ENGL 230-01, Shakespeare's Major Plays, Spring 2004

Abstract

Many people celebrate the greatness of Shakespeare. In this course, we treat his greatness as a open question, reading several of the plays on which his reputation rests and asking what significance they might have for us now four hundred years after their first performance. The course has several goals: increasing your understanding and appreciation of the language of Shakespeare’s plays, including its figures, rhythms, and ambiguities; teaching you how to analyze and critically evaluate arguments about what the plays might mean and how we can understand Shakespeare’s characters and their actions; and helping you present your ideas about the plays in writing.