Year 7 & 8 Topic Guide: Shakespeare: William Shakespeare

The year 2016 marks the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death. Why do people around the globe still study and perform his plays hundreds of years later? What is it that makes Shakespeare's writing timeless? This entertaining title explores the life, work, and legacy of the Bard of Avon. Was he the greatest writer of all time--or much ado about nothing?

"Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" Teenagers have been sighing an approximation of these words for centuries, ever since William Shakespeare had Juliet utter them from her balcony in one of the most popular plays of all time, Romeo and Juliet. Tales of love, loss, rebellion, rivalry--before there was Twilight, Warm Bodies, and The Lion King, there was Shakespeare. The characters, language, imagery, and plot elements of many books and movies that appear on bookshelves and in cinemas today are directly influenced by the plays of the Bard. In Shakespeare: Investigate the Bard's Influence on Today's World, readers discover links between the books, movies, and music they listen to today and the words that were written and acted out more than 400 years ago. Readers deconstruct Shakespearean themes, imagery, language, and meaning by finding familiar ground on which to gain literary insight. Through hands-on projects such as coding a video game based on one of Shakespeare's plays to rewriting a scene in the text language of emoji, readers find compelling avenues into the dramatic, sometimes intimidating language, leaving them well-equipped to tackle any major text in the academic years to come.

Discusses the life and achievements of William Shakespeare, discussing his childhood, education, family, and influence.

Who said, 'Neither a lender nor a borrower be'? Who are the 'star-crossed lovers'? Which Shakespearean lady protests too much? With over 3,000 quotes, from single lines to quite long extracts, organised by topic and by play, this is an essential book for anyone with an interest in Shakespeare. The key word index makes it easy to use and it also includes a glossary of unfamiliar terms and a brief biography of Shakespeare. The dictionary is easy to dip into by word or theme (love, greed, disease, war etc) or by play, and the indexes allow readers to track down a half-remembered quote easily. Both useful and entertaining, The Arden Dictionary of Shakespeare Quotations is an ideal companion for students, teachers or performers of Shakespeare.