Customer Reviews

Standard Deviants TV: Shakespeare [VHS]

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a freshman in my English class, when I introduce Shakespeare, all a student hears is "Blah-Blah-Blah-Blah." I sound like the Peanuts teacher. This video helps with this problem. It is fast-paced and informative, hitting all the high points. The most impressive thing about it, though, is how well it teaches iambic pentameter, which is so hard for freshmen to grasp. I love this tape and will use it as long as I teach Romeo and Juliet!

For a teacher at the high school or even college level, this fast-paced introduction to Shakespeare, his times, his style, his oeuvre is just what the doctor ordered. What I appreciate most is the emphasis on language--not actions, plot, setting--as the key to understanding Shakespeare. Use the video at the beginning of the course--and don't feel compelled to order the longer, more expensive DVD version about the tragedies, which I discovered basically repeats the same material as on this 30-minute VHS tape.

Although the information in this video is good and the style engaging, I was dissapointed with the way it talked down to students. Several times one of the performers says something to the effect of "Don't worry -- we'll give you plenty of examples to explain it." My 9th grade students prefer to be treated like adults when discussing complex topics like symbolic art. It is also just a little too "fast-paced."