Can anyone tell me the value of the Shakespearean language??? why do we still have to study on it ???

Question

Can anyone tell me the value of the Shakespearean language??? why do we still have to study on it ???

Answer 1

i'm italian and i have to study it,it means it's very important...

Answer 2

"In Shakespeare's day, English grammar and spelling were less standardised than they are now, and his use of language helped shape modern English. Samuel Johnson quoted him more often than any other author in his "A Dictionary of the English Language", the first serious work of its type. Expressions such as "with bated breath" (Merchant of Venice) and "a foregone conclusion" (Othello) have found their way into everyday English speech."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Sha...

"One of Shakespeare's biggest contributions to the English language is the introduction of vocabulary and phrases which enriched the language making it more colorful and expressive. Shakespeare used around 20,138 new words in his work, sometimes borrowing from the classical literature and foreign languages. His exceptional experimentation with words "also resulted in formation of expressions and phrases". Many of his phrases like "All's well that ends well", "To be or not to be", etc. have become an integral part of the English language and have been used as quotes. The addition of these words gave his style distinctness."

"Shakespeare introduced style and structure to an otherwise loose, spontaneous language. The Elizabethan era language was written as it was spoken. The naturalness gave force and freedom since there was no formalized prescriptive grammar binding the expression. Lack of prescribed grammar rules introduced vagueness in literature, but expressed feelings with vividness and emotion. It had "freedom of expression" and "vividness of presentment". It was a language which expressed feelings explicitly. Shakespeare used the exuberance of the language and decasyllabic structure in prose and poetry of his plays to reach the masses and the result was "a constant two way exchange between learned and the popular, together producing the unique combination of racy tang and the majestic stateliness that informs the language of Shakespeare". It was a two way process in which literary language gained force and freedom of popular speech whereas eloquence of the language reached the general masses. His contribution in making the language popular with the masses was immense. His plays played an important role here."

"Is Shakespeare's language conservative or innovative for his times? It is true that in Shakespeare's works generally occur all the English words and grammatical structures of his era. A prominent example is the usage of the personal pronouns thee, thy, thou etc. Nevertheless, it is obvious that his language is very innovative for his times, as he introduced new words, phrases and grammatical structures and also picked up words that were new and fashionable at the time. The Oxford English Dictionary records over 2000 entries that have a supporting quotation from Shakespeare's works and his quotation often is the earliest source available."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakespeare...

Answer 3

the poetry of shakespeare is often visible only in his original -- the jokes, the references are lost when the words are turned into modern language. by your logic, whyt should we read anything in the original -- turn everything from the US Constitution to a NY Times article into a loose and slangy paragraph that a street child can understand. English demands that you work at it. Why study math and not just have everything turned into the answer key? Because the effort is where we see the beauty.