I haven't actually posted here for ages - haven't really felt like it to be honest and besides I've had nothing interesting to say. Still not sure if I actually have any incites that are noteworthy but still.
My life seems to have been consumed by the big blob that is work and spend most hours of the day working meaning I have completly negelected all of my hobbies for quite some time! But work has at least been relatively interesting. The essay on Hamlet was quite tedious but it is done and handed in now!
Most of the rest of work has focused around either reading Shakespeare (and watch Shakespeare based films!) and Pirates. Two documents have been analysed. One a proclomation from the King offering Pirates a pardon in return for their surrendour and the other the infamous Captain Charles Johnson's 'A General History of Piracy' (shortened title). Johnson was the first history book on Piracy and it portrayed an exciting world of adventure and dastardly deeds making it an instant best seller. However the content is often exaggerated to excite public opinion and because of its vast influence it has shaped modern day perceptions of Piracy - as the romantic hero. Despite this no one actually knows who Johnson is - he doesn't show up in a single record and many have speculated about his true identity - is he real person who just flew under the radar, others have suggested that he is the playwright by the same name (minus the Captain bit :p) simply becuase he wrote a play about pirates! But the most popular idea is that Captain Charles Johnson is in fact Daniel Defoe - author of 'Robinson Crusoe'. Defoe wrote many histories that explored piracy and this wouldn't have been the first time he had attempted to pass off a fictional character as the author of his works - when 'Robinson Crusoe' was first released it was sold as being a true account.
Next came a book review - looking at three books on the topic of Piracy and focusing on the 'what is the reality of Piracy?' All three books were interesting and I was particularly interested in a book on Women Pirates named 'Bold in her Breeches' which leads me to think that for my masters I could expand my study of Piracy and look into Women and Piracy. I'm sure there is a lot to explore - how many women were involved in piracy, how pirates viewed them, why there is so little evidence and sources including women and piracy?
Waffled enough now I think. I will be back...
Showing posts with label Shakespeare. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shakespeare. Show all posts
Monday, 9 November 2009
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
Mostly Shakespeare
Having a bit of a Shakespeare fest at the moment with one module dedicated to the great man and studying Hamlet in the other.
Having re read Hamlet I still don't like it but this time had much more fun as I imagined David Tennant as Hamlet :) I do think that it would be much more enjoyable if it had been written as a comedy instead of tragedy. Gertrude is a bit of a cow frankly, not becuase she remarries so soon after her husbands death - that bit is more understandable - she would have lost everything if she had not - but she is rubbish at Mothering; calling Hamlet 'fat', not even recognising him in the scene with the gravediggers and also she basically drive Ophelia to suicide and is unfeeling. Just after Hamlet kills Polonius her and Claudius are just like 'oh well'. Also all the 'alas I am dead' makes me giggle. I can imagine my last words 'alas I have been hit by a bus' or 'alas I should have worn my seat belt' - the first one being more likely!!
King Lear on the other hand is much more enjoyable as a tragedy (although I have awful visions of the time I saw a RSC performance with a nude Gandalf!). Although I feel that he is mean - calling his daughter Goneril!! He also has a bit of a Gollum complex - with frequant uses of 'our' in relation to himself.
I also would like to sing the praises of my local library and world cat. Worldcat.org is a database of all books in publication and lists every library that holds a copy. Very useful for tracking books for my dissertation - seems like I will be doing a fair bit of inter library loaning!! However several of the books I were keen to get hold of apparently are in my local library - I wasn't even sure they had much other than Jackie Collins books!
Having re read Hamlet I still don't like it but this time had much more fun as I imagined David Tennant as Hamlet :) I do think that it would be much more enjoyable if it had been written as a comedy instead of tragedy. Gertrude is a bit of a cow frankly, not becuase she remarries so soon after her husbands death - that bit is more understandable - she would have lost everything if she had not - but she is rubbish at Mothering; calling Hamlet 'fat', not even recognising him in the scene with the gravediggers and also she basically drive Ophelia to suicide and is unfeeling. Just after Hamlet kills Polonius her and Claudius are just like 'oh well'. Also all the 'alas I am dead' makes me giggle. I can imagine my last words 'alas I have been hit by a bus' or 'alas I should have worn my seat belt' - the first one being more likely!!
King Lear on the other hand is much more enjoyable as a tragedy (although I have awful visions of the time I saw a RSC performance with a nude Gandalf!). Although I feel that he is mean - calling his daughter Goneril!! He also has a bit of a Gollum complex - with frequant uses of 'our' in relation to himself.
I also would like to sing the praises of my local library and world cat. Worldcat.org is a database of all books in publication and lists every library that holds a copy. Very useful for tracking books for my dissertation - seems like I will be doing a fair bit of inter library loaning!! However several of the books I were keen to get hold of apparently are in my local library - I wasn't even sure they had much other than Jackie Collins books!
Wednesday, 30 September 2009
Randomness
I realise that I have been neglecting this place a bit recently due to a mixture of being back at uni and my grandpa dying :(
Helpfully, to make my mind off things I have started lectures today :) Five hours worth in a row!! But I love learning and so I was perfectly happy although a little frazzled by the end (but a cheeky Starbucks soon revived me!).
First off was a meeting with my History Special Subject Group - my speical subject being the subject which I have to base my dissertation around. Mine is Trade in Early Modern Europe which to most people sounds like a very boring subject but to me it looks amazingly interesting!! We discussed our proposed dissertation ideas - 2 other people are looking into doing piracy as well - grrr stealing my idea :p But they don't seem to be focusing on the same thing as me - in other words I think that they researched their subject by watching Pirates of the Carribean!! But now I have a more definate idea of what I'd like to do - not much of a change from my last update! I'm going to look at the relationships between the piracy, the state and trade. And possibly expand out from the Carribean so I can compare types of merchant and cargo in different areas and different methods and ways of selling the booty. Like the pirate havens in the Carribean that housed illegal markets. I will also look at how the state encouraged piracy with privateers and their letters of Marque and whether they were always followed. Then how piracy was dealt with when they were acting illegally. Now onto hard core research - library day tomorrow!
Next was theorizing texts - theories surrounding Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte), The Turn of the Screw (Henry James) and Hamlet (Shakespeare). It was just and intro so hopefully I will find out more than this next week!
Finally there was Shakespeare and Co. Studying Shakespeare, what his inspirations were and how his texts have been transformed over time.
We discussed how Shakespeare was shaped by the fashions, audience, contemporaries and the players in his company. We also discussed whether a play is the actual text written down or the performance. If it is the latter then a play will always be in a state of constant transformation - each performance will be different with every new performance due to actors, fashions and the social background to the time of performance. Plays will take on different meanings to different audiences.
In other news my c button is being annoying and also I love Ewan McGregor - he is scottish and can sing and has a moterbike :D
He may be added to the list of numerous people I have said I would marry recently. The list already includes Poirot, Chaucer, Anton Du Beke and Brian Fortuna!
Helpfully, to make my mind off things I have started lectures today :) Five hours worth in a row!! But I love learning and so I was perfectly happy although a little frazzled by the end (but a cheeky Starbucks soon revived me!).
First off was a meeting with my History Special Subject Group - my speical subject being the subject which I have to base my dissertation around. Mine is Trade in Early Modern Europe which to most people sounds like a very boring subject but to me it looks amazingly interesting!! We discussed our proposed dissertation ideas - 2 other people are looking into doing piracy as well - grrr stealing my idea :p But they don't seem to be focusing on the same thing as me - in other words I think that they researched their subject by watching Pirates of the Carribean!! But now I have a more definate idea of what I'd like to do - not much of a change from my last update! I'm going to look at the relationships between the piracy, the state and trade. And possibly expand out from the Carribean so I can compare types of merchant and cargo in different areas and different methods and ways of selling the booty. Like the pirate havens in the Carribean that housed illegal markets. I will also look at how the state encouraged piracy with privateers and their letters of Marque and whether they were always followed. Then how piracy was dealt with when they were acting illegally. Now onto hard core research - library day tomorrow!
Next was theorizing texts - theories surrounding Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte), The Turn of the Screw (Henry James) and Hamlet (Shakespeare). It was just and intro so hopefully I will find out more than this next week!
Finally there was Shakespeare and Co. Studying Shakespeare, what his inspirations were and how his texts have been transformed over time.
We discussed how Shakespeare was shaped by the fashions, audience, contemporaries and the players in his company. We also discussed whether a play is the actual text written down or the performance. If it is the latter then a play will always be in a state of constant transformation - each performance will be different with every new performance due to actors, fashions and the social background to the time of performance. Plays will take on different meanings to different audiences.
In other news my c button is being annoying and also I love Ewan McGregor - he is scottish and can sing and has a moterbike :D
He may be added to the list of numerous people I have said I would marry recently. The list already includes Poirot, Chaucer, Anton Du Beke and Brian Fortuna!
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