How Shakespeare influences the way we speak now
シェイクスピア劇を観たことがなくても、彼の言葉やフレーズを聞いたり使ったりしたことがあるはずです。ヘプシバ・アンダーソンが、彼の天才的な才能と、絶えることのない影響力について解説します。実際、52年の生涯で、彼は英語という言語を豊かにし、その影響力は計り知れないものがあります。彼がいなかったら、私たちの語彙はあまりにも違っていたでしょう。彼は、希望と絶望、悲しみと怒り、愛と欲望を表現するユニークで生き生きとした方法を私たちに与えてくれました。たとえあなたが彼のソネット(叙情詩 )を読んだことがなくても、演劇を見たことがなくても、たとえ映画化されたものを見たことがなくても、知らず知らずのうちに彼の言葉を引用している可能性が高いのです。彼を避けることはほとんど不可能です。（English) Even if you've never seen a Shakespeare play, you'll have used one of his words or phrases. Hephzibah Anderson explains his genius - and enduring influence. Hephzibah Anderson explains his genius - and enduring influence. In fact, during his 52 years on earth, he enriched the English language in ways so profound it's almost impossible to gauge his impact fully. Without him, our vocabulary would be just too different. He gave us uniquely vivid ways to express hope and despair, sorrow and rage, love and lust. Even if you've never read one of his sonnets or seen a play - even if you've never watched a movie adaptation - you're likely to have quoted him unwittingly. It's almost impossible to avoid.
How Shakespeare influences the way we speak now
//Summary//
2)
Even if you've never read one of his sonnets or seen a play - even if you've never watched a movie adaptation - you're likely to have quoted him unwittingly. It's almost impossible to avoid.
5)
If you've ever been 'in a pickle,' waited 'with bated breath,' or go on 'A wild goose chase,' you've been quoting from The Tempest, The Merchant of Venice, and Romeo and Juliet, respectively.
6)
Next time you refer to jealousy as "the green-eyed monster," know that you're quoting Othello's arch-villain, Iago.
Allow yourself to "gossip" (A Midsummer Night's Dream), and you're quoting him.
"The be-all and end-all" are uttered by Macbeth as he murderously contemplates King Duncan.
7)
Some phrases have become so well used that they're now regarded as clichés.
8)
His impact endures in how we express ourselves, experience, and process the world around us.
Had Shakespeare not given us the words, would we truly feel "bedazzled" (The Taming of the Shrew)?
9)
Had he not taught us the word "gloomy" (Titus Andronicus), would it be a feeling we recognized in ourselves?
10)
Victorian word expert F Max Muller estimated that Shakespeare used 15,000 words in his plays.
By contrast, Milton used a mere 8,000, and the Old Testament comprises 5,642.
Meanwhile, an unschooled agricultural worker of the day would have said all that he had to say in fewer than 300 words.
12)
His linguistic arsenal didn't contain vastly more than those of his contemporaries, yet he is the story we remember.
New words attributed to Shakespeare have probably been over-counted by a factor of at least two.
In the 1950s, Shakespeare's tally of first-use citations stood at 3,200. Today, it's around 2,000.
13)
If the mark of a great writer is that they're still read, then perhaps the impact of a genius is that they're still spoken, too.
***
//New words//
"in a pickle"(The Tempest)
=to be in a difficult situation
I'm in a pickle. I don't know what to do. Should I do this, or should I do that?
"with bated breath"(The Merchant of Venice)
=hold your breath
I waited with bated breath as the results were read out.
"wild goose chase"(Romeo and Juliet)
= a completely unsuccessful search and a waste of time because the person or thing being searched for does not exist or is somewhere else:
After two hours spent wandering in the snow, I realized we were on a wild goose chase.
"the green-eyed monster" (Othello)
=jealous
She was green with envy.
"gossip" (A Midsummer Night's Dream)
conversation or reports about other people's private lives that might be unkind, disapproving, or not true:
=Her letter was full of gossip.
"The be-all and end-all"(Macbeth)
= the essential thing:
We all agreed that winning was not the be-all and end-all.
"bedazzled" (The Taming of the Shrew)
=1
greatly impress (someone) with an outstanding ability or striking appearance.
bedazzled by him, they offered him a job in Paris
=2
decorate or personalize (clothing or accessories) using sequins, beads, glitter, etc.
I'd bring a box of rhinestones so I could bedazzle our uniforms.
"gloomy" (Titus Andronicus)
=dark or poorly lit, especially to appear depressing or frightening.
A gloomy corridor
****
// Synopsis of some Shakespearean works //
The Tempest
Twelve years ago, Prospero and his young daughter, Miranda, were shipwrecked on an island after his brother Antonio's plot to deprive him of his position as Grand Duke of Milan. One day, in revenge, he creates a storm using magic to lure Antonio, King Alonzo of Naples, and his party to the island by shipwrecking their ship. He sets up Prince Ferdinand and his daughter Miranda to fall in love with Alonzo, who has been separated from him. Elsewhere on the island, Antonio and his brother Sebastian plot to kill Alonzo and the enslaved person Caliban's rebellion against Prospero, but he uses his right-hand man, the air nymph Aeriel, to stop them before they get there. Prospero plays with and punishes his former enemies, but he soon realizes the futility of revenge and decides to forgive them for their crimes. Finally, Prospero appears before them as the Grand Duke of Milan and reconciles with them. Alonzo and his son are reunited, Ferdinand and Miranda are married, and Prospero is free to cast off his magical robe and return to his life in Milan.
The Merchant of Venice
A comedy of commerce and love set in the Republic of Venice and the fictional city of Belmont in medieval Italy, it is based on a trial that takes place when a loan shark Shylock's deed of loaning money comes true, and a young man's attempt to win the heart of a beautiful Belmont lady. The story of a young man's attempt to win the heart of a lovely Belmont lady is the basis of this story. There are two primary sources for this story.
Romeo and Juliet
Two mafias rule "Verona Beach." Romeo, the heir to the Montague family, falls in love with Juliet, the daughter of the Capulets when they become enemies. Although Romeo knows it is an unforgivable love, he cannot break his heart and confesses his love to her. They fall in love with each other but are at each other's throats as the rivalry between the two families intensifies.
Othello
The story is about Othello, a Venetian soldier, who kills his wife Desdemona because he suspects her fidelity to him, but later kills himself when he learns the truth.
A Midsummer Night's Dream
The ballet "A Midsummer Night's Dream" takes place in the forests of Athens. The story begins with a quarrel between a married couple, the fairy king Oberon and the fairy queen Titania (also known as Titania). The story centers around Oberon and Titania and involves other couples such as Puck the Fairy, Bottom the Countryman, and Lysander and Hermia.
Macbeth
Macbeth, a brave and daring but petulant general, conspires with his wife to assassinate his lord and ascend to the throne. Still, he cannot bear the internal and external pressures, becomes insane, commits tyranny, and falls victim to the vengeance of the nobles and princes.
The Taming of the Shrew
A young man comes to an Italian village and falls in love with a young local girl. The girl's father, however, will not allow his sister to marry until her older sister is married. The older sister, Katharina, is a well-known horse in the village.
Titus Andronicus
Titus Andronicus, a Roman general, returns triumphant after years of warfare with the Goths. Tamora, the Goth queen whose son was sacrificed by Titus, takes up with Saturninus, the new Roman emperor, becomes his queen and begins her revenge against Andronicus and his family.
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-Add
"Thou art a boil, a plague sore, an embossed carbuncle in my corrupted blood"(King Lear)
King Lear, Act 2, Scene 4. Lear rages about the unfair treatment he has received from Goneril and says that they'll never meet or see each other again. While admitting that she is his flesh and blood and daughter, he cannot come to terms with this. In this passage, he uses graphic disease metaphors to describe her as a boil, plague sore, and tumor that corrupts his blood. Relations between dad and mean daughter has reached a new and unforgiving low.
"I do desire we may be better strangers."(As you like)
As you like, Act 3, Scene 2.
Frederick had exiled his brother, the duke, and taken his place but kept his brother's daughter Rosalind at hand and raised her with his daughter Ciria. Orlando is subjected to a harsh life by his eldest brother Oliver, who has inherited his father's estate. After winning a wrestling tournament sponsored by the Duke, Orlandeau meets Rosalind, and the two fall in love at first sight.
"For time is like a fashionable host, that slightly shakes his parting guest by th' hand."
(Troilus and Cressida)
The setting is the Trojan War. It can be divided into two main strands: the love story between Troilus, a Trojan prince, and Cressida, the daughter of a priest, and Achilles' refusal to enter the war. It is one of Shakespeare's "problem plays.
- Add No.2
7)
"Fair play" falls from Miranda's lips in The Tempest. And did I mention that he invented the knock-knock joke in the Scottish play?
Some phrases have become so well used that they're now regarded as clichés - indeed a compliment for an author so long gone. "A heart of gold"? You'll find it in Henry V, while "the world's mine oyster" crops up in The Merry Wives of Windsor.
"Fair play" (The Tempest)
=(In competition) fair game behavior, fair play, fair treatment.
Spirit of fair play
In each case, he makes subtle little puns on human beings' capacity to exalt clever dishonesty and foolish virtue. The most famous example of its use is in The Tempest (V:1):
Miranda: "Sweet lord, you play me false."
Ferdinand: "No, my dear'st love, I would not go for the world."
Miranda: "Yes, for a score of kingdoms, you should wrangle, and I would call it fair play."
This comes at the end of the play. The marriage of Miranda and Ferdinand is a fair resolution to the play's problems and is a healing of the breach between the two fathers. At the same time, however, 'fair' can also be a 'foul,' and we are reminded of the 'fair is foul and foul is fair' of Macbeth. Ferdinand being fair to himself means 'speaking false' to his new bride-to-be.
"A heart of gold"(Henry V)
=to be very kind and generous:
She has a heart of gold.
The term "heart of gold" is expected today, having been first used in Shakespeare's play, Henry V.
On the eve of the Battle of Agincourt, King Henry disguises himself as an ordinary soldier. He wanders under the dark cover to chat with the soldiers and discover their morale. When he asks Pistol if he considers himself a better man than the king, Pistol says, "The king's a bawcock, and a heart of gold, a lad of life, an imp of fame ..." (Act 4, Scene 1), suggesting that he admires the king.
"The world's mine oyster" (The Merry Wives of Windsor.)
=If the world is your oyster, you can do what you want or go where you want:
You're young, healthy, and have no commitments - the world is your oyster.
'The world is your oyster' is often said to young people about to embark on adult life. It simply means that everything is open to one, and one could encounter something extraordinary if one is lucky.
The metaphor that informs the saying is that if you have an oyster, there is a chance that there may be a pearl in it. A lovely fresh oyster can be hard to open, but once opened, it's good. And perhaps it may have a pearl in it, which would be a valuable addition to one's life. So when we seek our fortune, the pearl is the good luck we may have. If we're lucky, we will find it.
The saying has mysteriously evolved from its original appearance in Shakespeare's comedy, The Merry Wives of Windsor. It's slightly misquoted, as is often the case with Shakespeare references that become English idioms. The actual quote is, 'The world's mine, oyster.'
Shakespeare re-introduces one of his most famous characters, Sir John Falstaff, as a con man planning to con two Windsor women out of their money. He has his usual disreputables around him, a man called Pistol who utters the immortal line 'the world's mine oyster' during a conversation about money. The conversation goes:
Falstaff: I will not lend thee a penny.
Pistol: Why then the world's mine oyster, Which I, with a sword, will open.
Falstaff: Not a penny.
The original metaphor of the world being an oyster had violent connotations. If you don't give me money, I will have no alternative but to use violence to get it. I will get what I want by robbery and murder. There is also a veiled threat against Falstaff personally from this thoroughly disreputable man, Pistol.
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- Add No.3
6)
And did I mention that he invented the knock-knock joke in the Scottish play?
"knock knock! Who's there?"
In English, a "knock knock joke" is a play on words, like a so-called pun or riddle in Japanese.
The standard flow of this joke is:
Knock knock!
Who is there?
Amos" (the name is answered by saying, for example, "Amos")
Amos who?
A mosquito! (It may be a little difficult to understand in Japanese alone.)
Although there is no direct proof, it is said that this "knock-knock joke" came from a famous scene in Shakespeare's "Macbeth."
****
//Edited Article//
1)
If you missed Shakespeare's 450th birthday, you can be sure he'd have had a zinger of a putdown to sling your way.
"Thou art a boil, a plague sore, an embossed carbuncle in my corrupted blood" might do it, borrowed from King Lear, railing against his daughter, Goneril.
Or perhaps he'd settle for more aloof damnation along the lines of Orlando's insult to Jaques in as You Like It:
"I do desire we may be better strangers."
2)
During his 52 years on earth, he enriched the English language in ways so profound it's almost impossible to gauge his impact fully.
Even if you've never read one of his sonnets or seen a play - even if you've never watched a movie adaptation - you're likely to have quoted him unwittingly. It's almost impossible to avoid.
3)
Of course, fellow artists readily draw on him for paintings, operas, and ballets.
Shakespeare's influence is evident in popular and high culture: singer-songwriter Nick Lowe's 1970s earworm, "Cruel to be Kind," took its title from lines Hamlet addressed to his mother.
4)
Hamlet also yielded the title of Agatha Christie's theatrical smash, The Mousetrap, and Alfred Hitchcock's evocative spy thriller, North by Northwest.
That one play alone has inspired other writers in numerous genres at far-flung ends of the literary spectrum.
5)
Famous phrases
These catchy titles barely gesture to Shakespeare's influence on the minutiae of our lives.
If you've ever been 'in a pickle,' waited 'with bated breath,' or go on 'A wild goose chase,' you've been quoting from The Tempest, The Merchant of Venice, and Romeo and Juliet, respectively.
6)
Next time you refer to jealousy as "the green-eyed monster," know that you're quoting Othello's arch-villain, Iago.
Allow yourself to "gossip" (A Midsummer Night's Dream), and you're quoting him.
And did I mention that he invented the knock-knock joke in the Scottish play?
"The be-all and end-all" are uttered by Macbeth as he murderously contemplates King Duncan.
7)
"Fair play" falls from Miranda's lips in The Tempest. And did I mention that he invented the knock-knock joke in the Scottish play?
Some phrases have become so well used that they're now regarded as clichés - indeed a compliment for an author so long gone. "A heart of gold"? You'll find it in Henry V, while "the world's mine oyster" crops up in The Merry Wives of Windsor.
8)
Life imitates art
His impact endures in how we express ourselves, experience, and process the world around us.
Had Shakespeare not given us the words, would we truly feel "bedazzled" (The Taming of the Shrew)?
9)
Had he not taught us the word "gloomy" (Titus Andronicus), would it be a feeling we recognized in ourselves?
And could we "grovel" effectively (Henry VI, Part II) or be properly "sanctimonious" (The Tempest) had he not shown us how?
10)
Victorian word expert F Max Muller estimated that Shakespeare used 15,000 words in his plays.
By contrast, Milton used a mere 8,000, and the Old Testament comprises 5,642.
Meanwhile, an unschooled agricultural worker of the day would have said all that he had to say in fewer than 300 words.
11)
Scholars have argued back and forth over just how many of these words and phrases Shakespeare coined and how many he merely popularised by bedding them down in a memorable plot.
In the past few years, quantitative analysis and digital databases have allowed computers to simultaneously search thousands of texts, leading scholars to believe that we may have overestimated his contribution to the English language.
12)
In some ways, this makes Shakespeare's flair and originality all the more impressive.
His linguistic arsenal didn't contain vastly more than those of his contemporaries, yet he is the story we remember.
New words attributed to Shakespeare have probably been over-counted by a factor of at least two. The OED is coming to reflect this: in the 1950s, Shakespeare's tally of first-use citations stood at 3,200. Today, it's around 2,000.
13)
Would "fashionable" have caught on had not set it in such a wry sentence as in "Troilus and Cressida? "
"For time is like a fashionable host, that slightly shakes his parting guest by th' hand."
Then there's the fact that these words are voiced by some unforgettable characters - men and women who, despite the extraordinary situations in which they tend to find themselves, are fully and profoundly human in their strengths and frailties.
It's little wonder that critic Harold Bloom titled his 1998 book on the man Shakespeare:
The Invention of the Human.
If the mark of a great writer is that they're still read, then perhaps the impact of a genius is that they're still spoken, too.
How Shakespeare influences the way we speak now
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20140527-say-what-shakespeares-words
Shakespeare's use of the 'heart of gold' phrase
https://nosweatshakespeare.com/quotes/famous/heart-of-gold/
'Fair Play,' Meaning & Context
https://nosweatshakespeare.com/quotes/famous/fair-play/
fashionable lady - William Shakespeare
https://www.allgreatquotes.com/king-lear-quotes-167/
8 English Phrases from Shakespeare
https://preply.com/ja/blog/shieikusupiakaraxue-buying-yu-nohurezu8ge/
Shakespeare's music
https://blog.goo.ne.jp/sasatat/e/ec36f36cb20b176a17e247fa6e0e633b