Summative Entry

“This unit has enabled me to understand how literature from a different era can deepen my understanding of the meaning of human existence in the 21st century.“

Through the studied Shakspeare works of Orthello, Twelfth Night and The Tempest, we can see the recurring themes of love, power, jealousy, and mortality communicated through the dynamics of his sophisticated and complex characters. The significance of these common themes in Shakespeare’s works is that not only are they common themes across his plays but also in human life itself. The depth of connection to these themes felt by the Renaissance audience has continued through 400 years into the present where modern audiences are still moved by these masterful works with as much if not more relevance to their modern human experience than ever and clearly depicts how literature from a different era can deepen our understanding of the meaning of human existence in the 21st century.

For example it would be easy to think Shakespeare’s works, with their limited female characters, may be outdated and irrelevant to a modern feminist audience but as discussed in Blog 1, I explain that Olivia and Violia’s characters in 12th night display qualities and experience struggles still fought by women today. Centuries of women have read about Viola’s struggle to support herself in a patriarchal world and felt validated and less alone, centuries of women have watched Olivia refute time and time again an unwanted and unperturbed male suitor and felt the hair stand up on the back of their neck in nervous familiarity. Their fight is our fight, half a century on, women are still experiencing the same battles and prejudices, despite the fact we can now at least play the characters who so well summaries our existence. 

In blog two a protest to the censorship of performance of Shakespeare’s plays resonates with the modern struggle by american (and other nations similarly) school teachers against banned literary works and censored texts, this shows that Shakespeare’s works while now considered classics were at one point  controversial, allowing for an anti censorship argument in our modern world. Many banned books and performances have now become an essential classic, such as the Merchant of Venice which has been banned in more classrooms than any other Shakespearean play. These blogs and their discussions shine a spotlight on Shakespeare’s half century old works and their modern relevance while showing how the commonality of human experience transcends centuries of existence.