This year is Shakespeare's 400 death anniversary; just in case, William, also called the Bard, died on 23rd April 1616 in Stratford-upon-Avon. Perhaps, you know that another great writer also died on that day, any idea? Yes, you got it right, Miguel de Cervantes.
Another coincidence , or probably not, is that on this very day ,the celebration of Sant Jordi is held in Catalonia and other parts of the Mediterranean coast such as the País Valencià.
Sant Jordi is about books and roses but it mostly celebrates literature.
Well, Shakespeare was both a prolific playwright and sensitive poet who wrote thirty-seven plays, 154 sonnets and five narrative poems. One of his finest sonnets is number 18, Shall I compare thee. Please, listen to the poem and pay attention to the iambic pentameter, which is a common feature in Shakespeare' sonnets.
Here's the poem written in 17th century English caligraphy. Read it and try to understand its meaning.
Notes: Thou means you (subject), art is are, hath is has, thee is you (object), thy is your.
This is the poem in modern English caligraphy:
Every 23rd April we celebrate literature and writers, since it was last Saturday you can also contribute to the fine art of writing and reciting. Write a post on literature. This post will have two sections: a podcast and a mini project about a writer.
In the podcast you should read a poem or some lines from a novel which could be a well-known paragraph from the beginning of the book or the middle or even the ending. Maybe you would enjoy reading a description of a character or simply a part that you love reading. It has to be 1 minute long. Don't forget to mention the writer's name, the tittle and when it was written.
The mini project has to deal about the writer of the poem, novel in the podcast. You can create a Prezi on the writer's life and works with videos, audios, paragraphs from novels.. so on and so forth.
Watch this prezi to get an idea on how to create one.
Best of luck!!
