Greetings mystery lovers! This project started out as a labor of love to keep my own children entertained, but since they loved it so much, I thought I’d adapt it for my own students over Outschool. Get ready to take a trip to the wild and mysterious town known as Gravity Falls!
Concept: To create a fun, informative program on astronomical subjects for children ages 8-12
Student Description: Save the Mystery Shack from Bill Cypher, and learn about secret codes!
Parent Description Using self-paced online activities, and a helpful handout, your child(ren) will learn about secret codes and cyphers as they defeat Bill, the villain from the popular Disney show Gravity Falls. The class will cover the basics of codes, cyphers, and computer coding.
The goal of the class is to introduce young people to codes and ciphers, with a little introduction to computer coding as well. Students will learn by translating the coded messages, learning about computer code, and practicing it in online games.
Class Experience Outline
The class is organized into 5 parts that students can complete at their own pace over a week-long period). When you sign up for the class, I will send you a link to a website, (powered by Google Sites), that will feature embedded YouTube videos and Google slides that you can complete at your own pace. Some pages require you to search for a picture and click on it to advance (a sort of I-spy game). If you are confused, a handout will be provided that gives helpful hints and answers the questions.
Part I: Introduction to Bill and Ciphers
The class will begin with a short YouTube video embedded into a Google Slide where the evil Bill Cipher appears and demands that the learner must solve his puzzles and codes. The learner will get a background on codes via a video starring Waddles the Pig. The next few slides will introduce the concept of a cipher- a code where a number, letter, or symbol represents a letter of the alphabet. You will be given the real cipher used in the show and use it to translate Bill’s cryptic poem.
Unlock the Ciphers– You will unlock a series of messages using an atbash and a Caesar Cypher. Enter the answer on the websites. Then you will go to the actual Gravity Falls website to unlock the final one.
Find the Tokens To stop Bill, you need to trap him using 8 magical tokens. You’ll find these tokens by finding and clicking them within the pages of the Google Sites website. Each one is inspired by a prop from the show- a hat, an image on a sweater, etc. While you are there, you will play a series of mini-games to test your knowledge and introduce you to the world of computer coding. The final activity introduces you to the website Scratch, a website that teaches children the basics of computer coding. Using a handout and the Scratch website, you will create a short animation using computer code! You will unlock a series of messages using an atbash and a Caesar Cypher. Enter the answer on the websites. Then you will go to the actual Gravity Falls website to unlock the final one.
IV. Home Activity: Dipper’s Guide to Everyday Weirdness
You will be provided with a handout that teaches you how to spot a conspiracy, how to research online safely, and a hidden secret code that answers one of the show’s biggest mysteries!
Conclusion: Fight BIll! In an animation, you will trap Bill within a book using the tokens! As a reward for your bravery and intelligence, the heroes of the show will give you a few more special handouts and printables to help you continue your fight against evil. Stay curious and STAY WEIRD!
Learning Goals
Students will learn about the science of cryptology by practicing their code-breaking skills. This in turn will develop their critical thinking and problem-solving skills. The course also touches on the science of optical illusion and computer coding, which helps students understand how their brains work and how computer programmers create their favorite games. Finally, the course teaches about the concept of conspiracies and how important it is to use verified legitimate sources when looking at information, especially on the internet.
Share this class with a friend — new users will get $20 USD off!
You’ll also get $20 USD when they sign up with your link and take their first class!
I’m really excited about the Disney Plus release of the Percy Jackson TV show. My family and I are really enjoying it and I think it’s a very good adaptation, (much more faithful than the previous movie versions). The tone is darker, the characters are better fleshed out, and also there’s a much more nuanced take on Percy’s character, which I believe is at the core of the series. The movie is essentially just a fetch quest where Percy is going from location A to location B looking for various magic items and fighting monsters. Movie Percy is a very static character but in the books and the show, they keep all of those journeys but also delve into his complicated relationship with the gods, his own insecurities growing up without a father, and his overwhelming feeling that this world of gods and mortals is fundamentally flawed and that he is the one to fix it.
“Families are messy. Immortal families are eternally messy. Sometimes the best we can do is to remind each other that we’re related for better or for worse…and try to keep the maiming and killing to a minimum.”
-Percy Jackson, The Sea of Monsters
In short, what makes the show great is that it emphasizes the elements of the book that make it a classic story of a young man who is trying to find his place in the world and complete the quest that his father set for him. Of course, once I started watching it, my Shakespeare Brain activated, and I immediately compared him to Shakespeare’s ultimate example of a hero trying to complete a quest given to him by an absent father- Hamlet. So today I’ll Talk about why I think Percy Jackson is actually a descendant of Hamlet or rather that Hamlet and Percy Jackson are both descendants of the same common ancestor in Greek mythology and touch on what these classic stories can say to us today.
1. The Plot
AI Art I created of Percy Jackson. Nightcreator.com.
As I touched on earlier, there are some glaring similarities between the plots of Percy Jackson and Hamlet- we have a young man who has who hates his stepfather, who is deeply protective of his mother, who goes on a magical quest given to him by his father, (who cannot directly aid him because he’s not physically there). In Percy Jackson, his father is a god- the ancient Greek water god Poseidon, while Hamlet’s father is a ghost. Both heroes have to deal with treachery, uncover a plot, avert potential wars, and get caught up in great military and political power schemes. While Hamlet is trying to restore the rightful heir to the throne (himself), Percy is trying to avoid a war between the gods. Both heroes have stoic sidekicks- Hamlet has Horatio whereas Percy has Annabeth and his friend Grover the Satyr. Hamlet’s friend l Horatio is kind of like a combination of Annabeth’s intelligence and Grover’s kindness and empathy. Finally, both stories conclude in a duel (spoiler alert) where they fight against a near-impossible adversary, and in the end, succeed in their quest, although in Hamlet’s case, he does so at the cost of his own life.
The main difference between these stories is connected to tone and genre- Hamlet is a revenge play, and most Revenge tragedies end in the death of the avenger. Percy Jackson is an adventure quest so based on the conventions, he can succeed, survive, and go off to fight another day. Nevertheless, in terms of the broad outline, the plots are very similar. I would argue this is probably because Hamlet has its roots in many ancient mythological stories like Oedipus, Orestes, and of course, the Danish Viking myth of Amleth. I would argue that both Percy Jackson and Hamlet have a very clear direct common ancestor: the ancient Greek myth of …
As this funny cartoon illustrates, the plots of Percy Jackson and Hamlet can be seen as a modern incarnation of the Perseus myth, from the villainous stepfather to the hero’s protective feelings to the mother to the magical quest to get rid of a stepfather who takes away his birthright. These plot elements follow a very similar formula; as Jake also alluded to, all three of these stories are part of what writers and scholars like to call the monomyth or the “Hero’s journey,” a concept in mythology and storytelling that has inspired works such as Percy Jackson, Star Wars, and many others.
What Is the Monomyth?
Crash Course Mythology- The Monomyth
In 1949, scholar Joseph Campbell wrote a book called “The Hero With a Thousand Faces,” which posited that every culture has stories that fit into universal archetypes- that essentially all human cultures have unique stories, but also call to mind universal truths about humanity. He then distilled the common archetypes and plot tropes of these myths into something called “The monomyth” or “The Hero’s Journey,” a 17-step process that is at the core of many ancient myths, modern adventure stories, or revenge stories such as Hamlet. Below are some of the common tropes of the Hero’s Journey. When you see it spelled out like this, it is very clear that both Hamlet, Percy Jackson, and Perseus follow the Monomyth formula:
Where’s the glory in repeating what others have done?
The Lightining Thief
Every Greek hero starts with a call to adventure- Theseus finds his father’s sword and sets out to find him. Oedipus needs to lift the plague on Thebes, and Hamlet needs to find out why his father’s ghost has returned.
A Half-Blood of the eldest gods, Shall reach sixteen against all odds And see the world in endless sleep The Hero’s soul, cursed blade shall reap A single choice shall end his days Olympus to preserve or raze.
The Oracle- Sea of Mosters
Part II: Refusing the Call
If my life is going to mean anything, I have to live it myself.
The Lighting Thief
I won’t go looking for trouble. I usually don’t have to
Neither Hamlet nor Percy outright refuse to go on their quests, but both experience doubts. Percy, looking at how the gods have cursed and fought and betrayed each other, wonders whether or not they deserve his help:
Percy watches the story of the gods in the Tunnel of Love (Episode 5, Disney Plus 2024.)
Hamlet on the other hand, is so worried that the ghost is trying to deceive him into killing an innocent man, that he nearly kills himself in the most famous speech in all of Shakespeare.
Part III: Supernatural Aide
Supernatural Aid – A magical helper appears or becomes known
Go on with what your heart tells you, or you will lose all.
The Nereiads, Lighting Thief Chapter 17
Both Percy and Perseus get help from the gods- magical weapons, advice, etc. Hamlet gets the revelation from his father that his uncle killed him and how. What sets Hamlet apart from any number of myths is that, since there’s no tangible evidence that his father was there, Hamlet is not sure if his father helped him, or if he is going insane.
Suspecting and knowing are not the same.
-The Lighting Thief
Crossing the first threshold
In Perseus, the first threshold would be when he leaves Acrisius’ palace and sails to the island of Cerebos. In Percy Jackson, this would be when he leaves Yancy Academy and goes to Camp Half-Blood, and in Hamlet, it would be when he meets the ghost.
My fate cries out, and makes each petty artery in this body as hardy as the Nemian Lion’s mane. Still am I called!
Hamlet, Act I, Scene iii.
Belly of THe BEast
There’s always a part of the story when a character feels they are in too deep. Sometimes it’s a literal belly of the beast- Pinocchio and the whale, Luke Skywalker and the Sarlaac pit, Frodo when he reaches Mordor, and Agent K in Men In Black when he literally gets eaten by the Bug. In Percy Jackson, it would definitely be when he journeys to Hades, like many Greek heroes like Orpheus or Hercules.
I’d love to tell you I had some deep revelation on my way down, that I came to terms with my own mortality, laughed in the face of death, et cetera.
The truth? My only thought was: Aaaaggghhhhh!.
Usually, the belly of the beast occurs near the climax of the story- the ultimate test of the hero’s courage and resolve. For Hamlet, this would be the duel with Laertes- he’s in a situation where Claudius has total control of what he does.
“You weren’t able to talk sense into him?” “Well, we kind of tried to kill each other in a duel to the death.” “I see. You tried the diplomatic approach.” (The Sea of Monsters)
I’ll get into a deeper summary of the steps of the Hero’s journey on my podcast later this month, but to summarize, the Hero’s Journey is essentially a story of growth, maturity, and enlightenment. It’s not a coincidence that all three of these heroes are young men who leave home and then return to confront an evil stepfather or uncle. Campbell regarded the Hero’s journey as a metaphor for young men growing up, learning about themselves, gaining confidence in themselves and their abilities, and taking their rightful place in society by displacing a corrupt older authority figure. This is also why these stories often resonate with young people, and why storytellers like Disney often use the Hero’s Journey as a template for children’s movies.
These universal stories of growing up, maturity, and a life worth living have always inspired people and even though the stories have different purposes and the plots take different forms, the core of what makes them universal remains the same.
I found this wonderful short clip from Dr. James Allen Jones, a Shakespearean scholar and actor who draws parallels between the miracle of Hanukkah and this passage from Othello:
Duke of Venice: Let me speak like yourself, and lay a sentence, Which, as a grise or step, may help these lovers Into your favour. When remedies are past, the griefs are ended By seeing the worst, which late on hopes depended. To mourn a mischief that is past and gone Is the next way to draw new mischief on. What cannot be preserved when fortune takes Patience her injury a mockery makes. The robb'd that smiles steals something from the thief; He robs himself that spends a bootless grief. Othello, Act I, Scene iii, lines 547-558
The Context
Desdemona has married Othello, but her father Brabantio cannot comprehend why a woman like her would disobey him, much less marry a black man. He is actually convinced that Othello must have used drugs or witchcraft to seduce Desdemona, and calls both of them to court before the Duke. The Duke hears the argument patiently and concludes that Desdemona’s love for Othello is genuine. In the lines above he speaks to Brabantio giving him friendly advice as if he were Brabantio’s conscience, (or the sense of judgment that he so clearly lacks). The Duke urges this father to let go of his “grief” over losing his daughter because it will only invite further suffering.
Sadly Brabantio doesn’t take this advice at all, and ‘warns’ Othello that she could just as easily betray him as she betrayed her father. Arguably, this plants the first seeds of doubt and jealousy in Othello’s mind, the seeds with Iago so carefully cultivates.
The miracle of Hanukkah is that the Israelites were able to see clearly who they were and preserve their culture in the face of annihilation. Sadly, the characters in Othello are all blinded- blinded by racism (Brabantio, Iago), lust, (Rodrigo), love (Desdemona), and jealousy (Othello). I thought Dr. Jones drew some very interesting parallels between Shakespeare and Hanukkah, and I’m happy to share them with you:
“Welcome Spirit, How Camest Thou hither?” The sources for Puck
Puck, in medieval English folklore, a malicious fairy or demon. In Old and Middle English the word meant simply “demon.” In Elizabethan lore he was a mischievous, brownielike fairy also called Robin Goodfellow, or Hobgoblin. As one of the leading characters in William Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream, Puck boasts of his pranks of changing shapes, misleading travelers at night, spoiling milk, frightening young girls, and tripping venerable old dames. The Irish pooka, or púca, and the Welsh pwcca are similar household spirits.
Shakespeare also took inspiration from English poet Edmund Spencer, who visited Ireland in the 1590s and adapted the folklore he picked up into his opera The Fairy Queen, which Shakespeare adapted into A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Types of fairies you can “spot” at the Lullymore Park in Ireland:
Puck/Robin’s Dual Nature
The old stories tell that Fairies are magical creatures who live in hollow places in the earth. Some are benevolent and help give rain and pleasant weather to the Earth, Like the king and Queen of the fairies, Oberon and Titania:
And the mazed world, By their [the tides] increase, now knows not which is which: And this same progeny of evils comes From our debate, from our dissension; We are their parents and original.
— Titania, (Queen of the Faries), A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act II, Scene i.
Titania in this speech shows great concern for nature, humanity, and the planet. She believes it is the responsibility of fairies, particularly herself and her husband Oberon, to control the elements and keep humans and fairies safe. Some fairies, however, are cruel and enjoy playing tricks on mortals, just like Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, or Queen Mab in Romeo and Juliet.
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
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This is a short analysis I created of the tricks Puck plays on people in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as part of my acting course on Ouschool.com. Note the different ways Puck is portrayed in photos as a satyr, a rotund elf, and sometimes as an almost- demon like figure.
Punishments or contracts with fairies formed a significant part of Goodfellow’s purpose on earth. While he could issue good fortune and support, this was always at the cost of those involved. As Reginald Scot commented, Goodfellow had a ‘standing fee’ of a ‘mess of white bread and milk’, which he expected after supporting housewives with their chores. If his payment was forgotten, Goodfellow was believed to steal from the home that owed him, often stealing grain and milk from the dairy.
Abigail Sparkes, Historic UK.com
Performing Puck
Because Puck is not human, and somewhat ambiguous in the text, an actor can play Puck in many different ways. Generally speaking, actors tend to explore Puck’s attitude toward humans, their love of mischief, and how to translate that physically and vocally
Puck. My mistress with a monster is in love. Near to her close and consecrated bower, While she was in her dull and sleeping hour, A crew of patches, rude mechanicals, Were met together to rehearse a play The shallowest thick-skin of that barren sort, Who Pyramus presented, in their sport Forsook his scene and enter’d in a brake When I did him at this advantage take, An ass’s nole I fixed on his head:
Anon his Thisbe must be answered, And forth my mimic comes. So, at his sight, away his fellows fly; And, at our stamp, here o’er and o’er one falls; He murder cries and help from Athens calls. I led them on in this distracted fear, And left sweet Pyramus translated there: When in that moment, so it came to pass, Titania waked and straightway loved an ass!
I know I haven’t posted in a while. I’ve been working on my education certification so I’ve been pretty busy. My last project was about using theater as an educational tool, so I thought I’d reprint it here. I’ll add some notes later on to show how this can be adapted to Shakespeare, but for now, hopefully, this can be an interesting look at theater as a way for children to cope with trauma, etc.
INTRODUCTION
Numerous studies from educators, neuroscientists, and nonprofit organizations have demonstrated that children’s brains benefit from the arts. According to David A. Sousa in his book How the Brain Learns, human beings have used art forms as teaching from the very beginning of civilization, and every child’s early development can benefit from the kind of imaginative play that children naturally engage in:
Much of what young children do as play- singing, drawing, dancing…engages all the senses and helps wire the brain for successful learning. When children enter school, these art activities need to be continued and enhanced. The cognitive areas are developed as the child learns songs and rhymes. The dancing and movements during play develop gross motor skills, and the sum of these activities enhances emotional well-being.
(Sousa 215)
One method to continue this kind of artistic learning in a classroom is dramatic play or drama therapy: using theatrical games and techniques as a teaching tool. This paper will demonstrate how educators have used dramatic play to improve socio/emotional learning, as well as cognitive development. In particular, the studies and books cited in this paper will argue that a dramatic play intervention in schools would be beneficial to students who are facing challenges due to emotional disorders.
After reviewing case studies in drama therapy and reading literature on dramatic play, the author of this paper is convinced that a dramatic therapy intervention could and should be available to children with emotional disorders. The goal of the intervention is to help students with emotional disorders through creative play, dramatic exploration, textual analysis, and roleplay-based problem-solving. The suggested intervention would help students confront their problems in a safe way and help them develop problem-solving strategies over the course of a few weeks.
WHAT IS DRAMATIC PLAY?
According to West Governor’s University, dramatic play involves students taking on roles and acting them out to explore themselves and their surroundings. WGU’s website identifies two basic types of dramatic play- structured and unstructured. In the case of structured play, it may take the form of roleplaying scenarios, or performing a specific group activity or task. Finally, the play may center around interpreting a text such as a book, play, or some other artform. The roles the students play need not be a pre-written story. When students take on these roles to play, they may better understand their real-life roles and how to perform them in real life.
In her 2015 article, Analysis of Three Approaches in Dramatherapy, Ivana Lessner Listiakova compares and contrasts three approaches of drama therapy: Role Theory, Psychodrama, and Developmental Transformation. In all three approaches, participants may gain a new understanding of themselves and a healthy way of processing their emotions. Within Role Theory, participants examine Jungian archetypal roles and counter roles within themselves by embodying them. In Psychodrama, participants enact moments from their own lives and have emotional and mental epiphanies by looking at those moments with a critical eye. Finally, in Developmental Transformation, participants arrive at roles and stories organically through a sort of “improvised series of encounters,” rather than a set story that is agreed upon beforehand. Listiakova emphasizes that these approaches work within psychotherapy because rather than the direct uncomfortable confrontations found in traditional therapy, dramatherapy uses the theater’s distance from the client and the metaphorical nature of storytelling to allow clients to see the issues and emotions that they face in their lives in a new light.
HOW DRAMATIC PLAY BENEFITS CHILDREN WITH EMOTIONAL DISORDERS.
A study by Roundabout Dramatherapy in 2013 in the journal Dramatherapy (Godfrey 20-28), demonstrates how drama therapy can specifically benefit developmental disorders like Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Roundabout is a London-based charity aimed at improving the lives of children on the Autism Spectrum. Through a collaboration with Emma Godfrey, (a psychotherapist and drama therapist), this article chronicled the success of its drama therapy sessions over three primary schools and five secondary schools. Before and after each program of drama therapy, teachers, parents, and students submitted evaluations and questionnaires to Roundabout.
The students showed marked improvement in the following specific areas: [processing}f, working with peers, social skills, structure, and anxiety. Most children on the Autism spectrum struggle with these very skills, therefore this kind of play was incredibly useful for these students. The activities encouraged at Roundabout developed specific life skills such as saying hello and goodbye and relaxation techniques to quell anxiety:
Dramatherapy is particularly appropriate for this client group as it develops social skills and supports the expression of feelings through structured work that helps reduce anxiety. The dramatherapist can model clear, expressive communication, as well as facilitate the development of relationships with others, which gives participants numerous opportunitiesto rehearse and replay social skills until they are learned and integrated into behavior. (Godfrey 21)
Godfrey’s study showed that students with ASD benefited from modeled play, in which the teachers rehearsed and practiced important life skills in class that taught the students how to compensate for their inability to intuit social cues. As this quote from a parent whose child was part of the study illustrates, dramatherapy can help ASD students gain a better understanding of themselves, how to interact with people, and help them develop tools to engage with others and control their anxiety and other forms of emotional stress:
It has really helped him to understand his emotions and friendships more. At times he has found it challenging but it’s been great for him to do that in a safe and caring environment where the people running it understand his issues (Godfrey 25).
The sources cited above confirm that students with emotional disorders can benefit from different forms of dramatic play and develop coping mechanisms and skills to help enrich and improve their lives.
DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATION
As the literature previously demonstrates, dramatic play is an excellent educational tool to help students process their emotions and prevent anxiety through role-playing while promoting social, emotional, and physical health. The author’s suggested interventions, like the study by Roundabout, would carefully monitor child development as students engaged in formal and informal activities to help develop social skills, reduce anxiety, and develop emotional coping skills.
A potential format for the intervention would be to start with unstructured drama games designed to engage the children’s imagination, and promote positive emotion. The teacher would then move into a check-in-check-out therapy to guide the students into thinking about their feelings and social situations that the therapy would address. The class could then turn to role-play and role theory, where students would explore sources of stress, anxiety, or difficulty in a safe roleplay-based setting. The session might then conclude with a creative group project such as superhero play, or reading and acting out a storybook or text, (with emphasis on books that promote healthy social and emotional behavior).
The work of Sousa, Godfrey, Hereford, and others indicates that dramatic play can be a powerful method to improve the lives of children with emotional disorders, and their techniques would translate well to children with anxiety, Autism Spectrum Disorders, or depression. The potential intervention described in this paper would use these techniques effectively to benefit children with these and other emotional disorders. Since the onset of COVID-19 in 2020, mental health has been a big concern in schools, and cases of ASD have been increasing over the last few decades (Godfrey 21). There has never been a greater need for mental health interventions in classrooms, and dramatic play is a particularly effective method to help the growing number of children who require intervention.
Godfrey, E., & Haythorne, D. (2013). Benefits of Dramatherapy for Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Qualitative Analysis of Feedback from Parents and Teachers of Clients Attending Roundabout Dramatherapy Sessions in Schools. Dramatherapy, 35(1), 20–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/02630672.2013.773131
Kissinger, K. (2017). Anti-bias education in the early childhood classroom : hand in hand, step by step. Routledge.
For Pride Month, I’d like to draw some focus to a celebrated LGBTQ film, based on a play that, while not Shakespearean, it was by one of Shakespeare’s contemporaries and one who influenced Shakespeare a lot. This film, Edward II, directed by Derek Jarman, was based on the play of the same name by Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593). The film came out in 1991, during the AIDS crisis, when gay and lesbian people were not only fighting for their lives against a devastating epidemic but also for acceptance from the heterosexual community. This film is not only a striking, well-acted, well-directed adaptation of Marlowe’s play; it is also an encapsulation of the fears, struggles, and anxieties of the LGBTQ+ community at the time.
Plot Summary/ Great Quotes
Biography Of King Edward II
Edward II was the son of the infamous King Edward I, aka, Edward the Longshanks, the Scottish Hammer. He lived from 1307-1327 – until he was assassinated.
Fact Vs. Fiction
Peter Hanley as Prince Edward in “Braveheart” (1995) directed by Mel Gibson.
Aside from a few historical footnotes, I’m betting that when we think of Edward II, we mostly think of this portrayal in the 1995 film Braveheart. Frankly, most contemporary accounts of Edward II’s reign are similar to this portrayal- vain, spoiled, weak, deluded, and an utter disgrace to his warrior father. One of his greatest embarrassments was his army’s catastrophic defeat at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. Edward’s sources mainly portray him as weak and feeble compared to his father, but we have to remember that this was a cruel, warlike society with very little place for anyone who didn’t conform to stereotypical masculine virtues. Probably in the minds of the English court, Edward’s homosexuality was linked with his failures as a king. It was up to Jarman’s production to make Edward feel more like a real man, and not just a gay stereotype.
Play Vs. Movie
In the play, it’s ambiguous whether Galveston really loves Edward, or if he’s using him for the king’s power and protection. In the movie, Galveston is definitely using Edward, making the king’s fawning all the more pathetic and tragic. As his son asks: “Why do you love him when all the world hates him?” This makes our sympathies teter between Edward and his court- we wish Edward would open his eyes and get rid of Galveston, but at the same time, who hasn’t been blinded by love? At the same time, Galveston has been hurting the country, and taking Edward away from his court and his queen. Like many other stories of monarchs in love, including the real-life story of our current king, there is a constant tension in the court between the monarch’s personal desires, and his or her responsibilities to the country.
Biography of Marlowe
Edward II and Richard II
Many scholars believe that Marlowe’s play helped influence Shakespeare’s Richard II, as they both center around weak, sometimes effeminate kings that fall prey to the machinations of other lords. In Shakespeare’s play, it is possible to play Richard as being in love with some of his favorite courtiers, but nothing is explicit. Obviously, Marlowe was much more overt in Edward’s love for Gaveston. To demonstrate how these plays are similar, here’s Ian McKellen playing Richard II:
Is this play Homophobic?
On the one hand, the story shows Edward as effeminate, weak-willed, and poor in judgment which does align with offensive homosexual stereotypes. On the other hand, the other lords of the court are portrayed as cruel and intolerant, and Jarman definitely makes Mortimer a cruel and homophobic individual. In addition, when Edward’s son Edward III, who famously conquered England and France, he is shown in the movie wearing drag, which clearly shows that a member of the LGBTQ community need not be weak or ineffective. It also shows that Edward III has inherited his mother’s strength, not his father’s weakness.
Book cover for Ian Doescher’s “The Empire Striketh Back,” a Shakespearean parody of Star Wars Episode 5.
Well today is May 4rth, when a lot of people have chosen to celebrate one of the most iconic movies of the 20th century: Star Wars! And why not? The story is full of conflict, introspection, love, change, the conflict between fathers and sons, and occasionally guidance from ghosts. Wait, that sounds familiar- it’s a lot like Shakespeare! Yes, the movie has a lot of parallels with the Shakespearean canon, and I’d like to share some of those similarities here. Below is a post I did for the American Shakespeare Center about how the Star Wars prequels parallel Shakespeare’s history saga of Henry the Sixth:
This is part of my upcoming podcast where I demonstrate how similar Yoda’s speech is to some Shakespearean dialogue. Actor and puppeteer Frank Oz, who puppeteered the character and supplied the voice explained that the idea behind the character’s iconic speech pattern was a discovery he made reading through the script:
“It’s funny you ask about [Yoda] because I was just looking at the original script of The Empire Strikes Back the other day and there was a bit of that odd syntax in it, but also it had Yoda speaking very colloquially. So I said to George [Lucas]: ‘Can I do the whole thing like this?’ And he said: ‘Sure!’ It just felt so right.”
There are a lot of in-universe theories as to why Yoda speaks like this. David Adger, from Queen Mary University of London has a theory that, much like many Latin languages have a different syntax than English, perhaps Yoda is speaking in the syntax of his language while speaking English:
He’s speaking English but changed the structure of it to be like his native language,” Adger points out. “We can find out something about Yoda’s native language by looking at how he speaks English, in the same way as I can find out about a French person’s native language by looking at how that French person speaks English. Yoda says things like ‘the greatest teacher failure is’… If you were to say that in a language like Hawaiian … it would be almost exactly the same … putting the predicate before the subject,” the professor used as an example.
From a Shakespearean perspective, what Yoda is doing is called anastrophe, a rhetorical technique that is used for emphasis. Instead of the familiar- Subject-Verb-Object syntax of English, the order is flipped to grab the reader/ listener’s attention:
According to Silvae Rhetorica (The Forest of Rhetoric), the word Anastrophe is Greek for “backward turning,” where the writer twist the word order around. As I said before, this creates a surprising effect, much like this painting by Picasso:
“People take the eye for granted. If I paint an eye in an eye socket, they take it for granted. If I take it out of the eye socket and stick it somewhere else, it comes as a shock, and they see the eye anew.”
— Pablo Picasso
In the following slides, (which I found from Slideplayer.com), you can see examples of how Shakespeare and Yoda use anastrophe.
So I hope this post has helped you understand the force of Yoda’s unique style of speaking that was first used by The Bard!
If you liked this post, please listen to my new podcast about Ian Doescher’s Shakespearean parody of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, which I’ll publish on May 4rth (hopefully)
While researching for my upcoming podcast on Shakespeare’s Star Wars, I found this great article by fellow Shakespeare blogger William Shakespeare In Media. They have a great analysis of Ian Doescher’s parody “William Shakespeare’s Star Wars,” with some details I didn’t know the first time around! So please show them your support, and tell them Shakespearean Student sent you!
The Shakespearean Student 