Unpopular Literary Opinions

[chonies]

Love it, Queena! I don't read Dan Brown, but I had a similar experience in grad school--the Far Pavilions by M. M. Kaye explained kinship and genealogy practices of certain tribes in a page and a half, more succinctly than the ethnography I had to read about the topic.

[narm]

Here's what I have realized about myself: when I was fairly young, like ten-ish or so, I really loved Romeo and Juliet. My parents bought me a copy and all that. That was about three (gulp) decades ago and I am over the R&J story, and in fact a little annoyed by it. Other than that, I just am incapable of giving less of a shit about Shakespeare. I know folks looooooove him (obviously) but I was considering books I "should" read (for enjoyment, edification, and just basic knowledge) and I came to the executive decision that I will NOT be re-visiting him. And instead of feeling bad about this, I will revel in books I do love and quickly dismiss anything that makes me yawny.

Flame away, Bill S. fans. I don't disparage anyone that does love him! It just is not for me. Ever.

[batmom]

I've always called Romeo and Juliet "two idiots in love". Never cared for the story. I know Shakespeare's whole thing with his tragedy is that the hero is brought down by their own mistakes, but I just can't with those two dummies.

[ratscabies]

If you had written it like this:

"So flame away, Bill Shakespeare fans. I don't disparage anyone that doth love him! It just is not for me!"


It would be more iambic pentametery. And the gratuitous "doth" make it sound pretentiously Shakespearean.

I'll show myself out...

[Kaleidoscope Eyes]

In all my years in theatre circles, most of the people I know think of Romeo and Juliet as two overly-dramatic, angsty teens being well...just angsty teens with fatal consequences. I don't know anyone who really sees their story as the love story to end all love stories. Now Mercutio and Romeo, OTOH? That's a different story. A lot of people seem to think the real love story is between these two, but it's been so long since I've read it, I don't have an opinion on that.

True Confession: I don't care for Shakespeare even though I've had to teach his work in intro to theatre classes. At this point, I've accepted that I'll never like him and I don't apologize for it. Back in his day, his stuff was considered popular entertainment instead of the vaunted, dramatic literary genius he's seen as today. I honestly don't see his work as better or worse than other forms of popular storytelling; it's all the same story whether it's in the form of a pop song, a novel, a sitcom, a movie, etc. And yes, I realize it's a bit ironic to say I don't like him and yet I'm really intrigued when Eminem does the same thing. I guess for me it's all about the medium.

[Mutagen]

In high school English class I wrote a paper blaming the entire Romeo & Juliet tragedy on Benvolio, which I guess was my passive-aggressive way of saying it was kind of stupid.

My unpopular Shakespeare opinion is that Hamlet is overrated. Most of the other tragedies, R&J excepted, are way more interesting to me.

[Deleted]

This thread dost tear mine heart asunder. Oh woe.
Thus spake the English literature major who hath
studied the Bard in not one, nay,
twas two courses in college.

But seriously, Shakespeare is not meant to be read quietly to oneself. It's meant to be performed. It's much better that way. I just saw a production of The Tempest co-adapted by Teller and using actual magic tricks and Tom Wait songs. It was so so good. Much better than when we read it in high school.

I don't know anyone who really sees their story as the love story to end all love stories.

Taylor Swift does, or she did when she wrote that idiotic "Love Story" song anyway. I've known far too many people who think that R&J is OMG so romantic!!1!1! As I like to say, there's a reason it's filed with the tragedies in all the anthologies and not the romances.

[chonies]

After reading everyone's comments, I am so grateful to my English teachers: the one who showed us the Zeffirelli R&J and pointed out how they were super young, the one who helped us stage As You Like It (hilarious), and the one who led us through both Othello and King Lear, neither of which I can even think about without getting a shiver.

I know liking Shakespeare is kind of expected, but I do. However, I wasn't an English or theatre major, and my appreciation for it is probably because I don't feel obliged to. I love the wit and the characters, and I love that it was popular entertainment that somehow became the n'est plus ultra of the Englysshe Langwedge. I'm interested passively in the discussion about the meaning of Shakespeare's true identity. I am kind of amazed that a few plays are known but not known to exist.

And repping for my anthropological people, this is my favorite take on Hamlet: Shakespeare in the bush.

Excerpt:

I took a deep breath and began again. “The son Hamlet was very sad because his mother had married again so quickly. There was no need for her to do so, and it is our custom for a widow not to go to her next husband until she has mourned for two years.”

“Two years is too long,” objected the wife, who had appeared with the old man’s battered goatskin bag. “Who will hoe your farms for you while you have no husband?”

[chiqui]

Now Mercutio and Romeo, OTOH? That's a different story. A lot of people seem to think the real love story is between these two, but it's been so long since I've read it, I don't have an opinion on that.

This sounds like bust-up literary fanfic.

[Kaleidoscope Eyes]

Doesn't it, Chiqui? That's some fan fiction I'd love to delve into. ;-)

I guess the reason I'm not enamored with Shakespeare is, much like Chonies pointed out, as a theatre person, I felt compelled to like him even before I could form my own opinion. I do like the Greeks though, and the same rule would seem to apply, so go figure.

I definitely agree that Shakespeare is meant for the stage and not the page (as is the case with all plays) and I actually can enjoy watching some performances whether it's a classical take or something more contemporary. For example, I'll always want to see King Lear, Hamlet, and MacBeth if for no other reason than the fun of comparing and contrasting the different styles and concepts I've seen in various productions.

ETA: Some of my vehement opposition to Shakespeare probably comes from the time in grad school when I had to read three Shakespeare plays a week, write papers each week on them, and this was after interning at a theatre company for 50 hours a week. And the class was at 8am on a Saturday morning at the end of said work week. So yeah, maybe that has something to do with it too. I never saw Shakespeare the same way again.

And for some odd reason, I remember loving Edward II and I can't remember why or what's it about without googling for a quick plot synopsis.