Does Shakespeare need to be "translated" to modern... - Page 8

ALRATIBA · ‎07-15-2016

@Noel7 wrote:
@ALRATIBA

It's already been translated to modern English, also. One outstanding example was mentioned earlier on this line. Oregon has a Shakespeare fest every year, DH and I went several years ago, and a couple of years ago they had their experts work on translating it to modern English, and performed that way.

It has also been translated into modern rap, much like that used in the already famous play, Hamilton.

@Noel7

Wow! Hope that doesn't catch on.

RainCityWoman · ‎06-16-2015

@ALRATIBA wrote:
@Noel7 wrote:
@ALRATIBA

It's already been translated to modern English, also. One outstanding example was mentioned earlier on this line. Oregon has a Shakespeare fest every year, DH and I went several years ago, and a couple of years ago they had their experts work on translating it to modern English, and performed that way.

It has also been translated into modern rap, much like that used in the already famous play, Hamilton.
@Noel7

Wow! Hope that doesn't catch on.

I always had my students read it as it was written, but one of their cooperative learning assignments was to have each group take a specified scene from the play and rewrite and present it in modern slang. They did well, and the results were hilarious. For instance, the scene in Macbeth where at the banquet Macbeth tries to make a speech and he keeps seeing the ghost of Banquo, and he talks to it while his thanes think he's crazy. What they did to that scene was amazing, and each class through the years borrowed new slang and TV lines that fit in perfectly.

RainCityWoman · ‎06-16-2015

@jaxs mom wrote:
@RainCityWoman wrote:
@Noel7 wrote:
@faeriemoon wrote:
There are pros and cons to this subject. About a year ago I would have said, "Don't mess with Shakespeare!!!!". However, my son now teaches sixth grade in a rough inner city school. If he ever wanted to introduce Shakespeare to his class it would have to be diluted, modified and "translated". Obviously the purists among us would hate this, but if left as is, there will always be a group of people who will never even get to dip their toes in the Shakespeare pool.

I would never mess with it at the university level, but there are applications for "translated" Shakespeare.
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ITA @faeriemoon

Especially since so many of the original words have changed in meaning and don't mean what most of us assume they mean.
Shakespeare in my opinion should not be introduced till high school. That's what is done in my state. It would be lost on grade school kids, plus there are themes in the story lines that would not be understood by youngsters. There are plenty of selections available for grade schoolers that their teachers shouldn't be using high school curriculum selections. It makes as much sense as having grade schoolers read Oedipus.
I don't at all agree with this. I loved Shakespeare when I had it in seventh grade. Although my class was an elective so those of us there wanted to be.

You don't have to agree. I think it's wonderful that you enjoyed it as a 7th grader. I am in agreement with my state's high school curriculum, and I taught in this state for 30 years. The Shakespeare unit was always my favorite one, besides Arthurian Legends. I just feel that High School is the best place to introduce it through poetry, Elizabethan history, and themes and motives that make up the human condition.

RainCityWoman · ‎06-16-2015

@Yardlie wrote:
Pity that anyone would consider modernizing Shakespeare's writing into language that can be easily understood by today's students. Reading Shakespeare really challenges the brain to understand complex writings. What will be the next step...putting Shakespeare into text-speak?

LOL. I can just see Lady Macbeth look at the imaginary spot of blood on her hand and saying OMG!

RainCityWoman · ‎06-16-2015

@ALRATIBA wrote:
Does it need to be translated? No.

But - there are some people who just want to dumb down everything so it appeals to the lowest common denominator - who probably still won't read it!

I had students from all skill levels, and I found that they try rise to your expectations. If you tell them you know they can do it, they will strive to do so. They do the projects and they kind of have fun with it too. That's all I can say about my experiences teaching it. It's one of my fondest memories of teaching units. In fact my Master's project was an interactive Shakespearean piece that I designed and programmed to enhance the understanding of Shakespearean language, history, and poetry. as well as the themes and crucial scenes iin Romeo and Juliet. I downloaded it on all the computers in my

classroom, and kids could go to the computers and look at it when they had spare time.

walkingal · ‎03-09-2010

If it has to be translated into modern English then it is no longer Shakespeare. We keep setting the bar lower and lower. The majority of the people in Shakespeare's time were uneducated. They understood him.

SUHsE · ‎03-12-2017

@ALRATIBA wrote:
Does it need to be translated? No.

But - there are some people who just want to dumb down everything so it appeals to the lowest common denominator - who probably still won't read it!

______________

Wow!

Wannabeincali · ‎04-04-2017

@Poodlepet2

Eons ago, in the 80s when I was in the 4th grade "Honors class", our teacher decided to have us read Romeo & Juliet. At that age, all I cared about was recess and playing with my friends. Lol Well, some kids love literature, others love history, some love math or science. I can tell you this much....NONE of us cared at all for Shakespeare....while in the 4th grade! Our teacher could tell that after we were to have read the first bit of it as homework. She was disappointed. But, she did NOT give up on us!

The next week, she had us watch Romeo & Juliet, the 1968 movie starring Olivia Hussey! How she got the local movie theater to run it just for our class, I do not know, but I am forever indebted to her love of teaching! and for being creative! It worked, for we were ALL captivated by that moviie! We finally got it....what the story meant! Somehow seeing it helped us to understand. And best of all, it made us all eager to go back and read it!

Is it necessary to change or modernize the language in Shakespeare's works?

No. Of course not.

But I say that teachers should teach by whatever means necessary to engage students! Once a student understands the basics, chances are that they will be drawn in and will be interested in learning the original text.

Had I not had a teacher who thought outside the box, I probably would have read the .Cliff Notes version of Romeo & Juliet, instead of the actual play!