The eNotes Blog 5 Things to Avoid While TeachingShakespeare

5 Things to Avoid While TeachingShakespeare Introducing Shakespeare to high school students is daunting. Getting them to care about Shakespeare is even more intimidating. Though we often have the best intentions, many of us fall into the following teaching traps when we turn to the Bard. Im certainly guilty of doing this, and Ive tried to make up for these transgressions by doing things a little differently. Lets look at these five (extremely common) things  to  avoid  doing while teaching Shakespeare to high school students as well as how Ive tried doing things instead.   1. Force Students to Read the Play Aloud as if They Were Actors The theater lover in me opens Shakespeare and wants my  students to experience the magic firsthand. Have students  read it aloud; have them perform it! They will make  it their own and fall in love with the characters the way I did in the theater.This seems like such a good idea. But, its actually an easy way to make your students cringe at the mention of Shakespeares name and fake sore throats to get out of reading.What I love about seeing Shakespeare performed in a theater is how well the actors  perform  the  lines and make them easy to understand using the right inflection. Students approaching the material for the first time have a hard enough time working through what the text is saying, let alone performing in a way that  is entertaining and  meaningful to everyone else in the room. (Not to mention it generally embarrasses the more introverted students and makes them feel quite negatively towards the play.) Instead, I try  to  let professionals, like Branagh, take the stage: Find a recording of the play and have students follow along while the tape reads. Youll be surprised to find how much better the students are able to understand the language  in the play when it is performed properly. Stop the tape frequently to discuss the metaphors and ask them questions about the text. If you want students to perform the lines, assign them a particular scene to learn and memorize. This will help them fully understand how the language works  and  make the material their own. Win win! 2. Consider  (or call)  Shakespeares Language  Old English All of my students start off calling Shakespeare Old English because it seems so alien to them. However, Old English is actually an entirely different language. Beowulf  was written in Old English. It looks like this: HWÆT, WE GAR-DEna in geardagum, à ¾eodcyninga à ¾rym gefrunon, hu à °a à ¦Ãƒ ¾elingas ellen fremedon! Shakespeare is written in  Early Modern English. Arbitrary, technical, and unnecessary distinction, you might say? Think again! Telling your students that Shakespeare is not Old English but  Modern  English can help make the text more accessible. He does  use some archaic puns, metaphors, and vocabulary, but what students are calling old is his syntax and poetic phrasing, not so much his language. They dont have to learn a whole different language to understand the play- they just have to figure out how  he plays with the language they already speak (which is so much easier!). I  try to dust off the old language with the following: Do a lesson on iambic pentameter and poetic phrasing (Shakespeares weird syntax). If students know why the language sounds so strange, they will feel more competent  approaching  it, instead of dismissing it as something old that they dont think they can  understand. Analyze  something like hip-hop or lyric syntax to help students understand how Shakespeare played with the language. In other words, people in Shakespeares time didnt necessarily talk like this, but they  understood his language  the way we understand songs today. For a fun way to help them play with Shakespeares syntax and form, have students try to write a Shakespearian sonnet in iambic pentameter. Proposing they write about particularly absurd topics (Sonnet to a Squirrel) makes this exercise informative and entertaining. 3. Read the Play  for Its Plot The  best  part of a Shakespeare play in the theater is watching the characters and plot unfold on the stage. But whats even better is being able to break down all of the metaphors, irony, allusions, and off-the-wall metaphors. And there is no better place to do that than an English classroom! While spoilers  for  Game of Thrones may be blasphemy, spoilers in Shakespeare allow students to get into the really fun bits of these plays. Shakespeare borrowed most of his plots from historical events, mythology, or other playwrights. The fun of Early Modern Drama was not what was depicted, but  how  it was depicted. I try  to  indulge in spoilers: Encourage students to look up a synopsis of the play online before reading it as a class. Create a plot outline and post it somewhere in the classroom (or online) so that students know exactly what they are reading about when they get lost in the language. Spend class time focusing on the specific metaphors, irony, characters, etc. This  will help students remember the play and its themes long after the class is over. 4. Treat Shakespeare Like the Almighty Bard and Master  of the English Language This one was really hard for me to accept. As an English teacher, theater lover, and metaphor enthusiast, Shakespeare  is  the almighty master of the English language.  However, my tendency to nerd out over Shakespeares brilliance before my students even got to the text tended to make them less open to reading (or loving)  it. Why? Because Shakespeare already comes with a lot of baggage. Chances are, your students have associations that align Shakespeare with high-class, complicated, and unquestionably brilliant literature. When in reality, Shakespeare was the low, popular entertainment of his time. Shakespearian theater was performed outside the city walls near bear-baiting pits and whore houses. Treating Shakespeare texts like they contain all of lifes answers will dissuade students from engaging in, questioning, and appreciating the text for what it is. Shakespeare is full of body humor, insults, innuendos, and, yes, flaws. If you introduce Shakespeare as undeniably great, your students will miss all of this (or worse, think they cant talk about it). I try  to put Shakespeare back in the bear pit: Introduce Shakespeare in his Early Modern context. Bring in modern  books, short stories, or play adaptations by authors with ethnically diverse backgrounds to show students how authors have taken up the same themes as Shakespeare (many even doing it better). Fun Fact: The Bodleian Library (one of the most famous libraries and the site where  they filmed Harry Potters library scenes) originally  rejected  Shakespeares plays. Sir Thomas Bodley claimed that he had built the library as an ark to save learning from the deluge and had to keep out  very unworthy matters such as Shakespeares plays. 5. Lecture About What the Play  Meant to Say Many of Shakespeares plays are extremely controversial (see  The Merchant of Venice) or extremely cryptic (see  King Lear). When I first started teaching, I thought offering a resolution to these problems would help students better understand and connect to the story. It did not. Resolving textual problems only solidified the idea that the text was perfect rather than helping the student learn. Grappling with these controversies and inconsistencies can be one of the most rewarding and empowering exercises a student can do in an English class. I tried to get cozy with ambiguity: Hold a classroom discussion or debate about what is going on in the text and why. Rather than offering solutions, ask students  a lot of questions and never resolve the problems.  The question is often better than the answer anyway. Even if you avoid all of the donts and do all of the dos, some students will never get happy feet when you pull out a Shakespeare play. But, if you give the students the space to engage with  the plays, they will  leave the class with something even more valuable: critical eyes and confidence. Ultimately, the best thing you can do to teach Shakespeare is to make it fun for your students and yourself. Who knows, you might even  create another anglophile.

Robert E Lees Civil War Battles

Robert E Lee's Civil War Battles Robert E. Lee was the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia from 1862 to the Civil Wars end. In this role, he was arguably the most significant general of the Civil War. His ability to gain the most from his commanders and men allowed the Confederacy to maintain its defiance of the north against increasing odds. Lee was the principal commander in several Civil War battles. Battle of Cheat Mountain, September 12-15, 1861 This was the first battle where General Lee led Confederate troops in the Civil War, serving under Brigadier General Albert Rust. He fought against Brigadier General Joseph Reynolds entrenchments at the top of Cheat Mountain in western Virginia. Federal resistance was fierce, and Lee eventually called off the attack. He was recalled to Richmond on October 30, achieving few results in western Virginia. This was a Union victory. Battles of Seven Days, June 25-July 1, 1862 On June 1, 1862, Lee was given command of the Army of Northern Virginia. Between  June 25th to July 1st, 1862, he led his troops into seven battles, collectively called the Battles of Seven Days.   Oak Grove: The Union army attacked in a swampy area. When darkness descended, the Union army retreated. The results of this battle were inconclusive.Beaver Dam Creek or Mechanicsville: Robert E. Lee pushed against General McClellans right flank. The Union army was able to hold back the attackers with heavy casualties. However, the arrival of Stonewall Jacksons troops meant that the Union position was pushed back. Nonetheless, this was a Union victory.  Gaines  Mill: Lee led his troops against a fortified Union position north of the Chickahominy River. The Confederates were eventually able to push the Union soldiers back across the river, resulting in a Confederate victory.  Garnetts and Goldings Farms: Confederate Major General John B. Magruder under Lees command fought against the Union line that was stationed south of the Chickahominy River while Lee was fighting at Gaines Mill. The results of this fighting were inconclusive.  Savages Station and Allens Farm: Both these bat tles occurred on June 29, 1862, the fourth day of fighting during the Seven Days Battles. The Union was  retreating after deciding not to advance on Richmond. Robert E. Lee sent his forces after the Union troops,  and they met in battle. However, the results of both of these battles were inconclusive. Glendale/White Oak Swamp: These two battles occurred as the Union troops were retreating. Stonewall Jacksons troops were kept tied up in the battle at White Oak Swamp, while the rest of the army tried to stop the retreat at Glendale. In the end, the battle was inconclusive.  Malvern Hill: The Confederates under Lee tried unsuccessfully to attack the Unions fortified position on top of Malvern Hill. Confederate losses were high.  McClellan withdrew to the James River, ending the Peninsula Campaign. This was a Union victory. Second Battle of Bull Run, Manassas, August 25-27, 1862 The most decisive battle of the Northern Virginia Campaign, troops led by Lee, Jackson, and Longstreet were able to score a huge win for the Confederacy.   Battle of  South Mountain, September 14, 1862 This battle occurred as part of the Maryland Campaign. The Union army was able to take over Lees position on South Mountain. However, McClellan failed to pursue Lees devastated army on the 15th, which meant Lee had time to regroup at Sharpsburg.   Battle of Antietam, September 16-18, 1862 McClellan finally met with Lees troops on the 16th. The bloodiest day of battle during the Civil War occurred on September 17th. The Federal troops had a huge advantage in numbers, but  Lee continued to fight with all his forces. He was able to hold off the federal advance while his troops retreated across the Potomac to Virginia. The results were inconclusive, though strategically important for the Union army.   Battle of  Fredericksburg, December 11-15, 1862 Union Major General Ambrose Burnside tried to take Fredericksburg. The Confederates occupied the surrounding heights. They repelled numerous attacks. Burnside decided in the end to retreat. This was a Confederate victory.   Battle of Chancellorsville, April 30-May 6, 1863 Considered by many to be Lees greatest victory, he marched his troops to meet the federal troops who were trying to advance on the Confederate position. The Union force led by Major General Joseph Hooker decided to form a defense at Chancellorsville. Stonewall Jackson led his troops against the exposed Federal left flank, decisively crushing the enemy. In the end, the Union line broke and they retreated. Lee lost one of his most able generals when Jackson was killed by friendly fire. This was a Confederate victory. Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863 In the Battle of Gettysburg, Lee attempted a full assault against the Union forces led by Major General George Meade. Fighting was fierce on both sides. However, the Union army was able to repulse the Confederates. This was a key Union victory. Battle of the Wilderness, May 5, 1864 The Battle of the Wilderness was the first of  General Ulysses S. Grants offensive into Northern Virginia during the Overland Campaign. Fighting was fierce,  but the results were inconclusive. Grant, however, did not retreat.   Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse, May 8-21, 1864 Grant and Meade tried to continue their march to Richmond in the Overland Campaign but were stopped at Spotsylvania Courthouse. Over the next two weeks, a number of battles occurred, resulting in 30,000 total casualties. The results were inconclusive, but Grant was able to continue his march to Richmond. Overland Campaign, May 31-June 12, 1864 The Union Army under Grant continued to make their advance in the Overland Campaign. They made headway to Cold Harbor. However, on June 2, both armies were on the field of battle stretching seven miles. Grant ordered an attack that resulted in a rout for his men. He eventually left the field of battle, choosing to approach Richmond through the less well-defended town of  Petersburg. This was a Confederate victory. Battle of  Deep Bottom, August 13-20, 1864 The Union Army crossed the James River at Deep Bottom to start threatening Richmond. They were unsuccessful, however, as Confederate counterattacks drove them out. They eventually retreated back to the other side of the James River. Battle of Appomattox Court House, April 9, 1865 General Robert E. Lee attempted at Appomattox Court House to escape the Union troops and head towards Lynchburg, where supplies were waiting. However, Union reinforcements made this impossible. Lee surrendered to Grant.