Shakespeare and the 20th and 21st Centuries


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English 2080   •   Cornell University   •   Spring 2019   •   MWF 1:25-2:15   •   S. Davis


What can we learn about Shakespeare's plays from their reception by late modernity? What can we learn about modern cultures from the way they use these texts and the Shakespeare mystique? We will study five plays and their adaptations in film and theater and explore the uses made of Shakespeare in education, advertising, and public culture and by the Shakespeare industry itself. For spring 2019: Richard III, Othello, Macbeth, Taming of the Shrew, and Midsummer Night's Dream, with films or filmed productions directed by Trevor Nunn, Richard Loncraine, Janet Suzman, George Sidney, and Julie Taymor.

This course may be used as one of the three pre-1800 courses required of English majors.