Over the course of five weeks, students will be reading and discussing selections from Shakespeare's canon. The first week will introduce the basics of the language through the introduction of iambic pentameter and the detailing of how the rhythm of the language communicates the mood of a piece. The subsequent four weeks will focus on one play from each of the established genres, to serve as a baseline for the other 33 plays we will not get to read. There are four widely agreed-upon genres in Shakespeare's canon: comedy, tragedy, history, and romance. Students will come to learn that these are basic descriptors, and not necessarily hard and fast rules. I want to encourage the discussion of characters and how the students relate to them, not to encourage the regurgitation of facts, but to intuitively understand what is being written and how it is still relevant. 

The plays I have chosen, as outlined in the syllabus provided, are "The Taming of the Shrew", "Othello", "Richard III", and "The Tempest". We will spend one week on each of these plays, with an additional week at the start of the course to get you acquainted with how Shakespeare wrote, so no one is jumping in without previous experience. 

Week 1 Introduction  
Week 2 The Taming of the Shrew 
Week 3 Othello 
Week 4 Richard III 
Week 5 The Tempest

You are REQUIRED to read the plays before the class begins, otherwise, we will not have any fruitful discussion about the nature and context of the works. There are many free versions online, including the versions I have linked via Project Gutenberg, which are more than fine for just reading. If you would like to buy your own hard copy, you may.