I’m finishing my last semester before I get my B.A. in English and I finally decided to take a Shakespeare class. Ok…actually, the class was required in order to graduate. I know, I know–I am the WORST English major ever.
Anyway, the first play we read this semester is Richard III. I was going to post a bunch of my notes from class, but I started to copy/paste and it was getting really rambly, so I’ll just summarize.
I was pleasantly surprised by Richard III. When I found out we were starting the semester with it, I was disappointed. I had hoped to start off with a bang, with Hamlet or Macbeth, maybe. I can’t say that Richard III was an easy read; in fact, it took quite a bit of time with my Signet copy but even more time with my Richard III (No Fear Shakespeare) edition (which is a really fantastic edition and which I highly recommend). But despite the fact that I had to take my time with it, I enjoyed the play in the end.
I went from loathing Richard and thinking he was a sociopath in the beginning, to feeling slightly sorry for him as the play progressed, to ultimately writing my analysis paper on how he can be viewed as a sympathetic character. It was an interesting exercise; when I first had the idea for the paper, I figured I’d play devil’s advocate for Richard. But through the writing process, I started believing what I wrote–or maybe I was just writing what I already believed.
My instructor hasn’t graded our papers yet, but I’m anxiously waiting to find out what my grade is.
