ARMS OF JOHN SHAKESPEARE
SCHOOL COURSES IN SHAKESPEARE
What plays of Shakespeare are to be recommended for school use, and in what order should they be taken up? These are questions often addressed to me by teachers, and I will attempt to answer them briefly here.
Of the thirty-seven (or thirty-eight if we include the Two Noble Kinsmen) plays in the standard editions of Shakespeare, twenty at least are suitable for use in "mixed" schools. Among the "comedies" are The Merchant of Venice, A Midsummer-Night's Dream, As You Like It, Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing, The Tempest, The Winter's Tale, and The Taming of the Shrew; among the "tragedies," Macbeth, Hamlet, Lear, and Romeo and Juliet; and among the historical plays, Julius Cæsar, Coriolanus, King John, Richard II., Henry IV. Part I., Henry V., Richard III., and Henry VIII.
Certain plays, like Cymbeline, Othello, and Antony and Cleopatra, are not, in my opinion, to be commended for "mixed" schools or classes, but may be used in others at the discretion of the teacher.
If but one play is read, my own choice would be The Merchant of Venice; except for classical schools, where Julius Cæsar is to be preferred. All the leading colleges now require one or more plays of Shakespeare as part of the preparation in English, and Julius Cæsar is almost invariably included for every year.
If two plays can be read, the Merchant and Julius Cæsar may be commended; or either of these with As You Like It, or with Macbeth, if a tragedy is desired. Macbeth is the shortest of the great tragedies (only a trifle more than half the length of Hamlet, for instance), and seems to me unquestionably the best for an ordinary school course.
For a selection of three plays, we may take the Merchant (or Julius Cæsar), As You Like It (or Twelfth Night or Much Ado—the other two of the trio of "Sunny or Sweet-Time Comedies," as Furnivall calls them), and Macbeth. An English historical play (King John, Richard II., Henry IV. Part I., or Henry V.) may be substituted for the comedy, if preferred; and Hamlet for Macbeth, if time permits and the teacher chooses. As I have said, Hamlet is about twice as long as Macbeth, and should have at least treble the time devoted to it.