier it will become to read through other scenes. In addition to rereading events or scenes, I also would recommend rereading monologues and soliloquies because an abundance of information tends to lie beneath the fancy words and many lines.
4. Be resourceful. With today’s technology you have no limit. There are so many options out there that are perfect for helping you understand Shakespeare better.
- Auditory: While reading to yourself, you tend to read in a very monotone voice which could cause you to confuse some of the characters. To fix this problem, there are a many videos out there where they read the plays aloud with different voices assigned to the role. With this as an option, you are able to assign different voices to the roles, which help differentiate between the characters.
- Visual: It can be hard to visualize the actions performed within a scene and that can cause a lot of confusion and frustration. Luckily, there have been a few movies made of Shakespeare’s plays and depending how the director chooses to interpret the scene can help you get a grip on what is actually going on. With this approach I would highly recommend watching a few different versions for comparison.