How does literature help us
better understand ourselves?
What does Romeo and Juliet have
to say to a teenager of today?
Why Do We Read/Write Stories,
Poems, Books, Plays…?
[examples/partial list of student responses]
Author’s Reasons
 Communicate feelings
 Pass on history
 Provide entertainment
 Share ideas
Reader’s Reasons
 Validate own feelings
 Pass classes
 For fun
(entertainment)
 Understand new ideas
Why do you think Shakespeare
is still read today?
[examples/partial list of possible student responses]
It is required by teachers
 His plays have been around for a long
time
 Action, plot is interesting
 Strong characters

Why do you think Shakespeare
is still read today?
Other ideas [teacher response]




His plays talk about life and our ability to control our
own destiny.
Other writers and elements in our culture refer to his
stories; need understanding of them to understand our
culture, stories…even newspaper articles/TV
shows/movies.
They help us see our own relationships in strong
dramatic terms and help us to better understand
ourselves and those around us.
Shakespeare is a master at creating new words that we
still use today.

Quoting Shakespeare
What experience do you have with
Shakespeare?
Have read

Midsummer Night’s
Dream
Romeo and Juliet
Hamlet

Poems (Sonnets)



Saw


Live play
Movie based on
Shakespeare’s play
Number of Students

18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Saw a play
Read a play
Read a
poem
Saw/read
an
adaptation
Experience
with
Shakespeare
What Do You Think You Know about
Romeo and Juliet?
[examples of student responses]





They die at the end.
He shot himself and she
stabs herself.
Their families didn’t like
each other.
They lived on the beach.
Juliet was really young,
like 16.


She was really rich and
he was poor.
Romeo kills a guy.
Where did you hear it?
Personal
knowledge
Media—TV, books, Other people
movies
Read the play in
6th grade
Saw the Leonardo
movie
My sister was in
another
Shakespeare play
Heard about it
from someone
What Do You Want to Know?
[examples/partial list of possible student
responses]




Why do they talk funny?
How do you understand
what they’re talking about?
Do R&J both die in the
play, too?
Why is this play so famous?
What is so good about it?