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Theseus2022 t1_j28fvl7 wrote

Read it aloud.

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TaliesinMerlin t1_j28u4fo wrote

This. The language (early modern English) may initially be hard to comprehend in writing, but the rhythm of it (usually in iambic pentameter) helps to comprehend the lines.

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_fallen__ t1_j28vau8 wrote

Read it with a group, if you can.

Shakespeare is an entirely different experience, if you read it like it’s a table read.

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BadolatoJess t1_j28h0pb wrote

I'd say watch one performed first, where the actors do the heavy lifting in conveying the key elements of it - plot, emotion, humour, theme and aesthetic quality of the language etc. Acted well, you can understand entirely what is happening without actually understanding a single word. Then with the general feeling and idea of the play embedded in your mind, revisit the text in more detail on your own to engage with the cleverness and beauty of individual passages, without needing to 'understand' the language in its functional dramatic sense.

School absolutely destroyed Shakespeare for me and I thought it overrated drivel until I saw some performances in my late 20s and suddenly saw the immense value it holds.

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challenjd t1_j28lgam wrote

I usually read them and watch them around the same time. Personally I prefer to read first, then watch, but maybe an act at a time. YouTube has productions of many of the plays up, but the actors and production value is often high-school level. Unfortunately there aren't many chances to see these with good actors unless you just happen to be in the right city in the right month, then you'll get to see Hamlet or Macbeth. You will not see Twelfth Night or Winters tale this way.

If reading, finding a copy with notes will be very helpful. I am a fan of the Folgers Library ones. Every page of Shakespeare is mirrored with a page of notes, which is insanely helpful

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Lrack9927 t1_j28ylal wrote

The newest movie version of Macbeth with Denzel Washington was fantastic. Very much maintained the feel of a play but with the production quality and cinematography of a film. Denzel is amazing to watch.

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Humming_Squirrel t1_j28lv41 wrote

Absolutely agree. On a similar note, if you haven’t ever read a play for pleasure before, try getting used to reading this kind of text by reading something a little more contemporary first. I started with Tennessee Williams and Neil Simon before moving on to Shakespeare.

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pino_entre_palmeras t1_j293tog wrote

Even searching on YouTube, some community theater somewhere will go a long way.

Patrick Stewart reading the sonnets is pretty great.

Also highly recommend the Norton Shakespeare anthology, so many good footnotes and context before hand.

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lilydlux t1_j2a37uu wrote

This. I had a wonderful English prof in college and took several of their Shakespeare classes (as a STEM major). He stressed that plays were meant to be performed and watched vs. just read. Watch and read. Cool goal!

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RunDNA t1_j28foat wrote

Read a copy with extensive footnotes on each page so you can look up hard words.

For a good first play I would recommend one of these:

Macbeth
Julius Caesar
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Romeo and Juliet
The Merchant of Venice

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Humming_Squirrel t1_j28m49u wrote

I recommend the Oxford School Shakespeare series by Oxford University Press for this purpose.

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TinyPurpleTRex t1_j29z99n wrote

Arden editions are a little more expensive but have much better notes.

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policis t1_j291pdh wrote

Having performed or participated in about 25 Shakespearean plays, I concur with this list but would add Hamlet.

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throwaway384938338 t1_j29sf8l wrote

Kindle is useful for this as well where you can look up word and footnotes without having to flick back and forth

One of those spark notes website that breaks it down page by page can also be useful if you hit a section that you can’t make sense of

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That_Sketchy_Guy t1_j28h5xk wrote

Don't be embarrassed if you have to/find it easier to cross reference the original text with a SparkNotes translation. I did that for my first time through most Shakespeare, and it helped a lot with comprehension.

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sacredfool t1_j28f3o8 wrote

I'll be honest, I am not a huge fan of reading Shakespeare. The plays are a great experience when you watch them but I always find reading them tiresome. It's like reading the script for avengers endgame rather than watching the movie.

So my advice would be to try watch them instead. Either online or you can try to find something like National Theatre Live in your local cinemas.

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EndlessEmergency t1_j28igns wrote

Agreed. This has always been my advice to people. The plays were written to be performed, and when performed by a competent theater troupe, are a great experience. But I've always found reading them to be a chore.

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Asymptote_X t1_j290f6m wrote

>It's like reading the script for avengers endgame rather than watching the movie.

Buddy just compared Marvel to Shakespeare

📷🤨

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sacredfool t1_j29amry wrote

Give it 200 years and people are going to be writing essays:

"The importance of the recurring theme of metamorphosis in the Marvel Universe and how it foreshadowed the body fluidity movement of the late 21st century".

You just see...

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remyontheroad t1_j28ibx8 wrote

I studied Shakespeare in college and I found the only way to read it and not get bogged down every other sentence is to simultaneously listen to it being read by someone who knows the texts or a audio of a play. The inflections voices add makes it much easier to understand even for a first time reader

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LdyRavenclaw t1_j29jgs8 wrote

This - Listening (and or watching) Shakespeare helps tremendously. There's a few from the Arkangel Complete Shakespeare on Audible that I would highly recommend

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TS__Eliot t1_j28engg wrote

There are lots of great works of criticism that I could recommend, and they’ll help with a greater understanding of Shakespeare, but they’re not necessarily essential to begin reading. What I will say is that you should not begin with Much Ado, or any of his comedies; they are genuinely funny once you have a grasp of the Elizabethan/early Jacobean language, culture and social context in addition to a degree of comfort and familiarity with Shakespeare’s style; but comedy is much less universal than tragedy or history. What is funny is much more culturally and temporally particular than what is tragic, tragedy has a transcendent universality.

Also, of the comedies, Much Ado About Nothing is not my favourite, but that’s my own taste.

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BinstonBirchill t1_j28iiqz wrote

One can study Shakespeare forever but just to be able to read it the only thing you should need is a copy with footnotes for the archaic words, Everyman’s library edition is perfect for this.

The nice thing about Shakespeare is that if you want to comprehend it better you just start again since they aren’t 1000 page tomes

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LordGoldenEagle t1_j28fy4u wrote

It is very difficult,even for an English person, to read Shakespeare. It is archaic English. You would be better off listening to an audiobook of a Shakespeare play featuring the actor Richard Burton. You will benefit from perfect reading and perfect text. Shakespeare coined many of the phrases we use in England. He was a master of phrases. A poet more than an author.

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CandyCaneCrossbow t1_j28e74t wrote

A midsummer night's dream is fun, it'll always be my favorite

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[deleted] t1_j28jigh wrote

[deleted]

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TheBestMePlausible t1_j2abe9b wrote

I remember watching Romeo + Juliet and being impressed by how they seem to stick to the original wording it yet made it feel modern and very easy to follow. The word play struck me as quite clever and I didn’t have much trouble “getting it”

That said I never really bothered to figure out how close to the original text they stuck and what liberties they took with it.

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boxer_dogs_dance t1_j28i86z wrote

As a precocious child I remember appreciating the fantasy Elements in the Tempest. Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth and King Lear are all commonly assigned in highschool. (Not all to every student)

As an adult, I return to the sonnets again and again.

Whatever you choose to read, start by watching a play or movie version so you follow the story.

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NewAlternative4738 t1_j293c1w wrote

I agree with reading the sonnets. So enjoyable to read compared to the plays.

And absolutely watch a film adaptation before reading a play.

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CrescentCrossbow t1_j28nd0n wrote

Shakespeare is well-known now because of his royal patronage but a lot of his writing was for a working-class audience. As such, his writing has a tendency to be full of dick jokes and lowbrow humor that only works in seventeenth century English and does not translate even into twentieth century English. Make absolutely sure you find an annotated version because you are not going to catch any of it unless you are being shown. (For example, there's a rather notorious section of Romeo and Juliet where Juliet spouts multiple pages of condensed innuendo that, to a modern audience, looks like she's lying to her mom about being in love because the joke is that she's finding increasingly elaborate ways to make it into a sex joke but none of the euphemisms she uses are still in use today.)

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cats4life t1_j28udbj wrote

My advice is…don’t. Shakespeare, and all theater, really, is meant to be seen, not read.

A lot of people complain that Shakespeare is boring and lifeless if read today, because their high school English teacher made them read it like a book. Mine put on tapes so that we could read along with actors giving life to the characters, or that we would read it out loud ourselves and give our own spin to the characters.

Take it from someone who tried to read Hamlet rather than just watch a performance of it…don’t.

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feetofire t1_j28uw58 wrote

Watch Kenneth Branagh extended all inclusive version of Hamlet first - then read the play. It will not only help you make sense of the at time archaic dialogue, but will make you love and appreciate the prose as well.

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SSSS_car_go t1_j2a1ept wrote

You’re a brave soul. I can’t read it without my eyes glazing over, and I used to work as a backstage dresser (costumes) in a professional theater that did mostly Shakespeare, so I’ve listened to some of the plays dozens and dozens of times because the theater plays them over the PA system for actors waiting for their cues in the Green Room. And my bf at the time was one of the lead actors, and would recite long passages to me, and me getting just a glimmer of sense despite my college degrees.

Why not start at a very simple level and read Sparks notes, or retelling for younger people, or other summaries so you will be familiar with what the heck is going on, and then gradually read passages in the actual plays. There are also free online classes, like these at Coursera that would help you understand his work.

It’s not just that the language is archaic, or that about 1,700 of the words he used were his own creation—it’s also pertinent that the stories he was retelling were already familiar to his audience, but are less familiar today. (Source that he was, with few exceptions, retelling old tales here.)

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EconomyFrosting6961 t1_j2a3bom wrote

  1. Watch a play/film version first. Then read.

  2. I'd suggest Romeo and Juliet first. Simple enough plot to follow despite heavy imagery.

  3. Get yourself a copy of the Arden Shakespeare version. Footnotes are brilliant.

If ever you don't understand anything that's going on, just keep reading. They're just describing the setting or time or day or what they can see on stage usually. Back in Shakespeare's day they were scant for backdrop so Shakespeare had to write a lot of the props and scenery into the play. It'll go back to normal dialogue soon enough

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BereniceFleming t1_j28g39y wrote

Try plays about behind-the-scenes games and/or characters who sell their souls. I mean Macbeth, Richard III and Hamlet. It's like GoT. :-)

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Complex_Meringue9954 t1_j28h3ya wrote

I'd recommend reading a study book about the play, or a site like this that's meant for kids learning at school: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/z3wyk7h and then find a recording of the play and watch it. If you want to delve more into the language you can read it after, but the plays are much better performed than read, imo.

And don't delay getting into King Lear, it's so good!

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PansyOHara t1_j28khet wrote

Even the tragedies have characters or dialogue that is comic relief or clever wordplay. The basic story of Romeo and Juliet is well-known, and the script isn’t as long as some others. Many filmed versions have been done, but I love Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968-ish version.

The only drawback with watching the performance is that the actors’ accents can be hard to understand once in awhile. But thanks to the miracles of modern technology, you can stop and replay those!

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TMLTurby t1_j28llbj wrote

Don't read each line like it ends with a period. Just ignore the fact it's written like a poem. I think that's what messes it up for high schoolers. It can be hard enough with the old timey-ness, you don't need to butcher the flow too.

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sober-na-gig t1_j28ou8f wrote

Didn't read any in high school? Wow! We did Caesar and our teacher had coleman and coltrane for the horns. Great fun!

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SnowFlakeObsidian4 OP t1_j28use0 wrote

Nope, at least in my school from Barcelona, we never ever were introduced to Shakespeare. We barely were introduced to Cervantes. The majority know he wrote Don Quijote, and that's it. We weren't asked to read the story. If this happened with Spanish authors, imagine what happened with authors from the international scene. Kinda jelly you got to have fun while learning about literature in high school!

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Live-Drummer-9801 t1_j28pwy4 wrote

When reading a Shakespeare I imagine famous actors playing the voices of the characters such as assigning Macbeth to Tom Hiddleston.

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marshymarsh1 t1_j28t0zf wrote

There's a series of Shakespeare's works published under the name "No Fear Shakespeare", they basically have Shakespeare's original text on the left page and on the right page there is a modern English interpretation. I really enjoy it because on one side I can enjoy Shakespeare's brilliant use of language and puns etc., and on the other side clear up any misunderstanding I may have had.

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johnwm24 t1_j28t2nf wrote

Listen to a recording of it as you read. It’ll make more sense.

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Cailleach_acolyte t1_j28tzyp wrote

I love Shakespeare's plays and sonnets, but I don't read the plays because they are not meant to be read. They are meant to be seen and heard. There are a bunch of BBC recordings of the plays being acted out, and/or find some quality audiobooks. Reading them takes away what makes them brilliant and timeless.

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lokilady1 t1_j28uc9d wrote

Taming of the Shrew

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MorienneMontenegro t1_j28uci9 wrote

I would suggest starting with the Comedies, as opposed to Tragedies.

Love's Labour's Lost is my go to recommendation usually for the first-time Shakespeare readers.

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Iowatimetraveler t1_j2a45ox wrote

Agreed, but would, like other posters, recommend seeing a production of it. This is my favorite of Shakespeare's works and is very funny. Took my teenage kids to see it years ago and they loved it.

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pleasetellmesoon t1_j28vbrm wrote

Ya, read which ever appeals to you most. But if you'd like suggestions: I think starting with one of his earlier plays is best. Titus Andronicus is pretty straightforward, is full of gore, and has a hilarious, "I did your mama" joke. The Comedy of Errors is also a straightforward read, and funny. The Merry Wives of Windsor I would also consider an easy read.

Read slowly, following the rhythms and cadence. Read aloud if need be. And don't sweat it if you need to take breaks. Billy can be dense. Try to feel the meaning--don't to try to intellectualize it. People get bogged down sifting through what they feel must be multidimensional, which it is; but that doesn't help for a first time reader.

Most important: Enjoy. And if you don't. That's okay. Try a different play.

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Lemon-Hat-56 t1_j28vf05 wrote

Listen to a good recording while reading. Good actors who understand what they are saying help with the meaning even if you don’t understand every word. As a (long ago) theatre student, I think you lose the flow if you focus too much on every footnote on the first read. Save the deep dives for parts that really confuse you.

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oryxs t1_j28vxyk wrote

I remember in high school reading the "no fear shakespeare" version of macbeth. It has the original text on the left page with a modern english "translation" on the right page, as well as footnotes. It was super helpful. I just ordered the tempest in the same format so we will see if I still find it useful. Even though its been a while I would recommend these!

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NotMyNameActually t1_j28wl5q wrote

My high school theatre history class had this great text book with some of Shakespeare's plays, and there were annotations alongside it explaining some of the text. I recommend reading along with a guide, like Cliff's Notes if they still exist. And then watch a performance of it to get the full effect. Or, do it the other way around, see the show then read it.

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Ramoncin t1_j28ws6h wrote

I read a few of his plays during college, great stuff when you get used to the style (they were written for people from the 1600s). I'm far from an expert, but the one I enjoyed the most was "Othello", because it reads like a thriller.

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Expertyn209 t1_j28xk6x wrote

I don't think it is very accessible at least at first even for the most experienced and fluent speakers, so don't worry. Try to use one of the sites that have explanations, notes, and "translation" of some words (e.g. Shakespeare navigator) and reread it a few times if necessary. I think A midsummer night's dream is one of the lighter and "easier" works of his, you can start with that.

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Phi1iam t1_j28y3iv wrote

audio books?

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Lrack9927 t1_j28y4gb wrote

Watch the plays before you read them, that’s how they were meant to be experienced. The most recent movie version of Macbeth with Denzel Washington is great. In my experience you kind of have to learn how to read Shakespeare to enjoy it. I had great teachers in school that broke down sonnets line by line and once I learn how to understand it it became wonderful.

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the1stranger t1_j28z5tv wrote

Just go for it! You may want to start with the Comedies like ‘As You Like It’ or ‘The Merchant of Venice’ & then go for the classic tragedies starting with ‘Macbeth’ (his shortest play) onto Hamlet, Lear, Antony & Cleopatra & Othello.

Btw, do read the Sonnets (all 150 odd). They’re a charm to read!

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ActonofMAM t1_j290790 wrote

Native English speaker here, and I had an entire college course on Shakespeare. But I still prefer movie or tv performances of his plays, with the subtitles on. The plays were meant to be acted out, not read cold.

If you want to read his sonnets, which are fantastic, read them aloud.

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NewAlternative4738 t1_j291zm8 wrote

I found it was easier for me to get into the cadence and language of Shakespeare if I was already familiar with the story. After that you easily jump into to other plays. So as far as millennial/90s kid movies go:

If you’re a fan of She’s the Man (movie) then I recommend Twelfth Night.

If you’re a fan of 10 Things I Hate about You (movie) I recommend The Taming of the Shrew.

If you’re a fan of (or even remember) Get Over It I recommend A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

There are dozens more, but these are my favorite Shakespeare adaptations.

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mikemdp t1_j293c0g wrote

I recommend the tragedies over the comedies. Tragic themes transcend time and societal change, but humor doesn't. That's why I find the comedies more difficult to relate to and enjoy.

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listyraesder t1_j2951zn wrote

Don’t. Watch one of the videos of a Globe or RSC production instead. It’s like deciding to get into the Beatles by reading sheetmusic.

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zedatkinszed t1_j298rr3 wrote

His plays are designed to be theatrical. There are very few stage directions and the dialogue is doing all the work.

As others suggest reading aloud is good. So is watching the plays in uncut form. The Hollow Crown is a very good tv version. Patrick Stewart's Macbeth is excellent. Brannagh's Hamlet is good but if you can see David Tennant playing Hamlet his performances are incredible.

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BasedArzy t1_j29b7qj wrote

His tragedies are far above his comedies IMO.

King Lear, Macbeth, Titus Andronicus, Julius Caesar, and Othello are all masterpieces, each could take the rest of your life in rereads and study.

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ChocolatMintChipmunk t1_j29bgsv wrote

I would recommend a Comedy of Errors. U feel like for a lot of Shakespeare, I need to watch it to really understand what is going on. But for that one, I understood without needing to watch it.

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FoxTofu t1_j29bxoe wrote

Join r/ayearofShakespeare ! They’ll be reading and discussing a different play each month.

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genericrich t1_j29chwy wrote

learn a bit about the cultural context of where his plays were written and performed. that will help ya.

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Toadman34 t1_j29i82i wrote

Check the theaters in your home and see if there are any upcoming productions first. Reading Shakespeare is great but they really are intended to be watched.

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largish t1_j29i8by wrote

Agree with all of this. Built in footnotes are great, Clif Notes are not. The sentence structures are weird, but it's just like learning any other language and you've already learned two, so you'll pick it up. Watch the movies or even a live play knowing that they are not verbatim readings. Movies, especially, edit out stuff and rearrange stuff.

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SweeneyLovett t1_j29ick3 wrote

Reading it out loud really helps as it becomes alive when spoken, as intended. Great play to start with and I’d suggest watching the 1993 film adaptation by Kenneth Branagh as a way to get into it; a superb version, brilliantly acted, and bringing all the humour of the text to light.

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Mrs_Gracie2001 t1_j29ihsi wrote

Get one of the versions that has copious notes about what the words mean, like a modern ‘translation’

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Idk_Very_Much t1_j29kerx wrote

Everyone is different, but I strongly disagree with watching first. If you do, you should at least use subtitles, but I don't think I could have followed the language watching it for the first time. I recommend reading the No Fear Shakespeare series, which has the original text on the left page and a modern translation on the right side, which lets you both appreciate the poetry and make it easy to understand. Once you're done with a play, watch a well-regarded production.

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disneylandmines t1_j29mg75 wrote

Try the No Fear Shakespeare editions. They give side-by-side interpretations. Have patience with yourself. It takes time to get good at it. And my favorite is Measure for Measure.

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Gardah229 t1_j29ocbe wrote

There's a fantastic adaption of King Lear with Ian McKellen and Sylvester McCoy that was my introduction to Shakespeare and I've loved his works ever since.

If you can find this somewhere, it's worth a watch - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Lear_(2008_film)

Watching and having a footnoted edition with added context will help massively.

David Crystal is also a proponent ofShakespeare in Original Pronunciation, which can drastically alter context, rhyme schemes and puns that would otherwise go missing.

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whipfinish t1_j29u4uh wrote

If you're going to read the play cold, and read all parts, it can be frustrating. They are not plays--they're scripts, documents not intended for reading. Reading is fine if that's what you want or have, but scripts are made for actors. If you want to become conversant with Shakespeare, it's perfectly fine to do it with film--that's what they are intended to do. I helped inflict a generation of script-reading on high school students, and I came to believe that it's a waste of time unless your reading is part of a process of presentation. If you want to grasp Shostakovich you don't curl up with the score. If you want to enjoy architecture, you don't study blueprints.

If you really want to read them, I recommend that you begin with comedies, and bookend your reading with good film. I recommend Much Ado and this stage-filmed production:

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2651158/

(Some big chunks of this are on YouTube This one is by the Old Globe, a filmed version of a stage performance complete with groundlings in the rain, music and dancing, and a good bit of relating to the audience.

Twelfth Night is my next favorite.

These are stage pros and cadence and energy makes meaning. It's remarkable (in this production especially) how important non-spoken elements are. The intense physical interplay is a feature of comedy most of all.

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LeeYuette t1_j29uycr wrote

Watch whatever you’re going to read first maybe, it’s easier to focus on the language if you already understand the plot?

I’d be interested in an update on how you get on with the language if you don’t mind? It might be unexpectedly easy, I once studied Chaucer (Middle English, not old English, but much older than Shakespeare) with a Russian student and when we were reading the text aloud she sounded so much more natural than the English native speakers, maybe older English is closer to Spanish in a way that will be helpful for you with these texts, and I love those language oddities!

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deeptull t1_j29ww7o wrote

Richard the third was quite a reading experience for me

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spoink74 t1_j29xkh5 wrote

Shakespeare was written to be performed. While you get the hang of his works you should focus on performances. Audiobook, movies from maybe Kenneth Branagh, videos of plays, and so on. It will help you understand. Once you’ve seen a few of those you can graduate to just the text. Maybe as a stepping stone find some graphic novels… there some good ones.

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rukioish t1_j2a24lv wrote

The Tempest is one of my all time favorite works of writing of all time. It was the reason I got into reading shakespeare in the first place. I hated it during school, but went out on my own and found the Tempest which is one that doesn't usually get taught in a school curriculum, and fell in love.

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VengeanceDolphin t1_j2a2dqw wrote

If you find the play too hard to follow, I’d recommend watching a movie/ filmed stage production in its entirety and then trying again. Also, don’t be afraid to stop and look up words you don’t know. As you read more Shakespeare, you’ll become more familiar with the language and able to pick things up through context clues.

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CrazyCatLady108 t1_j2a3kpg wrote

Please post 'Should I read X book''What do I need to know before I read X' questions, in our Weekly Recommendation Thread.

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Tallman6foot6 t1_j2avl78 wrote

I have found it helpful to watch a production on YouTube or some other service before I read one of the plays.

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CutiePopIceberg t1_j28fe5h wrote

Don't bother with the comedies. They are all the same. Cross dressing leads to misunderstanding as feelings of love develop between unlikely lovers.

I really enjoy Ceasar and othello - excellent studies in political manipulation and jealousy.

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