Customer Reviews

Julius Caesar (No Fear Shakespeare)

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As an older adult that is somewhat isolated I started the study of Shakespeare on my own with just a big book that had annotaions that were often more cofusing than enlightening. It was rewarding but it was like plowing through a field full of big rocks. I found reading two or three scenes of an act with No Fear Shakespeare and then reading the corresponding section of Asimov's Guide to Shakespeare great fun. No Fear explains the nuances of language and setting while Asimov gives rich insight to the characters and events that makes it so easy to remember the varied characters and plot twists.

I found this method makes Shakespeare infinitely more easy to not only get through but savor and enjoy. My plan is to get as much of No Fear Shakespeare as I can including all the plays that I have gone through so laboriously in the past and apply the No Fear/Asimov technique. I hope it works as well for you as it did for me.

I teach high school students and must say that this book has been a valuable resource throughout our unit on Julius Caesar. My students are finally grasping what is being read and have really enjoyed the reading thus far. If only there had been a reference tool around like this when I was in school!!! The title is absolutely right, there is No Fear in reading Shakespeare any longer.

This book helps to simplify the art of Julius Ceasar into a much easier text for high schoolers to understand and make sense of the writings in the book.. Great helper

Both Julius Caesar and Brutus might avert their tragic deaths if they would only heed the advice of their wives.

In Act Two Scene One, Portia notices her husband, Brutus, acting suspiciously. When she confronts him, he claims to be sick. But she knows better: guessing that he's plotting something dastardly. She goes on to accuse him of treating her like a harlot, rather than like a wife who should be considered his other half by virtue of their wedding vows.

In Act Two Scene Two, Caesar's wife, Calphurnia, warns Caesar not to go forth to the senate-house. There have been ill-omens, one of which is a dream she had that portends his death. Caesar almost listens to his wife, that is until a conspirator derides him for waiting until "Caesar's wife shall meet with better dreams."

So, in this precursor to the modern politial thriller, Shakespeare casts his play with two main characters, Caesar and Brutus, whose hamartia, or fatal flaw, involves not listening to the good judgment of their wives.

It is said that Shakespeare based this play on Plutarch's historical account of Caesar's assassination. Still, Shakespeare underscores how the men foolishly ignore their wives' sound advice, a quiet plea for the advancement of women that resonates even today.

I got this for my sophomore English class. It is great for students who are struggling to understand Shakespeare's writing.

Very nice book and this book shipped pretty fast. If I remember correctly it shipped in like two or three days.

I like the concept of the book and it really helps my students in need of understanding. The level of understanding has risen and with it their ability to enjoy Shakespeare. I would recommend this book to every student in need.

I needed this book for school, but was given only a weekend to read (and comprehend) the whole thing. Obviously because it is a play, it is more than possible to read in just a few hours. However the old English can be difficult to sift through unless you put some serious time and effort into it. So, I bought the No-Fear Shakespeare because it has a "modern day translation" that parallels each page of Shakespearian and is extremely useful when you are a little lost with what's going on. There are also occasional side notes that explain ambiguous references that the characters make. I've used No-Fear before and HIGHLY recommend it!

Had to read this for school and started out reading the original language (I can hardly consider Shakespearean English the language that I speak). Very frustrating. I read Act I, Scene II in the original and it took me a long time to read and I could barely made out what was happening. I found this book's text online at SparksNotes and when I read the same scene in the translation it was like I had understood something completely different than what I had understood from the original.

So I got the book. Makes this play easy to read and entertaining and it saved me hours of torment trying to read what had previously seemed like Chinese.

Highly recommended. The original text side-by-side with the translation is a great feature. Funny cover art.

this is rly good and easy to underdstand! i hate shakespeare, and i enjoyed reading this book, b?c i was able to understand it!