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Run for the Hills -- It's Shakespeare

Part A. What happens when you shout the word "Shakespeare" in a crowded room? Do half the occupants run for cover while the other half begin to recite? For years, actor Al Pacino has visited schools to talk about Shakespeare. When he says he is going to read excerpts from selected works, he finds many students reluctant to listen. But after he talks about the plays and the playwrights, students generally are amazed to find Shakespeare interesting.

What's your take on the Bard of Avon? Have you read or seen any of his plays? If so, what do you remember about them? Can something created 400 years ago have any meaning for us today? Is Shakespeare alive and well in 1996, or would he sink quickly into oblivion without the valiant efforts of a small group of English teachers?

Before viewing Al Pacino's film Looking for Richard, take some time to measure your attitudes and those of your friends and family about Shakespeare. For your own answers, use Column A below. Enter number 1 if you strongly agree with the statement, 2 if you agree somewhat, 3 if you disagree somewhat, and 4 if you strongly disagree. Then ask two family members or friends what they think and record their responses in Columns B and C. Finally, after you have finished viewing and discussing the film, fill in Column D, noting differences between your "before" and "after" responses.

Part B. Many people have heard of Shakespeare, but how much do they really know about him and his play? In Looking for Richard, the filmmakers use "man-in-the-street" interviews to learn just how familiar we all are with Shakespeare. How much do your family members and friends know about the Bard? Ask them the following questions:

1. Name two works by William Shakespeare.

2. Can you recite a line or part of a line from one of Shakespeare's plays or sonnets? If so, where did you learn it? What does the line mean to you?

3. Identify the following: Romeo, Iago, the handkerchief, "To be or not to be," three witches.

4. In what century and where was Shakespeare born?

Part C. Imagine you have been elected student representative to your school's curriculum committee. At a meeting, someone proposes dropping Shakespeare from the required curriculum, arguing that he is difficult to read, irrelevant to today's students, and not representative of the cultural and social population of the school. Before the committee votes, you must present your position on this issue. Use results of the surveys you have conducted to prepare a brief statement:

[Continue your answers on an additional sheet of paper if necessary]

Copyright ©1996, Youth Media International; used with permission.