Though he is most often discussed as a dramatist, William Shakespeare considered himself a poet first and foremost, who turned to playwriting as a way to make money, and as a natural extension of his acting career. In addition to producing the language’s most respected corpus of plays and of poetry, the bard’s work has also been an inspiration to hundreds of artists in genres as diverse as painting, ballet, opera, filmmaking, sculpture, architecture, and many others. This class will consider Shakespeare’s poetry, with an ear tuned to his unique language and image-making. We will also consider him as a cultural touchstone, reading adaptations, listening to symphonies, and criticizing paintings inspired by his work. In order to understand his composite gifts of characterization and narrative structure, we will read, in addition to a selection of sonnets and criticism, three plays in their entirety.

The goal is not to read all the Shakespeare we’ll ever need to read in the span of one class, but to qualify ourselves as readers of his poetry, that we might open to his language: reading, at any later date, with appetite and comprehension.

In accordance with the University's W requirement, you will be responsible for writing and revising several short papers, totaling 12-15 pages, in addition to keeping a diligent reading journal, and participating in the class blog project.