AKA: How in the world do we read Shakespearean English?? Reading Tips for Caesar Play

Annotate (mark up the text) with post-it notes. Focus on what you DO understand, not on what you do NOT Read the side notes and footnotes Read the definitions and allusions at the bottom Ask questions—someone else is probably thinking the same thing.

Poetry & Old English You must know that Shakespeare wrote his plays in Iambic Pentameter (unrhymed poetry with five metrical feet—10 stressed/unstressed syllables), so this is WHY some words seem to be placed in an awkward order. Thou Art Thee (me) and thy (my)

No Fear Shakespeare This website can be your new best friend but not the sole provider of the comprehension. It has translated all the Shakespearean English, or old English, to modern text. It helps if you aren’t poetic or in the mood to dissect the words and meanings!

Iambic Pentameter: The Poetry The ENTIRE play is written in this form! Blank verse is unrhymed poetry in the same meter/metrical pattern or rhythm Iambs are two syllables where the first one is UNSTRESSED and the second one is STRESSED. Examples: Cae—sar or shak---ed (which is only one but that’s why it is pronounced like it is—so it can keep with the poetic pattern) Think of your heart beat—de-dum, de-dum, de-dum Pent means TEN Meter means arrangement of rhythm

Daily Writings for Julius Caesar #1 What are some qualities of a great leader? Are these qualities innate or are they taught and learned? Who are some great leaders you know and why? #2: (see final slide) Write about power-hungry men. What motivates them? Why? Think politics, celebrities, sports stars, etc. #3: “Men are the masters of their fates; our faults are in ourselves, as we are underlings.” Do you agree?

Daily Writings Continued #4: Have you ever been flattered or manipulated by a friend for the purpose of the friend benefitting? How did the person benefit? Did you lose out or gain something? Have you ever been the flatterer or manipulator? Did you gain something or lose something when you were the manipulator? Write about this. #5: Its’ Greek to me! This quote was said by Casca, the evil-doer of the conspiracy. These words, however, were coined by Shakespeare himself over 400 years ago. Is the play Greek to you so far? Why? OR Do you like it better than R & J? Why or why not?

Men in Power Think about men in power in politics, sports, entertainment, coaching, religion, etc. Now think about men in power who have gone awry or who have made unethical choices, and write about your views on them. Why do men abuse their power and how do they abuse it?

Dramatic Irony Look in your Caesar packet in the glossary of literary terms and find dramatic irony. Review with your table the difference between irony and dramatic irony. Find an example on page 1130 from an event, and discuss why it’s dramatic. Other types of irony: verbal, situational

Dialectical Journal Choose a passage from Act II, scene ii (where Caesar is characterized the most), and write a dialectical journal with quote support for one of the following sentence lead-ins: This section is particularly effective or ineffective (you choose) in demonstrating Caesar as a tragic hero because…. OR This particular part of the play reminds me of current or historical situations because….

Simile, page line Allusion: Ate hot from hell or “Wilt thou lift up Olympus?” Personification: Danger knows full well, as he…. Metaphor and Simile: “Here lies the butchers and Caesar stricken like a deer….” Symbol: The lion in the capitol Mood: the weather, the omens/superstitions, the pace,

Tragic Hero Downfalls and flaws lead to the death of this pivotal character. Name some others in famous texts. What are Caesar’s flaws? Brutus’ flaws? Cassius’ flaws?

Caesar Reading and Homework While reading in class today, have your post-its or notebook out to annotate. Have your toolbox page open to the page of character traits; jot down any words (soliloquies and asides included) you can think of that might characterize (mental, spiritual, moral, etc) Brutus, Caesar, Cassius and Mark Antony. Think of their actions and words. (Tuesday) When we read the famous Mark Antony speech, please have your packet open to the rhetorical devices sheet and begin to fill in accordingly (more tomorrow)

Famous Mark Antony Funeral Speech Rhetorical devices Dramatize Paraphrase and write a funny one for modern times