"O coward conscience, how dost thou afflict me!" -richard III

A blog.

Terrifying. 

I've heard of this strange medium for expression. I've read a few. I have laughed out loud and also secretly seethed (seethed?) with jealousy reading the cleverly written and downright hilarious stories of my peers in their blogging expertise. And although my mother has been prompting me for years now, I have always shied away from the prospect of creating a website devoted entirely to my own insignificant inner thoughts. Until now. Now, my friends, the desire for a good grade outweighs my fear of blogs.

to blog or not to blog? that is the question. yay, I say unto you, we shall.

 Welcome to my English 232 (i.e. Shakespeare) BLOG. 

first feelings about Shakespeare: 'tis basically a foreign language. the last time I read the man's writing, i was an ignorant high school freshman, with a head too big to admit I didn't understand a word. 

My first high school play was "Twelfth Night" where, with an all-girls cast, I was the Duke of Orsino (aka the hunky leading man). oh ya. I had a painted on mustache and slicked back ponytail. let's be honest, i was a stud. It was a horrific production, but I learned to speak Shakespeare (to some extent).

now, after having abandoned good ol' willy for five years, i'm back to where I was as a fourteen-year-old, but without the ego, so I'll honestly admit to not knowing anything.

when i first started Hamlet, I found this nifty little website that has the original text on the left side, and the  modern translation version on the right. (it's a very similar feeling to my spanish 101 textbook). And when I read a sentence like, "Beware Of entrance to a quarrel, but being in, Bear ’t that th' opposèd may beware of thee" (act I scene 3). i look to the sparknotes translation and it says, "Don’t be quick to pick a fight, but once you’re in one, hold your own" 

And I think,

"Why didn't you just say THAT?"

Then as I started reading on, a familiar flicker of excitement started in me. "...this majestical roof fretted with golden fire—why, it appears no other thing to me than a foul and pestilent congregation of vapors" (act II scene 2). then I glance at the translation that says, "this beautiful canopy we call the sky... why, it's nothing more to me than diseased-filled air" What an ugly way to put it. How un-eloquent, it doesn't do the same justice to the image, it doesn't impress the same feeling as "majestical roof fretted with golden fire" right?!

I am finding the more I read, the less I want changed. Like in any foreign language, somethings get lost in translation. The beauty, and cadence, and images that come from Shakespeare are best experienced through, well...reading Shakespeare. 

Alright friends, this seems to have gotten a little long. I got a little excited. But you get the idea: I'm looking forward to this class. Bring it on, Shakespeare. And bring it on, blogging.