ENGL210

Peer Review 2

Peer Review on Anna Castagnella’s blog, “The Shakespeare Room”.

Click HERE to see Anna’s blog!

Hi Anna,
I didn’t realise that Shakespeare had influenced the Lion King, what an interesting fact to include! I definitely agree and felt this same questioning of his relevance previous to undertaking this unit and only realised the beauty of his work once I fully immersed myself in it. I too held a connection with the stain-glass window, he depicts the human condition with such a level of truth.

I love your use of high vocabulary words, also cutting your blog into short paragraphs makes it extremely easy to read! Inserting quotations from Shakespeare’s As you Like It and bolding the role/stage expressed in the window made clear links and cemented your statement.

Overall I think this is a great blog!
Natalie.

Blog Post 3

The Winter’s Tale

Lucia asside

Lucia: Find myself alone, when he leaves to go

on these vast tumultuous roads, my mind

cannot help but to scramble into its

darkest corners. Is he thinking of me?

Or is he contemplating another?

Another woman, beautiful and pale.

Golden hair much more luminous than mine!

Batting pretty eyelashes to shield the

vile truth within her emerald green orbs.

She will claw away his innocent mind!

Till he forgets the shade of mine own eyes!

He will return not as my beloved,

but with false affections for this vile beast!

I will not allow him such betrayal.

Shall I sneak swiftly into his chamber

and suffocate the fire of his deceit

as it sleeps, dreaming of evil emeralds.

Then I have slain the beast before its birth!

O how it wails and screams for my mercy,

and I shall sleep so soundly knowing

he forgets not the colour of my eyes!

Best Eye Makeup for Green Eyes - L'Oréal Paris

(image accessed: https://www.lorealparisusa.com)

Peer Review 1

A review of Veronica’s Blog Post 1, a Hamlet Prose Soliloquy

Access her blog by clicking HERE!

Hi Veronica
I think your prose soliloquy is remarkable! Your repeated use of metaphor is extremely engaging, accompanied by your particular choice of vocabulary, which makes your piece sound quite shakespearian.
Your use of short sentences in the first few lines give the soliloquy an interesting and engaging rhythm, pushing the audience into self reflection. You change this rhythm towards the end of the piece though the use of repetition, reminding me of a passionate rambling of thoughts, which I thought was also incredibly engaging.
I also loved your exploration of the modern issues of 2020 whilst also embedding issues prevalent in the play, such as a questioning of reality and an acknowledgement of the “true self”.
Great work!

Blog Post 2

Visit to the State Library

You cant deny that Shakespeare is an iconic historical figure, however one might question the relevance of Shakespeare to Australian history, and even more so, to modern day Australia. I too questioned this relevance, previous to undergoing this course, and only now do I realise how wrong I was, particularly after my (virtual) visit to the State Library!

Shakespeare was far ahead of his time, exploring a multitude of controversial themes which ranged from explorations of sexuality to challenging current political powers. This forward thinking also extends into his choice of characters, giving voice to the voiceless and underprivileged members of society. Particular examples of these challenges are evident in the development of women and use of racially diverse characters throughout his plays, challenges of which are prevalent in todays society, and therefore, cementing Shakespeare’s relevance to modern Australia.

Shakespeare’s universality is further supported by his exploration of deeply human experiences. The state library presents these experiences in one of their stained glass windows, depicting Act II Scene VII from Shakespeare’s “As You Like It”. The Monologue itself is an incredible representation of human life and its stages, including the “whining school boy” and the “sighing lover”, this imagery embodies both the stages of innocence and lack there of in ones adolescence. The speech also includes an acceptance of our human state as “merely players”, unable to escape fate and the cycles of life which inevitably will end in death.

I was also shocked to uncover that the first Australian rendition of a Shakespearian play was a performance of Henry IV in 1800 in the “Sydney Theatre”. This is particularly amusing as the theatre was built by convicts, the play was performed by convicts and the play itself explores a violent rebellion and political instability!

Furthermore, Shakespeare’s themes were relevant during his time, during Australian settlement and are still relevant today!

https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/blogs/first-shakespeare-performance-australia

Blog Post 1

Write a prose soliloquy in which you are either Hamlet or Ophelia commenting on the world around you in 2020.

As the year trudges on, it becomes harder to find but a moment of beauty in the day to day. The earth feels it too, the calls of birds not chirpy but mournful. At times I feel as though the ground beneath me might crumble and swallow me whole, finally punishing me for my sins. Though our mother does not grant a punishment so easy, instead she aims to erase us completely! She sends fire from the deepest depths of hell, unforgiving it ravages forests and banishes people from their homes, demanding repentance. Yet this is not enough for her, she dreams of a world washed clean and ploughed with new seeds, ones untarnished with hatred and greed. Thus, the water comes crashing at the sound of her call, ferocious floods capable of swallowing cities. Driving fear into the hearts of her children, and yet this is still not enough! Our mother is hungry for remorse, have we not repented enough? She calls forth a plague to fulfil her unending rage, and curses us, her children, with inescapable loneliness. When will we learn the nature of or ways if not now?

Shakespeare and the Renaissance

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William Shakespeare’s works have had a significant and ongoing cultural impact that all professionals working in the fields of dramatic and literary studies need to appreciate. This unit introduces students to some of the literature, art and thought of Renaissance England, and provides opportunity for close interpretative reading of dramatic and poetic texts. The aim of the unit is to examine the work of William
Shakespeare, from his poetry and early plays to the plays of his maturity. The unit also explores the work of Shakespeare’s contemporaries. The dramatists and poets of Elizabethan and Jacobean England will be explored to help students understand the traditions and contentions of the time. Students will also learn about the continuing influence of Shakespeare’s works today. The aim of this unit is to familiarise students with Shakespearean language and to develop close readings of the work of Renaissance writers through considering the context of origin as well as the detail of the text.

2020